The mission of Jesuit High School as a Catholic, college preparatory school is to develop in its students the competence, conscience, and compassion that will enable them to be men of faith and men for others. How does Jesuit fulfill this mission?
ACADEMIC FORMATION College can be challenging. One reason young men choose to spend the most important years of their lives at Jesuit is to prepare themselves for this next level. From what is taught to how it is taught, everything at Jesuit is geared to preparing each person for a successful college experience and for a successful life in the 21st century.
Everyone wants to excel. The challenge is to strive to work consistently to always do a little more. By accepting the challenge to grow in the tradition of academic excellence, a student accepts the challenge of becoming a man – A Man for Others. Capitalizing on strengths and eliminating weaknesses is a proven formula for success.
Jesuit is also aware that it takes a special type of young man to accept the challenge that a Jesuit High School education offers. The advanced and regular college preparatory curricula provide a solid foundation. But they are designed also to make you think, to inquire, to discuss, to apply-- all within a broad scope of subjects. Students are expected to strive to become the best at Jesuit, and it pays off. Jesuit graduates are now successfully matriculating at many out-of-state universities such as Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Stanford, West Point – and at the various in-state universities such as Tulane, LSU, Loyola, and Xavier. The graduates of 2007 were awarded $18,369,217.00 in scholarships to colleges and universities from around the country.)
Jesuit is sensitive to the fact that each young man possesses talents and interests, as well as performance skills, in varying degrees. A regular assessment and placement program is the system Jesuit uses to keep students challenged, but not overwhelmed or under-challenged. The rotating schedule utilized by the school allows for seven subjects to be part of the semester curriculum and keeps each student invigorated with a different subject at a different time each day.
At Jesuit, we want all Blue Jays to succeed and develop a life long love of learning. The Jesuit student enjoys a variety of scheduling possibilities all based on his placement on proficiency examinations. While success at Jesuit includes 32 National Merit Semifinalists, 1 National Hispanic Scholar, and 1 National Achievement Semifinalist, it also embraces the 69% of the student body not in the traditional accelerated program. The challenge that is Jesuit and the desire to excel result in the student being the best man he can be.
But where do these young men who accept the challenge come from?
They come from Uptown, Mid City, Metairie, Kenner, Chalmette, the West Bank, Luling, Destrahan, and beyond. They come from more than 50 zip codes in the New Orleans metropolitan area and from as far away as Baton Rouge.
They come from 130 different public, private, and parochial schools.
The Jesuit student comes from every neighborhood. Black and white, Asian and Hispanic, rich and poor – once admitted – all are Blue Jays. The mix of socio-economic levels and ethnic backgrounds has proven successful to a Jesuit education for years. In this way, a young man learns to accept each and every one of his fellow students as a brother.
Yes. Jesuit is unique. Although admission is very competitive and highly sought-after, Jesuit builds a fraternal bond among those who share its experience. Jesuit students are the best, striving to be better – not simply for the personal benefits of excellence, rather that they will be better prepared to serve the community of mankind.
RELIGIOUS FORMATION Jesuit education is based on 450 years of excellence. Since 1548 the Jesuits have imparted a classical education in a Christian context. The curriculum, if you are willing to accept a challenge, is designed to develop disciplined habits, to stimulate critical thinking, and to develop the skills necessary for the expression of that thinking. Beyond academic growth, Jesuit fosters spiritual growth. Practical experiences through service projects supplement classroom knowledge. Through service, each Blue Jay learns the most valuable gift is giving of himself in service to others.
There is a difference between formation and information. While teachers at Jesuit are concerned about information in their classes, everyone at Jesuit is involved in the religious formation of the students. A variety of experiences provide the opportunity for spiritual growth: daily liturgies, retreats, and special service programs, to mention but a few.
Jesuit students and alumni live by the motto: Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam – For the Greater Glory of God. Everything a Jesuit student does and thinks he does AMDG. Jesuit students do not strive for excellence and championships for their own glory or the glory of their school; they do it For The Greater Glory of God.
Jesuit builds Men For Others. This is the ultimate goal of a Jesuit education. By truly being a man for others, each student can fulfill responsibilities to his God, to his family, and to himself. Coming to Jesuit with families as growing men of faith, each young man will mature in his spiritual relationship with his God and others.
Grade level retreats, days of recollection, liturgies, and other forms of personal religious formation are all part of the Jesuit experience. While each class level makes an annual on-campus retreat, Juniors make an overnight retreat at a retreat center. Seniors have the opportunity to make a three-day retreat at a retreat center. Daily Mass is offered on campus, and once a month the entire Jesuit community gathers for Mass in the school’s Chapel of the North American Martyrs.
But becoming a Man For Others is much more than religious services. Each student is required to complete 100 hours of service to his fellow man by counseling at Muscular Dystrophy and children’s cancer camps, assisting communities in Appalachia, aiding at retirement homes, and potentially volunteering their time in many other service areas.
Yearly students, faculty, and staff donate food for more than 400 thanksgiving baskets that they distribute to the needy of our community. The Mission Drive annually collects funds to help the Jesuit missions in third-world countries. Virtually every organization at Jesuit High School such as the Columbian Squires, the Peace & Justice Society, the Key Club, the athletic teams, the National Honor Society, and more, serve their fellow man by assisting at events such as the Special Olympics on helping in disaster cleanup areas.
The formation of being a Man For Others is an intrinsic part of the Jesuit student and Jesuit alumni. Long after their graduation from their alma mater you will find them working with Habitat for Humanity, conducting summer camps for the less fortunate, volunteering at shelters for the homeless, teaching others to read, and leading their church parish efforts.
The program of Religious Formation at Jesuit is an integral part of its mission. It is not given lip service. Each Blue Jay will be expected to accept the challenge of being a Man For Others and all that it entails.
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