Blue Jay families received three patches for their son to wear as part of the official uniform for the 175th anniversary of Jesuit’s founding in 1847. The following letter was sent as an accompaniment to the patches.

Officially chartered on December 8 of 1847, Jesuit High School is celebrating the 175th anniversary of its founding during the 2022-23 academic year. To lend some context, in that year the very first United States postage stamp was issued, the light bulb had not yet been invented, and only 29 American states had achieved statehood. Since its earliest days, Jesuit High School has been at once a cultural fixture in the city of New Orleans and a paragon of an integrated approach to education in which the various academic disciplines all point to the glory of God.

Over the past 175 years, more than 20,000 men have counted themselves as Jesuit alumni. From the school’s original campus on Baronne Street to the imposing wooden doors overlooked by the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Carrollton Avenue to the hushed splendor of the second floor Holy Name Chapel, the halls of Jesuit High School have been the intellectual and spiritual home for generations of Blue Jays. The buildings themselves, however, and even the people that occupy them in a given generation, are merely conduits for the real legacy we have inherited; rather, our true inheritance is the living tradition of Ignatian spirituality that animates and binds these buildings and people into the vibrant school once audaciously imagined by our founders.

As the family of a current Blue Jay, you and your son will have both small and large opportunities throughout the upcoming school year to celebrate this moment in Jesuit’s story. One way that current Blue Jays will mark this occasion is the enclosed 175th Anniversary Patch. This special commemorative item will only be distributed to Jesuit students this year, and it will be worn opposite the standard uniform patch by every Blue Jay.

• The patch is a required part of the uniform for the year for all students.
• The patch is to be worn every day on the right-hand sleeve of the uniform; it should be sewn on the right sleeve with the top of the patch ¼” below the shoulder seam. The standard uniform patch should be sewn on the left sleeve ¼” below the shoulder seam.
• Three patches are included in this mailing, but more may be purchased in the Blue Jay Shop at the entrance of the Madonna della Strada building.
• At the conclusion of the 2022-23 school year, the patch must be removed from the uniform if students plan to use the same shirt for the following year.

We are honored to have you as a Jesuit family and to have your son as a Blue Jay during this special time in the school’s history.