Fordham Preparatory School
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| Motto | Amor et Conscia Virtus |
|---|---|
| Established | 1841 |
| Type | College Preparatory School |
| Affiliations | Catholic, Jesuit |
| President | Rev. Kenneth Boller, S.J. |
| Principal | Mr. Robert Gomprecht |
| Students | 920+ |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Location | Bronx, New York, New York, USA |
| Colors | Maroon and white |
| Mascot | The Ram |
| Yearbook | Ramkin |
| Newspaper | Rampart |
| Website | www.fordhamprep.org |
Fordham Preparatory School (also known as Fordham Prep) is a private Jesuit all-boys high school located in the Bronx, New York City, with an enrollment of approximately 900+ students. It has a rigorous curriculum and is considered to be one of the top high schools in New York City. Fordham Prep is also known for its extremely selective admissions process, usually accepting only 10% of the total applicants.
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[edit] School history
The Fordham Preparatory School, formerly known as St. John's Preparatory School until St. John's College was renamed Fordham University, was founded by the Diocese of New York in 1841 and is located on the Rose Hill Campus of Fordham University. It was located in Hughes Hall from its founding until the 1970s, when it moved to Shea-O'Brian Hall, its current location. The Leonard Theatre, adjacent to Shea-O'Brian Hall, was completed in 1995.
[edit] Academics
Fordham Prep has a humanities based curriculum which focuses on English studies, history, mathematics, the sciences, ancient and modern languages, and religion. Students are given the option to take Honors or Advanced Placement classes depending on their individual performance. All freshmen students take a classical language: Latin, or Ancient Greek. As they move on to their sophomore year, the students can choose to continue with Latin or Greek, or study a modern foreign language, such as Spanish, French, Italian, Mandarin Chinese, or German. All students are required to take four years of English, four years of Religion, four years or three levels of any language, three years of history, three years of mathematics, and three years of science. Senior students have the choice of taking elective courses. Seniors are also required to plan and implement a senior service project at an approved site. They then reflect on their service and journal their experiences for a senior service essay to be completed at the end of the year.
[edit] Service
Juniors and seniors have to fulfill community service requirements of 15 and 70 hours per year, respectively. If a junior does not finish his 15 hours, his senior service requirement jumps to 100 hours. Some of those hours can be obtained by taking advantage of in-school service opportunities. Each summer, Fordham Prep sponsors trips called "Summer Service Immersion Trips." The destinations include Habitat for Humanity in Robbins, Tennessee, Nazareth Farm in West Virginia, Mexico and Ecuador. A group of seniors and juniors also went to the Gulf Coast Spring Break 2007 to help CityTeam. It was a successful trip, and plans are underway for another.
[edit] Extracurricular Activities
Fordham Prep has many extracurricular activities for students. There are nearly forty clubs, each pertaining to a specific interest. There are clubs for students who enjoy computers, cartoons, business, coin collecting, studying marine biology, playing music, or even discussing The Simpsons, politics (Young Republicans and Young Democrats clubs) and others. There are also clubs pertaining to specific ethnic groups, such as the Irish club, Spanish club, Italian club, Asian club, Kawaida club, and others. The Prep also has a successful Speech and Debate Team that represents the school in local and national tournaments including tournaments at Harvard and Yale. Fordham Prep also has a theatre and drama club, hosting two shows a year in The Leonard Theatre.
Fordham Prep also has a large number of athletic teams. It is a member of the CHSAA. Fordham Prep has its own practice field, track, and weight room for the students to use. In 2005, in concert with Fordham University, the back track and practice field were refurbished with MONDO and true grass respectively, vastly updating and improving the facilities. The track is now named in honor of one of the Prep's track coaches, Joe Fox. Additionally, lights were installed for the University's night time use. Fordham Prep has several competitive teams in soccer, baseball, football, ice hockey, basketball, swimming, golf, lacrosse, cross country, track and field, tennis, wrestling, bowling, and crew. The team name is the "Fordham Rams."
[edit] Notable Fordham Prep Alumni
- Robert Abplanalp '39 - inventor of aerosol valve and Founder of Precision Valve Corporation.
- Esteban Bellan 1859 - first Latin American professional baseball player
- Tim Brosnan '76 - Executive Vice President for Business for Major League Baseball
- Arthur Daley '22 - New York Times columnist and 1956 Pulitzer Prize winner, one of only three sportswriters to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for journalism.
- Richard Foerster '67 - Award-winning poet
- Frankie Frisch '16 - Major League Baseball Hall of Famer, also known as "The Fordham Flash," he is third all-time on the list for World Series hits, behind Yogi Berra and Mickey Mantle and just ahead of Joe DiMaggio.
- Mario Gabelli '61 - CEO and Founder of Gabelli Asset Management
- Robert Hackett '77 - silver medalist in swimming at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal
- John L. Lahey '64 - President of Quinnipiac University
- Gerald Lynch '54- Former President of John Jay College of Criminal Justice. After 30 years as president, he retired in 2004 as having tenured the longest senior-level administration in City University of New York history.
- William P. Magee '62 - Co-founder of Operation Smile
- Theodore Cardinal McCarrick '49 - Archbishop of Washington D.C.
- Joseph Moglia '67 - CEO of Ameritrade Inc.
- Sgt. Robert C. Murray '64 - posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for actions during the Vietnam War.
- Johnny Murphy '25 - former New York Yankees pitcher who appeared in a total of eight World Series games, pitched 16.1 innings, and had an E.R.A. of 1.10.
- Vin Scully '44 - baseball announcer in the Baseball Hall of Fame, Radio Hall of Fame, American Sportscasters Hall of Fame. He has been broadcasting Dodgers games, first in Brooklyn and then in Los Angeles, since 1950.
- Colonel Robert Gould Shaw (did not graduate) - attended for a brief time; Commanding officer of the 54th Massachusetts Regiment, the first all African-American regiment during the American Civil War; portrayed by Matthew Broderick in the 1989 movie Glory
- George Stirnweiss '36 - former second baseman for the New York Yankees who also was the American League batting champion in 1945.
- Donnie Walsh '58 - President of basketball operations for the New York Knicks and former general manager for the Indiana Pacers.
- Malcolm Wilson '29 - Lieutenant Governor and Governor of New York.
