Verbum Dei High School

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article does not cite any references or sources. (September 2007) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.

This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. Please improve the article by adding references. See the talk page for details. (September 2007)

Verbum Dei High School

Motto	(#1) Ad majorem Dei gloriam (For the greater glory of God) (#2) Working in the Jesuit Tradition (#3) The School That Works for the 21st Century!
Established	1962
Type	Private secondary (Parochial)
President	Rev. John Weling, S.J.
Principal	Dr. Susan Abelein, Ph.D.
Students	approximately 350
Grades	9–12
Location	Los Angeles (Watts), California, USA
Mascot	Eagle
Website	www.verbumdei.us

Verbum Dei High School, colloquially referred to as "the Verb", is an all-male Catholic high school combining college-preparatory academic courses and immersion in corporate work environments. It is operated by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles with the sponsorship of the California Province of the Society of Jesus. Students can graduate in four years with a high school diploma.

Verbum Dei offers a variety of sports and extracurricular activities. The sports program includes football, basketball, cross country, track and field, soccer, baseball, golf, and volleyball. Extracurricular activities include Christian community service, cultural awareness, campus ministry groups, an honor society, and musical bands. Although the school is based on Catholic values, it is entirely interdenominational. Students of any faith or religious persuasion may attend.

The school is located in the Watts residential district of the city of Los Angeles, California, a few blocks north of Interstate 105 (I-105) and a few miles east of Interstate 110 (I-110).

Contents 1 History 2 Corporate Work Study Program 3 Notable alumni 4 Notable staff 4.1 Past 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

[edit] History

Verbum Dei was founded in 1962 by the Society of the Divine Word with the permission and recommendation of Cardinal James McIntyre to serve the educational needs of the black community of South Los Angeles. The school was named after one of Jesus' epithets, Verbum Dei ("the Word of God"). Bishop Joseph Francis, S.V.D. led the founding team and served as the school's first principal. The Society maintained a presence at the school until December 2006, when long-time Verbum Dei faculty/staff member Br. Richard "Rich" Morrill, S.V.D. departed due to terminal illness; it remains to be seen if the Society will provide another of its members to Verbum Dei.

At some point, the school expanded its mission in order to also serve the educational needs of the "Latino" community of South Los Angeles.

Verbum Dei's performance began to decline in the 1980s -- probably due to the urban decay of South Los Angeles that began in the 1970s -- and suffered further during the neighborhood gang wars of the 1990s, experiencing declining enrollment and instability within the administration. However, it received significant financial help in the mid-1990s and improvements were made in various buildings on campus as well as the creation of new ones.

In 2000, Cardinal Roger Mahony asked the California Province of the Society of Jesus to assist in the administration of the school, asserting that the school had to improve significantly by 2006 to avoid permanent shutdown. Verbum Dei became recognized as a Jesuit school at that point. Leading the Jesuit team was Reverend Bill Wood, S.J.. The school became a member of the Cristo Rey Network and adopted its current scholastic model (see Corporate Work Study Program below) in 2002. The school has joint accreditation by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and the Western Catholic Education Association (WCEA). Verbum Dei also has accreditation by the California Province (CalProv) of the Society of Jesus.

The Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary have been providing a nun to the Verbum Dei staff for several years at least.

[edit] Corporate Work Study Program

As a member of the Cristo Rey Network, Verbum Dei assigns students to jobs that are "donated" by local white-collar companies and non-profit entities in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. This experience is intended to acclimate students to corporate culture, build their character and provide motive for seeking higher education and productive careers. The money earned by the students defrays the cost of the students' education.

[edit] Notable alumni

This section may contain information of unclear or questionable importance or relevance to the article's subject matter. Please help improve this article by clarifying or removing superfluous information. (talk)

• Raymond Lewis, 1968-1973^{[citation needed]}
• James Givehand, 1968-1971^{[citation needed]}
• Donny Daniels, 1972: Basketball coach.^[1]
• Clifford Sanchez], 1976 or 1977 [1]
• Ken Austin, 1977 [2]

• Leonel Marquetti, 1978-1981 (1978 alumnus of McDonald's All-American High School Basketball Team)
• Kenneth Fields, 1980-1983 (1980 alumnus of McDonald's All-American High School Basketball Team, former member of the Los Angeles Clippers
• Danny Bakewell, Jr., 1983 (son of Danny Bakewell, current owner of the Los Angeles Sentinel and a national co-convener of the Millions More Movement)
• Hardy Nickerson, 1983
• DeAnthony Langston, 1984
• Andre Miller, 1994 [3] [4]
• Shamsud-Din Abdul-Shaheed, 1995
• Phil Blackmon, 1997
• Salim Dawson, 1998
• Kenechi Udeze, 1999-2000 [5] [6]
• Louis Leonard, 2001
• Richard Chaney, 2002 [7]
• Michael Pagan, 2004
• Ryan Oliver, 2004
• Amir Johnson, 2005 [8] [9] [10]

[edit] Notable staff

This section may contain information of unclear or questionable importance or relevance to the article's subject matter. Please help improve this article by clarifying or removing superfluous information. (talk)

[edit] Past

• Rev. Michael Hutchins, S.V.D.
• Rev. Fisher Robinson, S.V.D.
• Donny Daniels
• Rev. Scott Santarosa, S.J. (see page 16 of linked PDF)
• DeAnthony Langston
• Br. Jeffrey Allen, S.J. [11]
• John Saito

[edit] See also

• List of Roman Catholic high schools in Los Angeles County, California

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Scout.com - Verbum Dei High School football roster
• Verbum Dei High School 1983 Class of 1983 Web Site
• Los Angeles Business Journal article about Verbum Dei's Corporate Work Study Program
• Local School Directory - Verbum Dei High School
• Art Schobey Interactive - los-angeles-usa.net - Verbum Dei High School
• Charity Checks - video clip about Verbum Dei High School's participation in its Charitable Literacy program (from KCAL-TV)
• National Jesuit Review newsletter, October 2001
  • page 4 article: "What's love got to do with it? Love is everything"
  • page 12 column: Province Briefs - California

• Verbum Dei High School is at coordinates 33°56′05″N 118°15′11″W / 33.93475, -118.253 (Verbum Dei High School)Coordinates: 33°56′05″N 118°15′11″W / 33.93475, -118.253 (Verbum Dei High School)

v • d • e Jesuit Secondary Education Association Institutional Constituent Members Arrupe Jesuit High School (CO) · Bellarmine College Preparatory (CA) · Bellarmine Preparatory School (WA) · Boston College High School (MA) · Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School (IN) · Brophy College Preparatory (AZ) · Canisius High School (NY) · Cheverus High School (ME) · Colegio San Ignacio de Loyola (PR) · Creighton Preparatory School (NE) · Cristo Rey High School of Sacramento (CA) · Cristo Rey Jesuit High School of Baltimore (MD) · Cristo Rey Jesuit High School of Chicago (IL) · Cristo Rey Jesuit High School - Twin Cities (MN) · De Smet Jesuit High School (MO) · Fairfield College Preparatory School (CT) · Fordham Preparatory School (NY) · Georgetown Preparatory School (MD) · Gonzaga College High School (DC) · Gonzaga Preparatory School (WA) · Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas (TX) · Jesuit High School of New Orleans (LA) · Jesuit High School of Portland (OR) · Jesuit High School of Sacramento (CA) · Jesuit High School of Tampa (FL) · Loyola Academy (IL) · Loyola Blakefield (MD) · Loyola High School of Detroit (MI) · Loyola High School of Los Angeles (CA) · Loyola School (NY) · Marquette University High School (WI) · McQuaid Jesuit High School (NY) · Red Cloud Indian School (SD) · Regis High School (NY) · Regis Jesuit High School (CO) · Rockhurst High School (MO) · St. Ignatius College Preparatory (CA) · St. Ignatius College Preparatory School (IL) · St. Ignatius High School (OH) · St. John's Jesuit High School and Academy (OH) · Saint Joseph's Preparatory School (PA) · Saint Louis University High School (MO) · St. Peter's Preparatory School (NJ) · St. Xavier High School (OH) · Scranton Preparatory School (PA) · Seattle Preparatory School (WA) · Strake Jesuit College Preparatory (TX) · University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy (MI) · Verbum Dei High School (CA) · Walsh Jesuit High School (OH) · Xavier High School of New York City (NY) Institutional Associate Members Belen Jesuit Preparatory School (Miami, FL) · Loyola High School of Montreal (QC, Canada) · Saint Bonaventure's College (NL, Canada) · St. John's College (Belize, BZ) · St. Paul's High School (MB, Canada) · Xavier High School of Micronesia (Chuuk, FSM)