Bishop Noll Institute

Bishop Noll Institute is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Hammond, Indiana. It is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gary.

Background

The school opened as Catholic Central High School on September 16, 1921. It was founded by the Sisters of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ. Reverend Father Lauer, who was pastor of the Saint Mary's Church in East Chicago at the time, allowed the sisters to use two classrooms as a temporary school until a proper building could be established.

In May 1922, the ground for a new school was broken on a purchased plot of land on White Oak Avenue between Hoffman Street and Chicago Avenue. However, the school's completion was delayed, and because Saint Mary's parochial grade school was accumulating higher enrollment numbers, five temporary structures were hurriedly constructed on the southwest corner of the school grounds. These served as the classrooms for the 1922-1923 senior class. Father P. J. Schmid was appointed as the school's director in 1922. The completed left wing of the building was dedicated later on September 9, 1923. An outdoor Mass, the first of its kind in the United States, was celebrated on a makeshift altar, bringing in 5,000 participants. The school was enlarged over the next ten years to include a convent, rectory, and gymnasium.

It was renamed Bishop Noll High School in 1947, in honor of Bishop John F. Noll of the Diocese of Fort Wayne.

In 1963, the building was dedicated by the bishop of the time, Andrew G. Grutka, who laid the cornerstone of the new Bishop Noll Institute.

Alumni

• Judge Mary Beth Bonaventura, seen on MTV's Juvies television program
• Television personalities Phil Ponce and Frank Reynolds
• From 1968-72, Mike McGill, a 1964 BNI graduate, played in the NFL for three different teams (Minnesota Vikings, St. Louis Cardinals, and San Francisco 49ers).
• In 2008, Andrew R. Loomis (graduated in 2004) was drafted by the MLB, Florida Marlins, in the 16th round in 2008. He is currently with the Jacksonville Suns (Double-A) in the Southern League.
• Zbig Kepa (Class of 1975), offensive coordinator for the William & Mary Tribe football team
• Alex Rodriguez

Notes and references