| Strake Jesuit College Preparatory | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
| 8900 Bellaire Boulevard Greater Sharpstown Houston, Texas, (Harris County), 77036-4699 United States |
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| Information | |
| Motto | "Men for Others", Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam (motto of the Jesuits), Sic Deus Vult ("For the Greater Glory of God", "God wills it so") |
| Religious affiliation(s) | Christian Catholic, (Jesuit) |
| Established | June 21, 1960 |
| President | Fr. Daniel K. Lahart, S.J. |
| Principal | Ken Lojo |
| Asst. Principal | Carlos Roman |
| Chaplain | Fr. Flavio Bravo, S.J. |
| Faculty | 111 |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Gender | Male |
| Enrollment | 900 (2008) |
| Student to teacher ratio | 12:1 |
| Campus | Urban |
| Campus size | 44 acres |
| Color(s) | Green and White |
| Athletics conference | University Interscholastic League |
| Team name | Crusaders |
| Accreditation(s) | Southern Association of Colleges and Schools [1] |
| Average SAT scores | 1910 |
| Average ACT scores | 29 |
| Publication | Plume (literary magazine) |
| Newspaper | 'Magis' |
| Yearbook | 'The Crusader' |
| Dean of Students | Kelly Clemons |
| Admissions Director | Scott Granito |
| Athletic Director | Bill McDonald |
| Website | www.strakejesuit.org |
Strake Jesuit College Preparatory (commonly referred to as Strake Jesuit, Strake, or simply Jesuit) is an all-men's Jesuit, university-preparatory school for grades 9-12 in the Greater Sharpstown area of Houston, Texas.[2] It is located in proximity to Alief.[3]
With 900 students, it is the largest Catholic high school in Houston. It boasts a large collection of art installed around the campus, both inside and out. Its collection is so extensive that the City of Houston has classified the campus as an art museum[4] for which the school maintains a full-time curator. The school is located within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. It is one of only two private schools in Texas that are members of the University Interscholastic League (the other being Dallas Jesuit), which allows it to compete athletically against the largest, public schools
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The school was founded by Father Michael Kennelly, S.J.,[5][6] on June 21, 1960 on land donated by the Strake family on what was then the undeveloped, far west side of Houston.
In a three year period ending in 1993, the number of applications submitted to Strake doubled. Father Brian Zinnamon, the school President, said during that year that there were two times the number of applicants compared to available spots. At the time tuition was $4,700 per year, described by Stephanie Asin of the Houston Chronicle as "steep."[3] Father Zinnamon said "Certainly what is going on in the public schools is a factor. Parents are choosing a safe environment where they know their children are getting Christian values."[3]
The "Fighting Crusaders" were one of many Catholic high schools that originally competed in the now defunct T.C.I.L. (Texas Christian Interscholastic League) The league began in 1935 under the direction of Rev. Albert Mitchell (principal of Central Catholic, San Antonio) Strake Jesuit's last year of competition in the T.C.I.L. concluded when the league came to a close in the 1999-2000 athletic season. In the fall of 2000 to the spring of 2003, the Crusaders competed as an independent in all sports until their admission into the University Interscholastic League (U.I.L.). They began competing in their listed district of 19-5A in the fall of 2003. The Crusaders own numerous District, Regional and State Championships in their various sports that date back from over the past 50 years in their old league. The Crusaders also won several District and Regional Championships along with a State Championship, State runners-up and State semi-finalists within the past eight years in the U.I.L. The "Fighting Crusaders" athletic department provides 13 different programs which include: Baseball, Basketball, Cross-Country, Football, Golf, Lacrosse, Rugby, Soccer, Swimming & Diving, Tennis, Track & Field, Water Polo, and Wrestling.
Despite moving to the U.I.L., Strake Jesuit still maintains its rivalry with Saint Thomas High School (STH). Since 1964 Strake has a record of 22-25-1 against STH, however, since 1998, Strake has won the past 15 contests between the two schools. [7] Another less noted rivalry is the one between Strake and Dallas Jesuit. Since 1970 Strake has gone 10-14 against Dallas Jesuit.
The Cross Country Team has won 22 straight TCIL State titles with the first one in 1972.
2006 Season The cross country team won the 17-5A district title, their first ever. The Crusaders placed all 7 runners in the top ten at district and moved on to the Region III meet, winning the Region title. In their first state appearance the cross country team placed 8th.
2007 Season Strake Jesuit won the region III meet, after also winning the 2006 regional title, by edging Mayde Creek 90 to 92. [1][8] The Strake Jesuit team finished 9th at the state meet in 2007.
2008 Season During the 2008 Cross Country season the team finished 3rd at the Region III meet. The cross country team placed 9th at the 2008 state cross country meet.
2009 Season
After placing first in all their meets leading up to the McNeil XC Invite at Round Rock, run on the state course, the Crusaders ran one of their best team races, running an average of 16:09 with six runners around 16:30 or better. Overall the team placed second. Leading up to district the Crusaders regained winning taking 1st place at their home meet for the first time in years. At the 18-5A district meet Weston Novelli ran away with the race in a rain soaked course. The Crusaders placed five runners in the top ten. [2] Leading up to the Region III meet Kingwood was the favorite for the title. However the Crusaders won with Novelli and Gibson placing second and fourth respectively. [3][9]
The school uses a closed-circuit television system known as Strake Jesuit Educational Television (SJET). Daily morning prayer is led by students via the system, and announcements are shown in a format similar to typical television news programs. Programs are produced by students under the guidance of Jim Gilbert, who has moderated SJET since its inception. The students participating in SJET can take Television Production for half a class credit.[10]
Around 1999, Strake Jesuit updated its SJET system with the addition of smart boards in some classrooms, and boards were added to all classrooms by the beginning of the 2006 school year. Smart boards use projectors and touch sensitive technology to produce an interactive way of teaching. They are also used for the display of the SJET morning announcements. Throughout the course of the year, the student body may view new installments of the school's own game show, "Scribbage Match" during the morning announcements. SJET is also commonly used to announce items of interest to the student body, including student council candidate speeches and messages from the faculty. In addition, 'news strips', 'interviews', and other programs that are "intended" to be comical (such as teacher impersonations) are shown on SJET. Special guests are featured on occasion. The ten SJET announcers, two of whom announce on any given day, compose a story every school quarter; it is then shown to the student body after announcements are finished, should time permit.[10]
All students and members of faculty and staff take part in a retreat at some point during the school year. Apart from taking part in their own retreat, many teachers are involved in retreats for students.
Freshmen participate in a three day retreat, led by juniors and seniors who spend several months in preparation. Sophomores are responsible for the 'nuts and bolts' dimension of the retreat such as errands, meals and cleaning. Freshmen gather in homes, spend a night at school, visit nursing homes and engage in various activities designed to promote spiritual growth and class bonding.
Sophomores take part in a retreat with their fathers or father-figures. The purpose of the sophomore retreat is to develop the relationship between father and son as well as the spirituality of the student.
Juniors have a choice of retreat. One is a three day retreat experience, the first day of which is spent with the disadvantaged members of the Houston area. Afterwards, juniors spend two days reflecting on the experience, upon the brokenness of the world, and how Christ may or may not be present in the poorest of the poor. Another option is the prayer-styles retreat, which was begun in 1996 after requests from students over 2–3 years. During this 3 day residential retreat, juniors discover and experience a variety of prayer methods such as meditation, praying with music, praying through nature, psalms and using such things as play-dough as creative prayer.
Seniors participate in the 4 day Kairos retreat, during which they, together with faculty, share their lives particularly those moments when they have experienced God, emptiness, joy, pain or healing. The purpose is for students to see how God is present in all aspects of life. There is a special session of this retreat held each year that is also open to juniors, often referred to as "Junior Kairos".
Catholicism embraces a preferential option for the poor, and the Catechism of the Catholic Church states that a healthy spirituality is expressed in a concern for the social aspects of life.[12] Strake Jesuit embraces this concept, and was one of the first Catholic schools in Texas to require its students to engage in community service in order to graduate.
Freshmen visit nursing homes, sophomores collect Christmas gifts for underprivileged children, juniors engage in various projects and seniors are required to spend 100 hours of community service in such places as soup kitchens, camps for special needs children and missions abroad. Seniors are also required to produce a reflection paper on the experience.[13]
The Strake Jesuit website states: Strake Jesuit College Preparatory is grounded in the conviction of St. Ignatius of Loyola that God is to be found in all things. All activities of the school, from biology to band, from football to forensics, have this objective: to find God in all of God's wondrous creation.[14] It is the declared goal of the Pastoral Department to foster this aim.
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