Cathedral Preparatory School

Cathedral Preparatory School (often referred to simply as Prep) is an all-male college prep school in Erie, Pennsylvania, run by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie and was established in 1921 by Archbishop John Mark Gannon. The school boasts a 98%-100% college acceptance rate among graduating classes.

History

Classes were originally located under St. Peter's Cathedral. The school is now located behind the cathedral .

Cathedral Prep was founded in 1921 as an all-boys Catholic high school by Archbishop John Mark Gannon of the Diocese of Erie. Archbishop Gannon’s vision was to provide a college preparatory, Catholic education for young men to strengthen the Catholic faith in Erie, and to act as a conduit for vocations. The school was originally located underneath St. Peter Cathedral in what is presently the Prep cafeteria. In 1953, an Auditorium and a three level classroom addition were constructed as enrollment grew. The last major addition to the school was the 1964 science wing addition at the corner of 10th & Myrtle in order to accommodate the growth of the school.

On January 8, 2009 Villa Maria Academy announced a merger with Cathedral Prep because of financial issues but maintain their separate campuses and identities. Villa Maria was formerly a girls' school which became coeducational in 1989. With the merger, Villa Maria stopped accepting boys and returned to its single-sex roots. "Villa-Prep" is run by a single Board of Directors, whose members include the principals of the respective schools.

Academics

Cathedral Prep is one of the most exclusive prep schools in the state of Pennsylvania. The school has 578 students, with an average college acceptance rate of 98%. The program of study at Prep prepares the student for success in college. A majority of the faculty have advanced degrees in their fields. Students are required to take courses in English, history, mathematics, religion, foreign languages, science and are also required to complete 100 hours community of service. Additionally, every student must take the SAT in order to graduate. Some colleges and universities attended by the graduates include Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, Yale, Cornell, Columbia, MIT, Notre Dame, and the United States Military, Naval and Air Force Academies. Acceptance to the freshman class at Cathedral Prep is based on the results of the mandatory Entrance Exam, elementary school transcripts, elementary school disciplinary record, and recommendations from the elementary school teachers and principal.

Athletics

Cathedral Prep is a member of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) in PIAA District 10. Prep offers 13 varsity sports as well as many JV and freshman sports.

Football

Prep is a member of District 10, Region Six and has won two state championships. The two championships were won in 2000 and 2012. The 2000 Ramblers finished with a No. 4 national ranking by the USA Today, while the 2012 team finished with a No. 17 national ranking by the USA Today. Prep has played in the District 10 championship every year since 1986, winning 19 of them, the most in the district. The Prep football team also holds the current record for most consecutive wins in the city of Erie history (28). On September 10, 2010 Prep officially opened the Cathedral Prep Events Center, a new athletic complex for football.

Basketball

Prep basketball has been considered one of the top programs in the state of Pennsylvania. Prep has played in a total of nine state championship games, winning six of them. Since joining District 10 in 1980, Prep has appeared in 31 district championship games, winning 20 of them. Additionally, each year the Prep basketball team hosts the Burger King Classic, which is regarded as the No. 1 four-team basketball tournament in the country.

Pennsylvania State Championships

- *Individual State Champion

- ^Doubles Tennis Champions

Student Section

The Cathedral Prep student section, particularly for football and basketball games, is widely known and has been called the best in the state of Pennsylvania.

Technology

Tablet PC Program (2004-2012)

At the time Prep was one of the few high schools in the nation to have a Tablet PC program for all students accepted into the school. All incoming freshmen were leased a Tablet PC which they used over the four years at the school and then own upon graduation.

iPad Program (2012-present)

On Friday, February 10, 2012, Prep Headmaster Father Scott Jabo announced every student will receive an iPad starting the in 2012-13 school year.

Speech and Debate

Cathedral Prep is a nationally recognized school in Speech and Debate. The team has a focus on debate. The team has 9 State Championships in Policy Debate. The team is also recognized as a national power. The team has competed in virtually every national tournament, including the National Forensic League Championship (with the team of Jeffrey Abbate and John Bu winning the national title in 1982), the National Catholic Forensic League Grand National Tournament, and the Tournament of Champions having success in each.

National Championships

State Championships

Renovations

Current

Over the last decade, Cathedral Prep has undergone interior renovations to the halls and classrooms of all four floors in its main building. The project, which included the installation of new windows, ceilings, walls, lockers, lighting fixtures, carpeting, and a technology infrastructure has a projected completion cost of three million dollars. Prep has recently completed a $1 million renovation to the science wing and auditorium . On September 10, 2010 Prep officially opened the Cathedral Prep Events Center, a new athletic complex for football.

Future

Prep has announced plans for a new athletic facility to be built on the former site of the EMI Foundry Building on the southeast corner of 12th & Cherry Streets. With the football field already built, there are still plans to build a gymnasium with seating adequate to house varsity basketball games (1,800 seats), a 400-seat natatorium complete with olympic sized pool, a new wrestling room, a weight room. The building of the new facility will be part of a $10–12 million capital campaign to update the science hall and auditorium.

Notable alumni

The Prep brotherhood numbers over 13,000. Many alumni give yearly monetary support to the school. Many classrooms in the school are dedicated to those whose donations allowed their renovation, including the newly renovated $1 million auditorium. Prep alumni work in various fields. Prep alumni go on to prestigious jobs, jobs that help serve their local community, their state, and their nation.

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Politics

Athletics

Religion

Literature

Film and Television

Business

Other

References

1. ↑ MSA-CSS. "MSA-Commission on Secondary Schools". Retrieved 2009-05-23. 

External links

• Cathedral Prep Main Page
• Prep Basketball Main Page

Diocese of Erie Ordinaries Bishops Michael O'Connor Joshua Maria Young Tobias Mullen John Edmund Fitzmaurice John Mark Gannon John Francis Whealon Alfred Michael Watson Michael Joseph Murphy Donald Walter Trautman Lawrence Thomas Persico Auxiliary bishops John Mark Gannon Edward Peter McManaman Alfred Michael Watson Churches Cathedral St. Peter Cathedral, Erie Parishes Decker's Chapel, St. Marys, Elk County St. Severin's Old Log Church, Cooper Settlement Education High schools Cathedral Preparatory School, Erie Central Catholic High School, DuBois Elk County Catholic High School, St. Marys Kennedy Catholic High School, Hermitage Mercyhurst Preparatory School, Erie Venango Catholic High School, Oil City Villa Maria Academy, Erie Catholicism Portal

Erie County, Pennsylvania Schools Main School Districts Erie City Central Tech High School East High School Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy Strong Vincent High School Fairview Fairview High School Fort LeBoeuf Fort LeBoeuf High School General McLane General McLane High School Girard Girard High School Harbor Creek Harbor Creek High School Iroquois Iroquois Junior-Senior High School Millcreek Township McDowell High School North East North East High School (Pennsylvania) Northwestern Northwestern Senior High School Wattsburg Area Seneca High School Other Schools Corry Area (partially located in Crawford and Warren Counties) Corry Area High School Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie Cathedral Preparatory School Mercyhurst Preparatory School Villa Maria Academy Union City Area (partially located in Crawford County) Union City Area High School