Saint Ignatius High School is a private

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Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

high school under the Diocese of Cleveland, for young men, located in the Ohio City neighborhood of

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History

Founded in 1886 by a German Jesuit on the invitation of Bishop Richard Gilmour, the school was originally a six-year secondary school based on the German Gymnasium that was to be attended after the completion of six years of grammar school. Separate four-year high school and college programs were formed in 1902, with the college changing its name to

John Carroll University John Carroll University is a private Jesuit university in University Heights, Ohio. It is primarily an undergraduate, liberal arts institution accompanied by the John M. and Mary Jo Boler College of Business. John Carroll has an enrollment of 3 ...

in 1923 and moving out of the

location to neighboring University Heights, Ohio in 1935. The words and music of St. Ignatius' alma mater were composed by the school's band director, Jack T. Hearns Sr., in August 1937. His band debuted the alma mater at halftime during a football game on October 1, 1937, replacing their customary " Victory March". In 1958, St. Ignatius gave St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati permission to adapt the song.

Campus

Saint Ignatius High School remains at its original location at 1911 West 30th Street. The campus includes the original structure, now known as the Main Building, which was completed between about 1891 and 1911 and is now a designated Cleveland Historic Landmark. On January 21, 1974, Saint Ignatius was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. Other buildings are Loyola Hall (originally St. Mary of the Assumption Elementary School), Clavius Science Center, Saint Mary of the Assumption Chapel (named after a church that once was located on the current campus), Gibbons Hall, Kesicki Hall (which now houses the Welsh Academy), The Carfagna Family Magis Athletic Center, Father Sullivan, S.J. Gymnasium, Carroll Gymnasium, Murphy Field House, Kyle Field, and the O'Donnell Athletic Complex, which houses Wasmer Field and Dale Gabor Track. In addition, the $11.5 million Breen Center for the Performing Arts replaced the Xavier Center in August 2009. It houses all student performing arts programs and hosts many events for other local arts groups. A new $3.3 million cafeteria has replaced the former Student Center, stage, senior lounge, and cooking areas. It was renamed the Rade Dining Hall. Both the St. Mary of the Assumption Chapel and the Murphy Field House projects were funded and overseen by

Murlan J. Murphy Murlan Jeremiah "Jerry" Murphy, Jr. (1918–2009) was an American Businessman who ran several chemical-related companies in Cleveland, Ohio. "Murlan," which is his first name. His first name combined his grandparents' surnames which is Murphy an ...

. From 1904 to 1917 St. Ignatius operated a summer retreat and science campus, in

Vermilion Vermilion (sometimes vermillion) is a color, color family, and pigment most often made, since antiquity until the 19th century, from the powdered mineral cinnabar (a form of mercury sulfide, which is toxic) and its corresponding color. It i ...

, known as Loyola-on-the-Lake.

Academics

The school was recognized by the

United States Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Departmen ...

as a "

Blue Ribbon School The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a United States Department of Education award program that recognizes exemplary public and non-public schools on a yearly basis. Using standards of excellence evidenced by student achievement measures, ...

" for the 1984-1985 and 2008-2009

school year A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compul ...

Fine arts program

In 1990, a fine arts program was added to the school's curriculum. Its most recent addition has been the Breen Center for the Performing Arts. Musical opportunities include the Wildcat Marching Band, Pep Band, Stage Band, Steel Drum Band,

Jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

Band, Liturgical Musicians, and others."Ignatius Band Program Homepage." Saint Ignatius High School Webpage. February 11, 200
Ignatius.edu
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Clubs and activities

St. Ignatius boasts nearly 100 extra-curricular clubs and student groups, ranging from the student-led yearbook (''The Ignatian'') to Billiards Club. Some activities meet daily while others meet less than monthly. The school's Latin Club functions as a local chapter of both the Ohio Junior Classical League (OJCL) and National Junior Classical League (NJCL).

Athletic program

Saint Ignatius' athletic teams are known as the Wildcats and compete as an independent in the

Ohio High School Athletic Association The Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) is the governing body of athletic programs for junior and senior high schools in the state of Ohio. The OHSAA governs eligibility of student athletes, resolves disputes, organizes levels of compe ...

(OHSAA), at the Division I level. Through the 2022–23 school year, the Wildcats have won 52 state championships across eleven sports teams, highlighted by their 12 state titles in soccer, including four consecutive titles from 2018-2022. Both the overall total of 12 and the four-year streak are the most in OHSAA history for soccer and the school's 52 state championships ranks third overall in boys' athletic titles.

State championships

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

- 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2001, 2008, 2011 * Boys' Cross Country - 1993, 1994, 2009, 2015 *Rugby - 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022 *

Wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat s ...

- 1988 *

Ice Hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...

- 2000, 2010, 2014*, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 * Boys' Volleyball - 2017 * Boys' Basketball – 2001 * Boys' Golf - 2001, 2002, 2021, 2022 * Boys' Track and Field - 2001, 2016 *

Baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

- 2002, 2019 * Boys' Soccer - 2004, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 _{* Co-champs} The inventor of the face mask, Ralph Vince, coached the football team to its first city championship, in 1925.

Other extracurricular achievements

* Ohio High School Speech League State Champions in

Policy Debate Policy debate is an American form of debate competition in which teams of two usually advocate for and against a resolution that typically calls for policy change by the United States federal government. It is also referred to as cross-examinat ...

- 2001, 2004, 2006, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2021 * The Model United Nations team was ranked among Ohio's top 4 schools and among North America's top 150 schools during the 2013–2014 school year.

Notable alumni

References

External links

Saint Ignatius Official WebsiteSt Ignatius High School yearbooks
available on

Cleveland Public Library Cleveland Public Library, located in Cleveland, Ohio, operates the Main Library on Superior Avenue in downtown Cleveland, 27 branches throughout the city, a mobile library, a Public Administration Library in City Hall, and the Ohio Library for th ...

Digital Gallery, various years 1940s through 2008 {{authority control Boys' schools in Ohio Education in Cleveland Educational institutions established in 1886 High schools in Cuyahoga County, Ohio Jesuit high schools in the United States Catholic secondary schools in Ohio School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Ohio School buildings completed in 1891 German-American culture in Cleveland National Register of Historic Places in Cleveland, Ohio Ohio City, Cleveland Roman Catholic Diocese of Cleveland 1886 establishments in Ohio