St. Francis de Sales School (Toledo, Ohio)
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St. Francis de Sales School or SFS is a private, all-male,
college-preparatory A college-preparatory school (usually shortened to preparatory school or prep school) is a type of secondary school. The term refers to state school, public, Independent school, private independent or parochial school, parochial schools primaril ...
school in Toledo, Ohio. It is located within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Toledo. The school was named as one of the top 20 Catholic high schools in the nation for academics by Catholic High School Honor Roll for two consecutive years in 2005 and 2006.


About the school

St. Francis de Sales School is a college preparatory school run by the
Oblates of St. Francis de Sales The Oblates of St. Francis de Sales (Latin: ''Oblati Sancti Francisci Salesii'', O.S.F.S.) are a congregation of Roman Catholic priests and brothers who follow the teachings of St. Francis de Sales and St. Jane de Chantal. The community was foun ...
, a religious congregation of the Roman Catholic Church. The school opened on September 14, 1955, as the greater Toledo area's second
college-preparatory A college-preparatory school (usually shortened to preparatory school or prep school) is a type of secondary school. The term refers to state school, public, Independent school, private independent or parochial school, parochial schools primaril ...
high school, and, as of August 2015, added grades seven and eight. The school's athletic teams have won 27 official and unofficial state championships in football, basketball, tennis, wrestling, swimming and diving, water polo, and hockey, as well as numerous State Runners-Up, Regional Titles, District Titles and City League Titles. The AquaKnight swim team's 42-year district title streak (53 titles, total) is the 2nd longest winning streak in any high school sport in the nation behind Cedar Rapids Washington boys swim team's 46 consecutive district titles. Named after Saint Francis de Sales, the community has been described as a family-like group and has an active alumni base both in the city of Toledo and throughout the country. The mascot is the Knight.


Campus

The campus of St. Francis is located on twenty-five acres. The campus includes an eight-lane
swimming pool A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable Human swimming, swimming or other leisure activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built ...
, an eight-lane track, baseball field, football fields and a soccer field. In 2005, the school introduced a $14 million renovation/addition. In the renovation/addition, St. Francis built a new chapel, arts wing, fitness/weight room and new locker rooms. The school is located in a historic area of Toledo, on Bancroft Street, just one-half mile from the University of Toledo. In the fall of 2012, the Student Achievement Center was added to the school. The addition included 2,500 square feet of space for tutoring, a computer lab, and private meeting rooms for students.


School body

There are 600+ students. There are 56 faculty members, which results in a student-teacher ratio of 13:1. Six teachers have their Ph.D., and 28 have their master's degree. St. Francis draws students from all around Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan. Most of the students attended Catholic grade schools, although approximately 15-20% come from public schools.


Admission and tuition

Freshmen are accepted on the basis of a placement examination with regard to the recommendation of their grade school. Transfer students are accepted on an individual basis after consideration of their high school transcripts. Tuition and fees for 2019-2020 vary based on student's grade; $10,500 for grades 7-8 and $13,000 for grades 9–12, with an added $250 fee for grade 12.


Spirituality

St. Francis offers various levels of retreat programs for its students. All freshmen and sophomores participate in daylong retreats which are carefully structured and planned for their age-level interests and concerns. Juniors and seniors are required to participate in at least one approved retreat experience during the 11th or 12th grade year. In addition, students are required to take eight semesters of Theology, and at least 30 service hours both Junior and Senior year are required for graduation. In 2005, St. Francis invested in a new chapel facing the front of the school, where throughout the school year, all students are encouraged to participate in mass. These include opening school, Thanksgiving, and holy day liturgies; days of recollection; reconciliation services; etc.


Academics

There are eight academic departments: Catholic Theology, English, Foreign Language, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Applied and Fine Arts, and Health & Physical Education. Every student at St. Francis is required to take a core program of 4 years of English, religion, math, and science (including 2 basic lab sciences from biology, chemistry, physics); 2.5 years of physical education and health; 3 years of social studies; 2 years of a foreign language (3 years highly recommended); 1 year of basic art; and 0.5 year of computer science. In addition to academic requirements, all students are encouraged to participate in service projects. Formal projects, approved by the Christian Service Department, are a requirement for the sophomore, junior, and senior classes.


Athletics

In athletics, the Knights had been long members of the
Toledo City League The Toledo City League is an Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) high school athletic conference that was formed in 1926 and comprises the six high schools in Toledo that are from Toledo Public Schools. Membership The current member ...
before joining the Three Rivers Athletic Conference in 2011. The school's colors are red and blue. Their athletic rivals include the neighboring all-boys school
St. John's Jesuit St. John's Jesuit High School & Academy comprises two schools on the same campus: St. John's Jesuit High School (SJJ) and St. John's Jesuit Academy (SJJA). It is located within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Toledo. Both are private, all-male J ...
and area Co-Ed Central Catholic. Knight Swimming and Diving, as well as Water Polo, stand out in the athletic venue. Known locally as the "AquaKnights," the swim team placed second in the state for three out of five years (2010, 2011, 2014). The swim team has a particularly strong history, winning 42 straight Northwest Ohio District Championships beginning in 1966 spanning until their defeat by rival St. John's in February 2008, a national record.Toledo Blade
Knights make splash with 42nd straight, The Toledo Blade, Zach Silka, Saturday, February 17, 2007 The AquaKnights have a well-known rivalry with Cincinnati St. Xaiver. The Water Polo team has consistently placed in the top four teams in the state for the last eight years, but hasn't secured a Water Polo title since 2001.


Ohio High School Athletic Association State Championships

The St. Francis Knights hold more state titles than any other Catholic school in the Diocese of Toledo, and any other high school in the greater Toledo area. *
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 c ...
- 1984, 2001 * Wrestling - 1964,1970 * Basketball – 1983 * Swimming – 1967, 1968, 1996, 1998 * Ice Hockey – 2011, 2015,Inside St. Edward hockey's 3-1 loss to Toledo St. Francis de Sales in 2015 OHSAA state championship: Top play, stats, reaction (photos, video)
2021


Other State Championships

* Water Polo - 1973, 1974, 1975, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001 * Tennis - 2001, 2002


Soccer

The 2003 soccer team were the Division I runner up, compiling a final record of 20-1-1, with their only loss coming in the state finals. Head coach John B. Orozco earned coach of the year honors that same year.


The Irish Knight

The Irish Knight is awarded to the winner of the Central Catholic High School and St. Francis de Sales School football game. The winning school receives and hosts the Irish Knight in their school, along with bragging rights. CCHS currently holds the Irish Knight after winning this past fall, and leads the overall series 28-29-1 in Irish Knight games. Including postseason games, the Knights lead the series 33-30-1. There has only been one overtime game, which occurred in 2003.


All-Sports Trophy

Since 1974, when the All-Sports Trophy was introduced, the Knights of St. Francis de Sales High School have held or shared the trophy ten times. They held the trophy in 1975, 1983, 1984, 1987, 1992, 1994, 2001, and 2005, and they shared with
St. John's Jesuit St. John's Jesuit High School & Academy comprises two schools on the same campus: St. John's Jesuit High School (SJJ) and St. John's Jesuit Academy (SJJA). It is located within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Toledo. Both are private, all-male J ...
in 2000 and 2002.


Alma Mater

''(Sung to the tune of the Finlandia hymn)'' \relative a' \addlyrics


Notable alumni

*
Gerry Bamman Gerald G. Bamman (born September 18, 1941) is an American actor and playwright. He is best known for playing Uncle Frank in the films ''Home Alone'' (1990) and '' Home Alone 2: Lost in New York'' (1992), and has also guest starred in several tel ...
, actor; known for playing Uncle Frank in the Christmas movie, Home Alone *
Sean B. Carroll Sean B. Carroll (born September 17, 1960) is an American evolutionary developmental biologist, author, educator and executive producer. He is a distinguished university professor at the University of Maryland and professor emeritus of molecul ...
, evolutionary developmental biologist, author, educator, and executive producer * Earl K. Fernandes, Bishop of Columbus, Ohio, author, exorcist * Dr.
Kevin Granata Kevin P. Granata (December 29, 1961 – April 16, 2007) was an American professor in multiple departments including the Departments of Engineering, Science and Mechanics (in which he was tenured) and Mechanical Engineering at Virginia Polytechnic ...
, Virginia Tech professor in biomedics field; killed in Virginia Tech massacre in April 2007 *
Marty Huff Ralph Martin Huff (December 19, 1948 – June 29, 2023) was an American football linebacker. He played for the University of Michigan from 1968 to 1970. As a senior, he was selected as a first-team All-American by the American Football Coac ...
, American football player, linebacker for the
Michigan Wolverines The Michigan Wolverines comprise 29 varsity sports teams at the University of Michigan. These teams compete in the NCAA's Division I and in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except women's water polo, which competes in the NCAA inter-divisio ...
and San Francisco 49ers * Chet Jastremski, competition
swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...
and
Olympian Olympian or Olympians may refer to: Religion * Twelve Olympians, the principal gods and goddesses in ancient Greek religion * Olympian spirits, spirits mentioned in books of ceremonial magic Fiction * ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'', fiction ...
; broke two world records in the
breaststroke Breaststroke is a swimming style in which the swimmer is on their chest and the torso does not rotate. It is the most popular recreational style due to the swimmer's head being out of the water a large portion of the time, and that it can be s ...
while swimming at Indiana University *
Zach McClellan Zachary Daniel McClellan (born November 25, 1978) is a former professional baseball pitcher. He has played part of one season in Major League Baseball with the Colorado Rockies in 2007, and is retired from professional baseball. An alumnus of Ind ...
, pitcher for the
Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...
*
Michael S. Witherell Michael Stewart Witherell (born 22 September 1949) is an American physicist and laboratory director. He has been the director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory since 2016. Witherell, a particle physicist, previously served as Director ...
,
particle physicist Particle physics or high energy physics is the study of Elementary particle, fundamental particles and fundamental interaction, forces that constitute matter and radiation. The fundamental particles in the universe are classified in the Standa ...
and president of Fermilab


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Francis de Sales High School (Toledo, Ohio) Educational institutions established in 1955 Catholic secondary schools in Ohio Boys' schools in Ohio High schools in Toledo, Ohio 1955 establishments in Ohio