West Catholic Preparatory High School is a

co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

in the

Archdiocese of Philadelphia The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Philadelphia is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in southeastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. It covers the City and County of Philadelphia as well a ...

. It is located in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, Pennsylvania, at 45th and Chestnut Streets, the University City neighborhood of

West Philadelphia West Philadelphia, nicknamed West Philly, is a section of the city of Philadelphia. Alhough there are no officially defined boundaries, it is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Avenue to the nort ...

History

The school opened on September 8, 1989, as a result of a merger between

West Philadelphia Catholic High School for Boys West Philadelphia Catholic High School for Boys (West Boys, West Catholic, Burrs) was founded in 1916. A school building was later constructed at 49th Street between Chestnut and Market Streets in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The school closed its d ...

, opened in 1916, and

West Philadelphia Catholic Girls High School West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...

, opened in 1927. When they originally opened, both West Catholic Girls and West Catholic Boys served students from West Philadelphia, Southwest Philadelphia and Delaware County. As more Archdiocesan high schools opened in the suburbs in the 1950s and 1960s, West's "feeder schools" became limited to parishes in West and Southwest Philadelphia. With the advent of "open enrollment" for Archdiocesan high schools in the 1990s, West Catholic continued to draw from West and Southwest Philadelphia, and also attracted students from Philadelphia and its suburbs. Currently (2011), approximately 25% of the students come from suburban areas, with the other 75% from across the City of Philadelphia. In 2012 there was a proposal to close the school. In July 2013, the school announced its official name change to West Catholic Preparatory High School, as part of its overall strategic plan.

Academics

Based on the school's student focus and support; school organization and culture; challenging standards and curriculum; active teaching and learning; professional community; leadership and educational vitality; school, family, and community partnerships, and indicators of success the Blue Ribbon Schools program (in affiliation with 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 Department ...

) has awarded West Catholic the prestigious '

Blue Ribbon School of Excellence 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, ...

' recognition several times. West Philadelphia Catholic High School for Boys was named a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence by the Blue Ribbon Schools program in the academic year of 1983-1984 Co-Educational West Philadelphia Catholic High School was also named a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence by the Blue Ribbon Schools program in the academic years of 1994-1996. West Catholic graduates have gone on to Swarthmore, NYU, Georgetown, Columbia, Stanford, Harvard, and the University of Pennsylvania, among others. West Catholic graduates earned scholarships such as Hispanic Heritage Youth Awards, Gates Millennium Scholarships, Nelson Scholarships, Mayor's Scholarships, and an F.C. Haab Science Scholarship.

The Brothers of the Christian Schools

West Catholic's faculty includes a number of Catholic religious orders, most notably, the

Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools french: Frères des Écoles Chrétiennes , image = Signum Fidei.jpg , image_size = 175px , caption = , abbreviation = FSC , nickname = Lasallians , named_after = , formation ...

, also known as the Christian Brothers. The Christian Brothers are a Roman Catholic lay religious teaching order, founded by French Priest

Saint Jean-Baptiste de la Salle Jean-Baptiste de La Salle () (; 30 April 1651 – 7 April 1719) was a French priest, educational reformer, and founder of the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. He is a saint of the Catholic Church and the patron saint for t ...

. De La Salle was a canon of the cathedral and came from a wealthy family. De La Salle's goal was setting up free schools where the children of the working and poor class citizens could learn reading, writing and arithmetic and also receive religious instruction and other training appropriate for forming good Christians. The Christian Brothers taught at West Catholic Boys beginning in 1926 (succeeding the Brothers of Mary).

Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary The Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (I.H.M.) is a Catholic religious institute of sisters, founded by Fr Louis Florent Gillet, CSsR, and a co-founder of the Oblate Sister of Providence, Mother Theresa Maxis Duchemin, in 1845. ...

(IHM) and the

Sisters of St. Joseph The Sisters of St. Joseph, also known as the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph, abbreviated CSJ or SSJ, is a Roman Catholic religious congregation of women founded in Le Puy-en-Velay, France, in 1650. This congregation, named for S ...

(Chestnut Hill) are two of the women's religious teaching orders from West Catholic Girls. In addition to the religious orders, the school's faculty includes a number of lay teachers. The Chaplain is a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

Partnerships

As a resident of the University City, West Catholic Preparatory High School has taken advantage of its unique location by establishing a partnership with several universities in Philadelphia: *University of Pennsylvania *Drexel University *University of the Sciences of Philadelphia

Athletics

West Catholic is a member of the

Philadelphia Catholic League The Philadelphia Catholic League is a high school sports league composed (as of the 2012-13 year) of 18 Catholic High Schools in Philadelphia and the surrounding Pennsylvania suburbs. The league itself was founded in the summer of 1920 on the steps ...

Blue Division, which comprises schools with smaller enrollment. They currently offer the following sports at the varsity level: *Girls' Volleyball *Football *Cheerleading *Boys' Basketball *Girls' Basketball *Softball *Girls' Indoor/Outdoor Track *Boys' Indoor/Outdoor Track *Cross-Country

Football championship history

West Catholic has won several football championships. The following is a listing of the championship wins, the year they were won, and the winning head coach: *Tom Tracey- 1925 *Jocko McGarry- 1932 *Bob Dougherty- 1940, 1941, 1943, 1944 *Bill McCoy- 1945, 1946 *Jack Shields- 1951 *Vince McAneny- 1962 *John McAneny- 1965 *Brian Fluck- 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016 State AA Champion 2010

Basketball

West Catholic has won a number of men's basketball championships: *Brother Michael Quinlan- 1921 *Jocko McGarry- 1931 *Pat Conway- 1938 *Joe Langan- 1949 *Jim Usilton, Jr- 1952, 1953, 1955 *Bill Ludlow- 1959 In 1971 West Philadelphia Catholic High School for Girls won the city championship at the

Palestra The Palestra, often called the Cathedral of College Basketball, is a historic arena and the home gym of the Penn Quakers men's and women's basketball teams, volleyball teams, wrestling team, and Philadelphia Big 5 basketball. Located at 235 South ...

. In 1974 West Philadelphia Catholic High School for Girls won the city championship.

Notable alumni

Nia Ali Nia Sifaatihii Ali (born October 23, 1988) is an American track and field athlete, who specializes in the 100 m hurdles, heptathlon, and other events. She is the 2016 Olympic Silver Medalist in the 100-meter hurdles, the 2019 World champion in ...

, female sprinter, silver medalist at Rio Olympics in 2016 on 100 metres hurdles * Peter Boyle, actor * Michael Brooks, former NBA basketball player and captain of 1980 Olympic Basketball team * John D. Caputo, philosopher and theologian, Thomas J. Watson Professor of Religion Emeritus at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

and David R. Cook Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic church, Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinians in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Sa ...

Big Daddy Graham Edward Gudonis (May 29, 1953 – September 8, 2021), known professionally as Big Daddy Graham, was an American comedian, writer, actor, recording artist, and sports radio personality. He hosted a show on 94 WIP-FM in Philadelphia from 1997 to 20 ...

(1953–2021), comedian, writer, actor, recording artist and sports radio personality on 94

WIP-FM WIP-FM (94.1 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to serve Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. and broadcasts a sports radio format. The WIP-FM offices and studios are co-located within Audacy's corporate hea ...

. *

Philip Hart Philip Aloysius Hart (December 10, 1912December 26, 1976) was an American lawyer and politician. A Democrat, he served as a United States Senator from Michigan from 1959 until his death from cancer in Washington, D.C. in 1976. He was known as ...

, former United States Senator (D-Michigan) and lawyer *

Jim Lynam James Francis Lynam (born September 15, 1941) is an American former college and professional basketball coach. He coached at the college level for Fairfield University from 1968 to 1970, American University from 1973 to 1978, and St. Joseph's Univ ...

, CSN Philly analyst and former collegiate and NBA basketball coach *

Herb Magee Herb Magee (born June 20, 1941), commonly referred to as the Shot Doctor, is an American former men's college basketball coach, who coached for 54 seasons at NCAA Division II Thomas Jefferson University. The school was established in its current ...

, head basketball coach for Philadelphia University and former NBA basketball player *

Joseph Mark McShea Joseph Mark McShea (February 22, 1907 – November 28, 1991) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first bishop of the Diocese of Allentown in Pennsylvania from 1961 to 1983. Biography Early life Joseph McShea w ...

, founding bishop of Allentown *

Gerry Mulligan Gerald Joseph Mulligan (April 6, 1927 – January 20, 1996), also known as Jeru, was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer and arranger. Though primarily known as one of the leading jazz baritone saxophonists—playing the instrum ...

: Jazz Legend (Baritone Sax) * Jim Murray, co-founder of the Ronald McDonald House and a former

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

of the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

Malcolm Nance Malcolm Wrightson Nance (born September 20, 1961) is an American author and media pundit. He is a former United States Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer specializing in naval cryptology. Nance is an intelligence and foreign policy analyst who fr ...

, U.S. Navy senior chief petty officer, author, television commentator * John Joseph Cardinal O'Connor, Archbishop of New York, 1984-2000. *

Peter O'Keefe Peter J. O'Keefe (born April 25, 1937) is an American politician from Pennsylvania who served as a Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 161 from 1975 to 1978. Early life and education O'Keefe was born in Dar ...

, Pennsylvania State Representative, 1975-1978 *

Jon Polito Jon Raymond Polito (December 29, 1950 – September 1, 2016) was an American character actor. In a film and television career spanning 35 years, he amassed over 220 credits. Notable television roles included Detective Steve Crosetti in the fi ...

: Actor (Multiple Coen Bros. movies including Miller's Crossing and The Big Lebowski; also Modern Family and Seinfeld). (See 1968 West Catholic Boys High School Year Book) *

Thomas Rienzi Thomas Matthew "Big Tom" Rienzi (February 5, 1919 – December 15, 2010) was a lieutenant general in the U.S. Army Signal Corps who served during World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam War. He implemented the modernization of signal units f ...

, Lt. General US Army and Catholic Deacon *

Jaelen Strong Jaelen Strong (born January 25, 1994) is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent. He played college football at Arizona State. Early years Strong's father, John Rankin, played college basketball at Drexel and died of leukemia i ...

, NFL wide receiver for the Houston Texans *

Jim Washington James H. "Jumpin' Jimmy" Washington (born July 1, 1943) is a former professional basketball player. A 6'6" forward born in Philadelphia and from Villanova University, he was selected by the St. Louis Hawks with the 6th pick of the 1965 NBA Draf ...

, a former NBA basketball player *

Paul Westhead Paul William Westhead (born February 21, 1939) is an American Retired basketball coach. He was the head coach for three National Basketball Association (NBA) teams and an assistant for four others, and also coached in the National Collegiate Athl ...

, Coached champion teams in both NBA and WNBA.

Student body

There are 427 students attending West Catholic: Ethnicity''(Source West Catholic, 2016-2017)'' *Black - 80% *White - 3% *Asian - 6% *Hispanic - 11% *Other

References

External links

West Catholic Preparatory High School
*http://schools.privateschoolsreport.com/Pennsylvania, Philadelphia/WestPhiladelphiaCatholicHig.html {{DEFAULTSORT:West Catholic Preparatory High School Roman Catholic secondary schools in Philadelphia Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia Irish-American culture in Philadelphia Educational institutions established in 1916 1916 establishments in Pennsylvania University City, Philadelphia