Saint Ignatius High School is a private

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

boys high school in the Ohio City neighborhood of

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

History

Founded in 1886 by a German Jesuit on the invitation of Bishop

Richard Gilmour Richard Gilmour (September 28, 1824 – April 13, 1891) was a Scottish-born Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Cleveland from 1872 until his death in 1891. Biography Early life Gilmour was born in Dumbarton, Scotland to John and Maria ...

, the school was originally a six-year secondary school based on the

German Gymnasium ''Gymnasium'' (; German plural: ''Gymnasien''), in the German education system, is the most advanced and highest of the three types of German secondary schools, the others being ''Hauptschule'' (lowest) and ''Realschule'' (middle). ''Gymnas ...

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 (JCU) is a Private university, private Jesuit university in University Heights, Ohio, United States. Located in a suburb of Cleveland, it is primarily an undergraduate, liberal arts college, liberal arts institution compo ...

in 1923 and moving out of the

location to neighboring

University Heights, Ohio University Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 13,914 as of the 2020 Census. Located from downtown Cleveland, it is a suburb of the Cleveland metropolitan area. University Heights is closely tied to ne ...

, in 1935. The words and music of St. Ignatius'

alma mater Alma mater (; : almae matres) is an allegorical Latin phrase meaning "nourishing mother". It personifies a school that a person has attended or graduated from. The term is related to ''alumnus'', literally meaning 'nursling', which describes a sc ...

were composed by the school's band director, Mikey Eaton, 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 Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

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 in 1891 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 Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

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

Vermilion Vermilion (sometimes vermillion) is a color family and pigment most often used between antiquity and the 19th century from the powdered mineral cinnabar (a form of mercury sulfide). It is synonymous with red orange, which often takes a moder ...

, 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, originating in 1980. The department began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and ...

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 An academic year, or school year, is a period that schools, colleges and universities use to measure the duration of studies for a given educational level. Academic years are often divided into academic terms. Students attend classes and do rel ...

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, Chorus, 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. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

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 The National Junior Classical League (National JCL or NJCL) is a youth organization of secondary school students sponsored and organized by the American Classical League (ACL). Founded in 1936, the NJCL comprises more than 1,000 Latin, Greek a ...

(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 comp ...

(OHSAA), at the Division I level. Through the 2023–24 school year, the Wildcats have won 58 state championships across eleven sports teams, highlighted by their 13 state titles in soccer, including six consecutive titles from 2019-2024. Both the overall total of 13 and the six-year streak are the most in OHSAA history for soccer, and the school's 58 state championships rank third overall in boys' athletic titles.

State championships

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

- 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, 2023, 2024 *

Wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

- 1988 *

Ice Hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

- 2000, 2010, 2014*, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2024 * Boys' Volleyball - 2017, 2025 * Boys' Basketball – 2001, 2024 * Boys' Golf - 2001, 2002, 2021, 2022 * Boys' Track and Field - 2001, 2016 *

Baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

- 2002, 2019 * Boys' Soccer - 2004, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 _{* 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. * The Moot Court team won the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education's state

moot court Moot court is a co-curricular activity at many law schools. Participants take part in simulated court or arbitration proceedings, usually involving drafting memorials or memoranda and participating in oral argument. In many countries, the phrase ...

championship in 2024.

Notable alumni

References

External links

Saint Ignatius Official WebsiteSt Ignatius High School yearbooks
available on

Cleveland Public Library The Cleveland Public Library is a public library system in Cleveland, Ohio. Founded in 1869, it had a circulation of 3.5 million items in 2020. It operates the Main Library on Superior Avenue in downtown Cleveland, 27 branches throughout the cit ...

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 Society of Jesus in Ohio