The 159th school year at Saint Patrick, the oldest all-male Catholic high school in Chicago, began on Monday, August 19 as faculty, staff and administration welcomed the 600 young men who attend the institution back for the 2019-20 school year.
The freshman class joined by faculty, staff, administration and the St. Pat’s football program, celebrated The Feast of the Assumption of Mary on August 15 before heading to Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) for their Freshman Day of Service. The school also welcomed nine new faculty and staff members to the Shamrock family. “These outstanding educators, combined with our already exceptional faculty and staff, will continue to help our students develop the necessary analytical, critical, and life skills necessary to succeed upon graduating from Saint Patrick High School,” said Principal Jon Baffico.
On the 19th, the school year began for all students by gathering for an assembly to discuss the additional measures the school is taking to ensure their continued safety, including new policies and procedures, improved communications, and community awareness and training. “We felt we had an opportunity to set the right tone and deliver the right message by bringing everyone together on the first day of school,” Baffico said. “We feel confident after the work that has gone into planning for the new school year, we can and will become better and stronger as a community by educating our students and being accountable to one another.”
“There is much to be excited about as we begin the 2019-20 school year,” Baffico added. “The STEAM program continues to grow with 60 students enrolled in the program for the upcoming school year and four of the students involved in the program completing internships in their interest fields during the summer. In addition, the INCubatoredu Entrepreneurship Program is now entering its fourth year and the school is excited about its new course offerings in Forensic Science, Journalism Production, Entrepreneurship & Small Business, and Digital Citizenship; but even more so its continue growth in college credit opportunities.”
The school’s newest Lasallian partnership, Lewis University, provides an opportunity for students to take courses in both Aerodynamics and Computer Science bringing the total to 15 college courses and 47 possible credits. Saint Patrick is also proud to become the first private school to partner with the Shedd Aquarium allowing them to offer field trips, career fairs and internship opportunities to their students.
In addition to the new partnerships, Saint Patrick continues to foster an appreciation of the arts and service opportunities as part of its student-centered educational process. Award-winning Theatre Director Geoffrey Arndt enters his thirteenth year at Saint Patrick after his groundbreaking anti-bullying production We All Rise Above earned cast & crew an invitation to perform at the Illinois High School Theatre Festival in Champaign last year. After completing 11,000 hours of service last year, Saint Patrick will once again utilize the Helper Helper app to streamline its efforts throughout a student’s required four years of service.
Saint Patrick also looks for an exciting year in Athletics coming off six Regional Championships in soccer, basketball, bowling, wrestling, baseball and volleyball in 2018-2019. In the fall, soccer won the ESCC Conference for the first time in school history and back-to-back Sectional Championships while Shamrock football just missed making the state playoffs. Last winter, bowling won back-t0-back Regionals Championships, its 3rd ever Sectional Championship and advanced to the IHSA State Tournament for the 9th time. Basketball won its 11th Regional Title and wrestling won its 4th Regional Championship in the past 5 seasons. In the spring, baseball won back-to-back Regional Championships for the first time in school history and volleyball won its 8th consecutive Regional Championship and 14th in the last 15 seasons. Saint Patrick will continue playing at state-of-the-art facilities including Triton College and Kerry Wood Cubs Field this year, and will begin play at the new Read Dunning Park in the fall.
“Simply put, Saint Patrick High School is a better school today than we have ever been – from curriculum, to faith formation, to facilities, to fundraising, as evidenced by our current capital campaign,” Baffico said. “We continue to live the mission our founder set 350 years ago of ‘providing an educational experience of the highest quality which enables young men to develop to their maximum potential as lifelong learners and assets to society and the Church.’”
To learn more, join Saint Patrick High School for one of two Open Houses this fall on Thursday, October 24 and Thursday, November 14 from 6-8 pm. There are also opportunities for students to shadow a Shamrock for a day throughout the school year. For more information, visit www.stpatrick.org.
