ACademy News

contact Brenda Knight  bknight@sjjtitans.org for additional information and refer to the Academy Back to School Newsletter emailed Friday August 4th.

Attend the first meeting of the SJJ Moms Circle Tuesday August 1st at 7pm to 9pm.

This meeting is the first of the Execs and Chairs to attend but to also welcome ALL Moms to attend.  In doing so we would like to share with them what the Circle represents, our goals, ideas etc.   In turn listening to any ideas that other Moms may have.  Great opportunity to share with Moms that they do not have to feel like they have to give 100% of their time and energy but if each of use could give a small percentage we could be so much more productive. Contact Mia Isaacson for more information.cell:419. 870. 9488

To participate in Labre or for additional information contact Phil Skeldon at pskeldon@sjjtitans.org

Titans are spending the week in Costa Rica working with a local community.

The Sojourner Truth newspaper recently published a story about St. John's Jesuit's 20/20 Scholars program, which began 22 years ago. Today, more than 230 students have participated in this program, which focuses on providing educational opportunities to a diverse range of area youth. Special thanks to Mary Ann Barabino!

Read more about it below........

http://www.thetruthtoledo.com/story/2017/051717/stjohns.htm

Congratulations to St. John's Jesuit 2017 graduates Matthew Butson and Patrick Bishop on their appointments to the United States Naval Academy with the class of 2021. This is a tremendous accomplishment and we thank Matthew and Patrick for their commitment and service.

The SSJ Academy will hold its 8th Grade graduation ceremony on Thursday May 25 in the St. John Berchman's Chapel at 7pm

Columbus Dispatch Article about SJJ Grad  Matt Zapotosky'04  who now reports the news for the Washington Post  as a reporter covering the Department of Justice in Washington DC

The Titan I built from scratch by more than 50 Academy students over the past two years, this full-size skiff set sail Friday May 12th.

Follow the link to read more: http://www.toledoblade.com/Education/2017/05/13/St-John-s-students-put-boat-building-efforts-to-test.html

t's time to shop Titans supporters! Stop by the now through May 26 for great buys on sale items and 20% off regular priced merchandise. 

$10,000 – Winner asked to remain Anonymous

$2,500 – Linda Augustyn, Karen Rippey

$1,000 – Carrie Madden, Andrew Miller, Sean Russell, Kristin Smith, Lori Yaross

Thank you to everyone who purchased a Titan Drive raffle ticket!

HOURS

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday   8am to 1:30p

Thursday  8am to 6p

For More Information, Call 419-865-5743, ext 0701.

Seniors will embark on a two week discovery of learning this week. Experiences will range from community service to career exploration. SJJ Men for Others will seek knowledge, share their talents, and return to school to speak about their experience prior to graduation ceremonies.  

Father Son Mass and Breakfast

Sunday, April 30, 9:00am-11:00am

Please click on the following link for reservations

https://www.sjjtitans.org/fathers_club_mass_and_breakfast

http://www.adrianbulldogs.com/genrel/bart_thompson_named_first_rowing_coach

High School and Academy Students will take part in a Spring Service Mission trip to Appalachia  over Easter Break. 

Our 19^th Annual Easter On Campus will take place a Tuesday, April 11^th.  

We expect 111 preschoolers in the morning, and another 68 in the afternoon.

This is a JUNIOR CLASS EVENT, assisting are Seniors from the Christian Service Core Team, as well as some Seniors who serve at the preschool will be involved.

It will be a wonderful day full of energy and excitment and "eggcelent activities."

A top priority at SJJ each year is to ensure our students have the very best educational experience in Northwest Ohio.

Part of that experience is:

• being able to work with the newest classroomtechnologies
• playing on top notch athletic facilities
• participating in an ever growing fine arts department
• having the opportunity to serve thousands of less fortunate in our community.

This is possible because of the generous support of our families, alumni, and others who see the value of a Jesuit education.

Each year we ask our students to share this message with family and friends in hopes that they will help SJJ stay ahead of the educational curve, by continuing to provide the very best for the over 750 Titans that call SJJ home.

Congratulations to the following: Jake Cowan, Patrick Gorman, Runmin Chen,Patrick Bishop, Humza Rehman, Jacob Dzierwa, Alex White.

Titans and their Grandparents celebrated Mass and enjoyed a delicious breakfast together at this annual tradition.

Congratulations to the SJJ Drumline, which placed 4th, and Winterguard, which placed 6th, in the competitions at Firestone High School in Akron this past weekend. Great job, marching Titans!

Tickets on sale in the SJJ Bookstore.

For more informaion click here to go to SJJAthletics

Due to weather this morning, SJJ will be on a 2 hour delay. Please check your email and the news for a POSSIBLE adjustment of this within the next hour. Happy Pi Day!

Wednesday, March 15

Go to Titan Athletics for more information

The St. John's Jesuit Titans advanced to the regional semifinals by defeating Bowsher, 79-66, on Saturday.

SJJ will now face Elyria on Wednesday, March 15 at the University of Toledo's Savage Arena. The game is set to tip at 7 p.m.

 
Pre-sale tickets for Wednesday's game vs. Elyria will be sold in the SJJ bookstore Monday through Wednesday from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. All pre-sale tickets are $7 and will be $8 at the gate. Please note, there are no senior citizen tickets for OHSAA tournament games.

Parking at Savage Arena is $5 and the doors will open at 6 p.m.

For those unable to attend the game, it can be heard live on 107.7 FM The Wolf  

Go Titans! 

Visit Titan Basketball for more information on the Basketball Team schedule and action.

Saturday, March 11

The St. John's Jesuit Titans advanced to the district finals with a 50-32 win over St. Francis.

The Titans will now face Bowsher on Saturday, March 11. The game will tip at 7 p.m. from the University of Toledo's Savage Arena. 

Pre-sale tickets for Saturday's game will be sold in the SJJ bookstore from 8 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. on Friday, March 10. Tickets are $6 for adults and $4 for students. Please note, there are no senior citizen tickets for OHSAA tournament games.  Parking at Savage Arena is $5 and the doors will open at 6 p.m. 

For those unable to attend the game, it can be heard live on 107.7 FM The Wolf 

Go Titans! 

See you at the Game!

Learn more about the founder of the Jesuits through this special movie screening of “Ignatius of Loyola” at the Maumee Indoor Theater

You’re invited to a special screening of “Ignatius of Loyola” on March 14 at 7 pm at the Maumee Indoor Theater. 

See Media Release Here

SPRING SPORTS SPIRIT WEAR INFORMATION   

Baseball

Crew

Lacrosse

Tennis

Track & Field 

Go Titans! 

Anounced on 13 ABC Media Outlet

St. John's Jesuit High School has it's new head football coach and the school did not have to look far to find the new face of the program.

Larry McDaniel joins the school on Airport Highway after spending one year as a defensive quality control coach at the University of Toledo. Prior to joining the Rockets, McDaniel was the defensive line coach for two seasons at Indiana.

McDaniel is a 1993 graduate of Indiana University with a bachelor's degree in business management. He was a four-year starter for the Hoosiers (1989-92) at nose guard and was also a team captain his senior season.

The St. Louis native was the defensive line coach at Bowling Green State University from 2011 to 2013. The 2013 MAC Championship Falcon defense recorded 30 sacks that season as BGSU held MAC opponents to a conference best 150.6 rushing yards per game.  St. John's Jesuit looks to make its first playoff appearance since 2010. McDaniel is the fifth head football coach in the history of St. John's Jesuit.  -from13ABC

 http://www.13abc.com

Join Us for a LuLaRoe event in the Maker's Mart (formerly Academy A+ space) as Student Life will be having a fundraising event for Prom.

For more information contact Mr. Claudio Cabrera, Director of Student Life. ccabrera@sjjtitans.org

Visitors are asked to enter through  The Carty Fox Commons to attend this event.

Thank you.

http://valentinetheatre.com/events

click the above link, once on the Valentine Events page scroll down to SCHOOL PRESENTATIONS

to purchase tickets.

Thank you.

Congratulations to SJJ's own Mr. Luke Rosen, Choral and Music Director, who was honored this past weekend by his high school alma mater which inducted him into the Seton-Elder Performing Arts Series Hall of Fame. Great job, Mr. Rosen!

Please Join Us for a fun day of exploring fun and sports camps we will offer this summer at SJJ.

Follow the link to the sign up page and we will see you on Monday, February 20, 2017.

Our St. John's Jesuit Robotics Team advanced through the regional qualifier in Newark and is heading to the FIRST Tech Challenge Ohio Championship Tournament in Cincinnati this Friday and Saturday Feb 10 abnd 11th

http://valentinetheatre.com/events.html

Tickets for SJJ's 2017 musical, "The Addams Family," are now available for purchase

 Performances will be held on the following dates and times:

Friday, March 17, at 7pm;

Saturday, March 18, at 2pm and 7pm;

and Sunday, March 19, at 2pm.

 PURCHASE TICKETS NOW

All seats are $12 plus a $2 box office fee

calling the Valentine Theatre 419-242-3490

visiting the Valentine Theatre website events page under school presentations http://valentinetheatre.com/events.html 

or going to the Valentine Theatre in person during normal business hours

ACT Test wll be given Saturday Feb. 11th at 8am.

For More Information contact the Schoo's main office 419-865-5743. EXT 0731

We are looking forward to a great evening Saturday, February 4, 2017 for our Dinner Under the Dome "Evening with the Classics! Thank you to all who are supporting this annual event! See you under the Dome

St. John's Jesuit will host a National Signing Day event on February 1st at 1:30pm in the McQuade Theater.  Families and friends are encouraged to come and celebrate the young men who will be continuing both their academic and athletic careers at the collegiate level.

The following student-athletes will be involved:

Tycen Anderson - University of Toledo (Football)

Mitch Berg - University of Toledo (Football)

Zach Buescher - Bowling Green State Univesity (Soccer)

Pete McIntyre - Northwestern University (Football)

Anthony Moore - University of St. Francis (Football)

View some of the featured auction items available this year at Dinner Under The Dome 2017.

click here for slideshow

For More information contact the OFfice of College Counseling at 4`19-865-5743, extension 0776. Thank you.

Students will be participating in the annual event in Washington DC

All current 8th grade prospective students – please join the St. John’s Jesuit Admissions Team on Friday, Jan. 20 at 5 pm at St. John’s Jesuit for a fun and informative night about becoming a Titan.

We’ll have information for parents on financial aid, transportation, courses, athletics and more. And for the boys – pizza, games, fun and comradery. Please RSVP to admissions@sjjtitans.org or call 419-720-0766.

Contact the Admissions Office for more informaion and to register for the event.

419-8656-5743 or admissions@sjjtitans.org

Follow Link below to read full article

http://www.toledoblade.com/Education/2016/11/28/Student-of-the-Week-Andrew-Urbanski-St-John-s-Jesuit-High-School.html

Join us for a festive evening of music and singing by our SJJ concert band under the direction of Tim Martin, and our Choral group under the direction of Luke Rosen.

7pm in the Chapel of St. John Berchmans

The SJJ Academy will host an Arts & Enrichment Class Expo today from 1:30pm-4:30pm in the Carty Fox Commons. All staff and students are encouraged to attend.

National Spanish Honor Society Christmas Program will host their annual holiday potluck @6p in the Carty Fox Commons and McQuade Theater

Head Football Coach

St. John's Jesuit HS, in Toledo Ohio, is seeking a highly qualified and experienced Head Football Coach. Candidates are required to have previous head coaching experience at the high school or collegiate level and must demonstrate the ability to develop a strong, cohesive program within the boundaries of the Jesuit mission of "Men for Others". The new head coach will be expected to implement a winning culture focused on academics, character, and athletic excellence. Qualified candidates shall also possess strong communication, relational and organizational skills, and the knowledge to create and sustain an overall successful football program. A full-time teaching or other position may accompany the coaching position depending on the needs of the school and the licensure/certification of the candidate. All interested candidates should submit a letter of interest, resume, and references to Director of Athletics, Bob Ronai, at rronai@sjjtitans.org. For questions or additional information, please call 419-720-0780. The application deadline is Friday, January 6th. 

SJJ will be hosting pre-schoolers again this year to share in the excitement of the holiday season. Welcome to campus. 

SJJ COACHES SHOW

The first SJJ Coaches Show of the Winter Season will take place this Thursday, December 1 at 7 p.m. from Sidelines Sports Eatery (1430 Holland Rd., Maumee).

Featured guests will include Coach Ed Heintschel with members of the Titan basketball team. Be there for a great time and great food!

If you are unable to make it, you can listen live on 107.7 FM The Wolf. The show will also be streamed live and is available here.

Wishing all of our students, parents, faculty, staff, and SJJ Alums, and  community a Happy and Blessed Thanksgiving with their families and friends

Winter Sports Teams Apparel Go To  http://www.sjjtitans.com/index.asp

Informational meetings will be held Monday, November 14^th   in the Savage Room.   Please pick the time most convenient for you and join us!

9AM  or  6:45PM

 For questions, please email jsavage@sjjtitans.org or call 419-720-0749. Thank you!

 Dinner Under the Dome is Saturday, February 4, 2017 and we would like your help! 

Please come to one of our informational meetings to find out more about the event andhow you can become a volunteer.  This is a great way to meet other parents and to be involved in the SJJ community.

Join 1,600+ members of the Jesuit network in learning, reflecting, praying, networking, and advocating for justice.

The Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice (IFTJ) is an annual gathering for members of the Ignatian family (Jesuit institutions and larger church) to come together in the context of social justice and solidarity to learn, reflect, pray, network, and advocate together.

It is a place where people are empowered, re-energized, inspired, challenged, and supported by a community that sees faith and justice integrally linked. 

Now in its 19th year, the IFTJ has a rich history rooted in honoring the Jesuits and their companions who were martyred in El Salvador in 1989.

WATCH HERE LiveStream All Weekend

St. John’s Jesuit Campion Hall Players present

Some Canterbury Tales

Freely adapted from Geoffrey Chaucer by Ken Pickerington

Friday @8p

Saturday @ 8p

Sunday @ 7p

Purchase Tickets at the door

The Winter Sports Player/Parent Meeting 

Thursday, Nov. 10 at 6:30 p.m. in the Chapel of St. John Berchmans.

Players and parents are required to attend, as well as coaches, as mandated by the OHSAA.

The SJJ Titan Community wishes to thank all the families who visited our campus for Open House. We want to acknowledge our SJJ parents, volunteers, students, faculty and staff for making our day a success! For more information on becoming a Titan. Contact Admissions at 419-865-5743. or email admissions@sjjtitans.org

As part of the Halloween Fan Zone activities, there will be trick or treat stations setup around Lyden Field for Little Titans

and Titan Families to enjoy. See you at the Game! Activities start at 5pm.

Band Director Tim Martin announces the SJJ band performed this past Saturday October 22nd  at Swanton High School and was awarded "Best Overall Percussion" and received 3rd place in class A/AA competition. This  competition award is 
the first in over 10 years. Great job to the bandmembers and Mr. Martin. 

Please consider bringing in a bag or two to of candy for our Christan Service Team to pass out on Halloween Oct 31st to the elementary students.  THANK YOU. for more information, contact Phil Skeldon, pskeldon@sjjtitans.org

WING EATING CHALLENGE at SJJ Coaches' Radio Show.

The contestants are:

For the Administration – Principal, Joe Cordella  

For the Jesuits' - Fr. Tom Doyle      

For the Faculty - Physics & Chemistry Teacher - Scott Zura       

For the Athletic Dept. - Strength Coach - Dustin Winkler     

For the Students - The Reigning Wing Eating Champ - Jacob Symamowski

Come out to Sidelines Sports Eatery in Maumee this Thursday, October 20th at 7 pm

Root for your favorite! It is also 49c plain wing night!

Football Tickets now available

It is with tremendous pleasure and enthusiasm that we welcome Diane White Lazette as the new Vice President of Advancement for St John's Jesuit High School and Academy.  With over 20 years of nonprofit expertise, Diane brings a combination of vision, fundraising, development, team building, and taking people and organizations to the next level.

Soccer vs. St. Francis | 5 p.m. | St. John's Jesuit 

School is delayed two hours

Varsity Football at Findlay.  Not attendint the game, listen on 107.7 FM the Wolf for play by play action.

TV-4 News Desk - Live from SJJ

8th Grade Visits kicked off with a Titan Welcome to visitors and their guests.

Camaraderie in the Commons

St. John's Jesuit is looking forward to a great week of Titan Pride as we  welcome area 8th graders to our school. Faculty, Staff, and Students are ready to share our excellence in academics, in the arts, and athletics. 

September 25th

Today is the last day of the ride. There are over so many nice people riding. My team is riding for a cure. There are 86 riders on the team. We have the largest team. There are about 450 riders. Some have said  many more.

This last day is suppose to be very hilly, so who knows how the last 40 miles will go! See you on Tuesday!

Kari

Finish Line ===celebration of the awareness for Alpha-1 Bike for a Cure 2016 is a success!

September 23rd

High School Math Teacher Kari Black begins the Alpha-1 Bike event "Escape to the Cape"  160 mile ride to raise awareness and funds for research. To learn more about the 3 day trek  Click Here. Kari will be bicycling with cyclists from around the country. From Kari today,  "Today begins the first 62 miles of the Escape to the Cape"

Junior Conor Smenner talks with ABC affiiate TV-13 WTVG in Toledo about the new sitcom Speechless which has a character with cerebral palsy. Conor shares with Lissa Guytan hs own experiences and reflects on the TV show and how it resembles some of his daily life. Click Here for the interview and video.

The school wide canned food drive is making great headway in its efforts to support the Toledo Food Bank. All SJJ community members are encouraged to donate and bring their canned food items to the Main Office today through Friday.

SJJ Alum John Weinandy begins two year novitiate with Society of Jesus

John, 25, attended St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy in Toledo, Ohio, and earned a bachelor’s in biology at John Carroll University in University Heights, Ohio. After trying out the field of medical research, he returned to St. John’s, first as an alumni volunteer and then as a staff member, working in the campus ministry and Christian service departments. John enjoys reading, cooking, playing games and exploring God’s creation. (Chicago-Detroit Province)

September 13, 2016

Society of Jesus Welcomes 48 New Novices  By Doris Yu

This fall, 48 new Jesuit novices joined the Society of Jesus in Canada, Haiti and the U.S., the largest group of novices in the last 10 years. The journey to becoming a Jesuit priest or brother can take from eight to 12 years, and it begins with two years in the novitiate. The formation process follows a detailed plan that was laid out by St. Ignatius, founder of the Society of Jesus. To read the rest of the story click here

→ 

Congratulations to our five St. John's Jesuit High School & Academy National Merit Semi-Finalists - Patrick Gorman, Jake Cowan, Alexander White, Jacob Dzierwa, and Humza Rehman!

Please Join Us for this SJJ tradition. Follow the link to register HERE

Calling all alums from any Jesuit institution.  This year alums of Jesuit schools from all over the world will be meeting in Cleveland.  This event held every four years has never before been held in North America.  If interested in attending, more information may be found at the website below.

SJJ Class of 2017, this could be one of your first events as an alumnus and would give you an opportunity to network with people like you from all over the world. Fr. Tom Doyle, SJ

FOR MORE INFORMATION CLICK HERE

Pre-sale tickets for tomorrow night's football game at Fremont Ross High School are available for purchase in the SJJ Bookstore during normal operating hours. Pre-sale tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for students and senior citizens. Be aware, all tickets purchased at the gate will be $7.

The Pack-A-Pickup Canned Food Drive Competition, Sponsored by Channel 11, Charlie’s Dodge and Toledo Seagate Foodbank, is upon us again. St. John’s Jesuit has won this Competition the past 4 years in a row and The Christian Service Core Team is challenging the SJJ community to step up once again. Last year we collected enough food items to serve 79, 000 meals to families who are in need in Northwest Ohio. The collection will last from Sept. 12 until our football game on Sept. 23rd. For More Information, contact the Pastoral Ministries Team at St. John’s Jesuit High School and Academy

Featured Coach Pearson with members of the football team

and Coach Fox with members of the crew team

Join Us at Sidelines- Maumee Location

For More Information contact mschoen@sjjtitans.org 

Football Begins!  Join us at Lyden Field or Watch Live on BCSN @7pm Go Titans!

St. John's Jesuit is excited to announce the hiring of our new CFO!  Caryn Cummings will be joining the St. John's team.  To learn a bit more about Caryn, click here.  

Check in today at 3:00 PM for our first Facebook Live video chat with SJJ President Father Jeff Putthoff, SJ!

Fr. Jeff will share his background, first couple months at SJJ, and the "next 50"!

Installation Mass for our 11th President, Father Jeff Putthoff, S.J. is today as we celebrate the Mass of the Holy Spirit on Lyden Field. 

The St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) Titans have won their fourth straight Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) All Sports Award. Out of a possible ten sports, SJJ won four conference titles in Cross Country, Golf, Tennis and Track & Field.  

In addition, Cross Country was District Champions, Soccer was in the State Final Four, Golf was Second in the District, Basketball was a District Runner-Up, Tennis placed Fourth in the State and Track/Field were District Champions and Fourth in the Region.

The Titans had five coaches officially named TRAC Coaches of the Year: Doug Pearson ’82 – Football; Mussa Orra ’02 – Golf, Todd Black – Cross Country, Steve Spenthoff ’95 – Track & Field, and Jim Davis ’70 – Tennis.

               Representing their sport are: Baseball – Keyaunte Jones ’17, Basketball – Harrison Riggs ’17, Crew – Charlie Baca ’17, Cross Country – Cory Chovan ‘17, Football – Peter McIntyre ’17, Golf – Eric Mancinotti ’17, Hockey – Alex Morrison ’17, Lacrosse – Jeff Szozda ’17, Soccer – Zach Buescher ’17, Swimming & Diving – Joel Perino ’17, Tennis – Alan Fahoury ’18, Track/Field – Tycen Anderson ’17 and Wrestling – Jeff Williams.

Picture Caption:  Class of 2017 athletes that helped St. John’s Jesuit earn the TRAC All Sports Trophy for the fourth year in a row: (left to right) front row – seated: Jeff Williams, second row - kneeling: Eric Mancinotti, Cory Chovan, Zach Buescher, Joel Perino, Jeff Szozda, Alex Morrison, back row – standing: Charlie Baca, Alan Fahoury, Peter McIntyre, Tycen Anderson, Harrison Riggs, Keyaunte Jones.

Congratulations to the Titan Soccer Team that was ranked nationally in the Top 25 Teams.  Click here for story.

Read about Fr. Jeff in THE BLADE.  Click here for the complete story.

Today was a sad day for myself and the other American teachers.  It was our final day at our respective schools and it was very hard to say goodbye to our students.  When we arrived in Kenya and visited the schools, I was terrified to think I’d be put in a classroom full of kids staring directly at you and expecting something grand!  I was sure I would freeze and have no clue as to what to do.  Amazingly, that time came and while I was nervous, I quickly became comfortable with the kids and it was a great feeling.  From then on my confidence increased and I believed I was really making a difference to these kids. 

 Sarah Chabin and I taught at two schools over the course of eight days, at Manyatta Primary School in the morning and after lunch we would walk to Jupiter Boarding School just up the road. Both schools were filled with energetic kids. One of my favorite moments was arriving at either school and to a chorus of students yelling, ”Jambo teacher Peirce”!  Even though we were at the schools for a short time, the kids had acted like we all had been long time friends.  At the same time, I could hear the kids giggle at the sight of a Mzungu entering their classroom.  That might sound scary or rude, but it was honestly great to hear because if they didn’t giggle then they probably had become bored with us.

 During my days of teaching my love for this country and the people has really grown.  Every teacher and student has been so welcoming and friendly to me, it made me feel extra special.  Interacting with the kids and teaching was a huge eye-opener.  After they did a good job on an assignment, I would put a sticker on their homework, which brought much laughter and excitement.  This made me think of some teenagers in America complaining because they didn’t get the car or Iphone they wanted.  Today when I pulled out a box of colored pencils their faces lit up; there is no better feeling than making a child smile.

Each day when we left for Jupiter, a group of Manyatta kindergarteners would walk Sarah and I to our destination. This being our final day at Jupiter was a particularly cool experience for us. After teaching one period we were taken to their lunch area and we found every class from the “babies” to the eight graders sitting quietly awaiting our arrival.  We were given seats at the front of the room and each class presented us with a song they had prepared beforehand. Each performance was very touching and also very funny.  During the eighth-grader’s performance, as they all sang and danced in a circle, one of the girls grabbed me from my seat and pulled me into the circle.  She held both of my hands, encouraging me to dance, which I did to the laughter of the entire school!   I couldn’t help myself but to burst out laughing as well, and shortly after I had embarrassed myself they grabbed Sarah from her seat and did the exact same thing.  

Following the songs and without warning, the headmaster asked me to stand in front of the entire school and give a speech. Having 200 kids all stare at me was pretty scary, but my speech seemed to go over well as the kids laughed and smiled after I was done. I am so happy to have been able to teach in these schools, even if for a short period of time.  We were all strangers to each other just last week, but now I feel a powerful and lasting bond.   Our final goodbye was hard, but as we were ‘high fiving’ and saying “Kwa heri,” the kids all gathered around us and all I could do was smile and laugh.  As we walked down the road one last time to Batian’s View, the sadness really set in.  I had met so many kind people, and I realized that I might never see them again. This entire experience has been amazing, and I have learned so much not only about the people I have met and taught, but about myself as well. I hope to return at some point in the future. 

Next up is Mt. Kenya! Kwa heri,

Congratulations to Class of 2016 graduates Ben Clark, Dominic Bier, Vamsi Chodisetty, and Jake Barnes who as part of a 4 x 800 relay team finished 17th at the National Track & Field Championship in Greensboro, NC with a running time of 7:55.

Pictured left to right: Coach Todd Black, Jake Barnes, Vamsi Chodisetty, Dominic Bier, Ben Clark, and Assistant Coach Ryan Schoonmaker.

 

Luke Rosen, Director of Choral Music at SJJ and Director of Music Ministry at Corpus Christi University Parish, has published a beautiful piece of music called “Suscipe” to honor the “Men and Women for Others.” The piece is based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola and is available from Oregon Catholic Press in mixed chorus and male chorus arrangements.  It is the perfect piece of Jesuit music.

Mr. Rosen received his BM in Choral Music Education and his MM in Choral Conducting Performance from Bowling Green State University where he studied with some of the top teachers. He joined SJJ in 2004 and has been encouraging young men to develop their musical talents ever since. 

In addition to his church and school work, his compositions have been performed by various artists and ensembles at BGSU, the Cleveland Chamber Symphony, the Singing Men of Ohio (Ohio University), Bloomfield Hills High School (Bloomfield, MI), Toledo School of the Arts, and the Tower Brass Quintet (Toledo).

In addition to “Suscipe,” he has also published through Oregon Catholic Press “Morning and Evening Song” and “Magnificant.”

Students returned from the Dominican Republic recently after having helped build a multi-sports court with Jesuit in New Orleans as a Courts for Kids project.  See the video of the project.  Click here to view a video of the project.

Congratulations to Jake Barnes ’16 for placing Third in the State in the 800 Meter Run.  Jake, along with teammates Ben Clark ’16, Dominic Bier ’16 and Vamsi Chodisetty ’16, set a new school and Regional Record of 7:43.89 in the relay.  Their regional time qualified them for the New Balance Nationals Track & Field in Greensboro, NC on June 18. (Pictured left to right: Clark, Barnes, Bier and Chodisetty)

See the WTVG news pre-State competition. http://www.13abc.com/content/sports/St-Johns-and-Southview-Track-Teams-Prepare-for-State-381702201.html 

The 163 members of St. John’s Jesuit High School Class of 2016 earned $19.5 million in college scholarships and awards and celebrated their Graduation on May 18. They were accepted into the top universities including Brown University, Boston College, Harvard University, Georgetown University, Washington University (St. Louis), Pennsylvania State University, Illinois Institute of Technology, University of Notre Dame, Vanderbilt University, The Ohio State University, University of Toledo, Bowling Green State University, University of Michigan and many more.

Valedictorians for the Class of 2016 were Fuad Abbas, Nicolas Granato, Jacob Hasselbach, Connor Long, Timothy Wohl and Bilal Yassine. Ivan Dye was Salutatorian.

Five graduates received special school awards.  Jacob Chovanec received the Bishop’s Cross presented to an outstanding senior, who through their example, service and leadership have been notable in living out the Christian commitment. Luke Tracz earned the Scholar Athlete Award presented to a senior who is a team player and demonstrates academic achievement, natural athletic ability and leadership. Kenneth Goetz received the Spirit of St. Ignatius of Loyola given to an outstanding senior who exhibits determination, courage and love.  He exhibits exceptional concern for the betterment of humankind both in and out of the classroom. Robert DiSalle received the St. John Berchmans Award conferred upon a graduating senior, who, by the vote of his classmates, is judged to be the outstanding senior.  In addition to general excellence in academic achievement, co-curricular involvement, leadership and social awareness, he embodies the Christian ideals modeled by the patron said of the school, St. John Berchmans of the Society of Jesus.  Rolando Muniz received the Jesuit Secondary Education Association (JSEA) Award for a well-rounded person who is led to action – action that is suffused with the spirit and presence of Jesus Christ, the man for others. The person reflects the ideals of the Jesuit Graduate at Graduation who is intellectually competent, open to growth, religious, loving and committed to doing justice in generous service to the people of God.

After a national search during which we interviewed a number of outstanding candidates, St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy (SJJ) is pleased to announce that the Board of Trustees approved Rev. Jeffrey Putthoff, S.J., a Jesuit from the Central and Southern Province, as the school’s 11^th President. 
          

“We are delighted to welcome Fr. Jeff as the 11th President of St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy.  We are impressed with his track record and look forward to his leadership as we move ahead in our effort to educate and develop young men into strong Christian leaders,” said Dan Anderson, Board Chairman.

“I am looking forward to returning to my Midwestern roots and begin leading St. John’s Jesuit as the school enters its next 50 years.  I have experienced a God of surprise and joy during my years as a Jesuit and that experience is firmly rooted in my own Jesuit education, the same education that is particular to St. John’s Jesuit.  It is an education focused on meeting God and knowing that God created me and the world around me.  Whether it is in its strong academic curriculum or in its strong co-curricular focus, St. John’s is clearly a community seeking to respond with abundant abandon to God, just as St. Ignatius did.  It is a community that I am excited to join.  I am looking forward to the surprise and joy that God has for the St. John’s Jesuit community in the coming years!” said Fr. Putthoff.

 Congratulations to Mike Truesdell, current SJJ President, who will become the first lay president of Holy Cross High School in New York.

Want some great stock tips? Ask an Academy 8th grader. Academy OGJJJB won the 2016 BLADE School Stock Market contest. Their portfolio grew 40% since Feb. 19! Check out more in THE BLADE: http://www.toledoblade.com/Education/2016/05/17/St-John-s-Jesuit-team-wins-Blade-stock-competition.html

Keith Jordan signed to play basketball at Siena Heights University where he plans to study chemical engineering.  Jordan played basketball for the Titans all four years, the last two years on varsity.  He received the CYO Award.  An honor roll student, Jordan has been involved in the Leadership & Alumni Mentoring Program.  He is an active volunteer in his church Ebenzer Missionary Church serving as an usher and volunteering in their JLJ Vision Outreach Program for children afterschool.  He also volunteered at the Heatherdowns Rehabilitation Center.

“Keith is an example of what perseverance and determination can do for a player.  By the end of the season he was playing a lot of minutes and making a significant contribution,” said Head Basketball Coach Ed Heintschel.

Picture: Keith Jordan ’16 (center) with Siena Heights Head Basketball Coach Joe Pechota (left) and Assistant Coach Tyler Hammond (right).

Senior Kenneth Goetz of Sylvania received the Harold K. Mossing Award at the school’s annual award ceremony.  The $1,000 scholarship was created in 2007 to honor the memory of Harold K. Mossing, a decorated war veteran who demonstrated considerable commitment to his church, family and community. The award is presented to a senior who lives his faith on a daily basis.

                Goetz plans to study Political Science and/or Astro Physics at Boston College.  He is a member of the National Honor Society.  He is on the Campus Ministry Core Team, a founding member of the STEMa Club (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Astronomy) and was an organizer of the Voter Registration and Get Out the Vote Campaign at SJJ.  Junior year he was involved in the spring sports season as a shot put and discus thrower.

                He has participated in the SJJ Christian Service Daytime Program tutoring first and third graders at SunBridge Academy.  He also participated in the SJJ International Service Program in Panama where he helped build a multi-purpose court for the town of Chilibre.  He has served at the Cherry Street Mission.  He was a senior leader for the Sophomore Manresa Retreat.  He is an altar server and Eucharistic Minister at SJJ and his home parish St. Joseph, Sylvania.  Junior year he received the Religious Award (one of the five principles of the Jesuit Graduate at Graduation) for taking personal responsibility for developing his religious beliefs.

                In his free time, he enjoys the martial arts and has been a Sensi (teacher) for Kempo Martial Arts where he taught all ages from three years old to over 65.

Pictured:  Joe Cordella, Principal, Kenneth Goetz, and Mike Truesdell, President

The SJJ Titan Lacrosse Team has a secret weapon -- yoga.  Click here to see the story on WTOL Sports.

Congratulations to two Titans who made verbal commitments last week. Read about these two high achieving athletes both on and off the field in THE BLADE. Click here. 

St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) seniors were recognized for their plans to continue playing sports in college: Jake Barnes – Cross Country/Track and Field – University of Cincinnati, Logan Hodak – Golf – Capital University, Aaron Thompson – Basketball – Ashland University, Hunter Johnson – Baseball – Mount Union University, Rajeev Laungani – Tennis – Case Western University, Ryan Rubel – Football – Ohio Wesleyan University, Austin Buck – Crew – Delaware University, Luke Tracz – Club Crew – University of Michigan and Spencer Rogers – Club Crew – University of Rochester. 

Jake Barnes will run cross country/track and field for the University of Cincinnati.  He is a cross country four-year varsity letter winner and was All State his junior year.  In track he was the 800 meter Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) Champion freshman, sophomore and junior years.  He was on the 2015 OHSAA State Track Team 4 x 800 (anchor), 4 x 400 (anchor), 800 meter, 2015 New Balance National 4 x 800 (anchor) and 2014 OHSAA State Track Team 4 x 800 (anchor).  He is the All Time School Record Holder for the Freshman 4 x 400 (3:38.2), 4 x 800 (8:40.5) and 800 meter (1:59.27). He holds Varsity Records in 4 x 400 (3:20.93) and 4 x 800 (7.51.09) and the No. 2 Varsity School Record 800 meter 1:54.62 (2015). He was nominated for the 2015 CYO Outstanding Athlete Award given to a senior varsity player who participates in CYO athletics in high school, has strong academics and is a strong role model.  He played freshman and Junior Varsity basketball for the Titans.

He is in the Ambassador Society, a student leadership group that helps at school events, was a House Captain for two years, serves on the Integrity Committee and is on the Christian Service Core Team.  He has been involved in the Men’s Choir and is a Eucharistic Minister.  He has continually been on the Honor roll.

                He earned the 2015 Man for Others Award given to students who exemplify Christianity through classroom, community and Christian Service.  He has done volunteer work at Sunshine Children’s Home, Sunbridge Academy and Toledo Prep and Fitness Academy.  He did international Christian Service in Guatemala.  He helped plan and participated in Easter on Campus for preschoolers and Christmas on Campus with Queen of Apostles and Holy Rosary Schools.

Logan Hodak will golf for Capital University.  Hodak has been involved on the Titan Golf Team for four years playing varsity his junior and senior years.  He was Honorable Mention – All TRAC and Honorable Mention – All District.  He tied for fifth in the Sectional Tournament. He has played for the Toledo Junior Golf Association (TJGA) for almost five years.  He played baseball for the Titans his freshman and sophomore years and basketball his freshman year.  He swam for the varsity swim team junior and senior years.

                An honor roll student, Hodak has been in the Ambassador Society for three years, a student leadership group that works at school events.  He is involved with the Arabic Club.  He has been active in the SJJ Daytime Christian Service Program serving at Bittersweet Farms and the Sunshine Community. He has done service at the Ridgewood Manor with the elderly. He participated in Easter on Campus with a preschoolers and Christmas on Campus with Queen of Apostles and Holy Rosary Schools. 

Aaron Thompson will play basketball for Ashland University where he plans to study Forensic Science.  Thompson was Second Team, All TRAC, Second Team, All District and Sports Nightly Player of the Year his senior year.  Junior year he was Honorable Mention, All TRAC.  In the off season, he has played for the King James Ohio Varsity Basketball Team.

                An honor roll student, Thompson is involved in the Spanish Honors Society and the Athletic Club.  An active volunteer he has served as part of the SJJ Daytime Christian Service Program at Rosary Cathedral, founded Books 4 Buddies, participated in Easter on Campus with a preschoolers and Christmas on Campus with Queen of Apostles and Holy Rosary Schools.  He is a familiar face at Titan summer basketball camps.  He received the Youth Jefferson Award – Students In Action for his extensive volunteerism with Books 4 Buddies and his youth outreach work.

Hunter Johnson will pitch for the University of Mount Union (UMU) while earning a degree in business.  He has been involved with the Titan baseball program for three years.  When he visited UMU, he was impressed with their training facilities and coaches.  He also has played ball for the Michigan Jets, a summer travel team.

                When he is not playing baseball, Johnson is involved in his studies and a volunteer at Kingston Residence in Perrysburg over the last four years.

Rajeev Laungani will play tennis for Case Western University where he plans to study Biomedical Engineering. He is captain of the tennis team and has played on the varsity team all four years.  Junior year he was TRAC Player of the Year; TRAC Academic Team; Second Team, All State; First Team, All Conference; First Team, All District and First Team, All TRAC.  Sophomore year he was Honorable Mention, All State; First Team, All Conference; First Team, All District and First Team, All TRAC. He has been involved with U.S.T.A. for nine years and has been at Nationals the last three years.

                He is in the National Honor Society and was an Ignatian Guild Scholar for two years. He has been in the Ambassador Society, a student leadership group that helps at school events.  He has been a tutor for Kids Unlimited for four years.  He has been part of the SJJ International Christian Service Program serving in Guatemala.  He participated in Easter on Campus with a preschoolers and Christmas on Campus with Queen of Apostles and Holy Rosary Schools. He is involved with the Hindu Temple Youth Group.

Ryan Rubel will play football next fall for Ohio Wesleyan University where he plans to study either Business Marketing or Economics.  Rubel was on the varsity team for three years and was named All TRAC Academic all three years.  He was asked to play in the Northwest Ohio All Star Game.  He played lacrosse for four years and was on the varsity team his junior and senior years.

                He is part of the Spirit Squad and was on Student Council for two years.  He was part of the Lacrosse Club freshman and sophomore years.  He participated in the Leadership & Alumni Mentoring Program.

                Rubel volunteered in the SJJ Daytime Christian Service Program at Crossgates Preschool.  He worked with the elderly at Hands of Grace Faith in Action for two years.  He participated in Easter on Campus for preschoolers and Christmas on Campus with Queen of Apostles and Holy Rosary Schools.

Austin Buck will row for the University of Delaware and study business.  He has been a member of the crew team all four years.  As a junior he won the Gold Medal at the Midwest Championship for Rowing and finished fifth in the nation his junior year. As a sophomore his team was second at the Midwest Championship in the Varsity Lightweight Four that went on to Nationals.  His freshman year he was an alternate for the Lightweight Eight that went to Nationals.  He was invited to attend the U.S. National Team for Sculling Development and High Performance Camp.

                He is an honor student and involved with the Spanish Honors Society.  He serves as part of the Ambassador Society, a student leadership group that helps at school events. He has been involved with the SJJ Daytime Christian Service Program at the Padua Center.  He has volunteered at the Sunshine Home since his freshman year.  He has done international Christian Service in El Salvador.  He participated in Easter on Campus with a preschoolers and Christmas on Campus with Queen of Apostles and Holy Rosary Schools.

Luke Tracz plans to continue crew at the University of Michigan as part of the club program. He will study either civil or environmental engineering. He is a captain of the crew team and has participated all four years.  He qualified for the Nationals and the prestigious Head of the Charles race in Boston.

He is a National Merit Finalist and is a member of the National Honor Society.  He is in the Ambassador Society, a student leadership group that helps at school events.  He plays in the Ultimate Frisbee Club.  He is a peer tutor and serves on the Integrity Committee. He has participated several years in the Leadership & Alumni Mentoring Program. He has taken SJJ three-year engineering program which partners with The Ohio State University.

He takes the school model of being a man for others to heart having gone on three service trips to Appalachia and an international Christian Service trip to El Salvador.  He has also served at Ebeid Hospice, tutored at Sylvania Family Services and volunteered at Wildwood Metro Parks.

Spencer Rogers plans to continue his rowing as part of the club program at the University of Rochester where he will study optical engineering.  He has been involved with crew all four years and has been on the varsity team for two years serving as captain his senior year.  He won the Gold Medal at the Midwest Championship for Rowing and finished fifth in the nation his junior year. He was captain on the varsity swim team and earned Second Team, All TRAC honors. 

                He is on the Christian Service Core Team. He was a senior Kairos and freshman retreat leader.  He serves on the Integrity Committee.  He is in the National Honor Society.  He is in the Ambassador Society, a student leadership group that helps at school events. He has been involved with the Chess Team since junior high and is team captain.  He led the Chess Team to four Toledo High School City Chess Championships. Just recently he competed with the chess team in the Nationals where the team finished 21^st in their category. He participates on the Ultimate Frisbee Team.

                Extremely involved in Christian Service, Rogers helps serve with the Labre Program that provides meals once a week for the underserved as well as participated in Easter on Campus with a preschoolers and Christmas on Campus with Queen of Apostles and Holy Rosary Schools.  He did international Christian Service in El Salvador. He has served in Appalachia twice once as a camp counselor for teenage boys and the other time helping families renovate their homes. 

St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) seniors Ivan Dye and Aaron Thompson are the honored recipients of the Youth Jefferson Award – Students In Action.  These two young men who are student leaders have helped shaped the volunteerism culture on their campus and represent the SJJ motto of being men for others.

Students In Action is a student-led program whose sole purpose is the teaching of high school youth to become effective, service-driven leaders.

Leadership Toledo approached the St. John’s Jesuit community to ask that we aid in the launching of the Students in Action program. The Christian Service Core Team has done this by selecting two of St. John’s Jesuit own to be recipients of a Jefferson award.  The selection criteria were based solely on the service a student completes above and beyond what is required at St. John’s Jesuit. 

Ivan Dye founded in 2012, Books 4 Buddies. At Fassett Middle School's graduation ceremony in east Toledo, Dye surprised more than 200 students, parents, teachers and community leaders when he greeted everyone in Chinese.  Forty Chinese middle school students were participating in a three-week educational program.  Dye read to children there and helped distribute free books. At Birmingham Terrace, Books/Buddies/Blankets, he was joined by eight international students from Africa, Asia, Europe and South America. Dye designed a bed saddle for kids who have no place to store books at home.

He was selected as Salutatorian for the Class of 2016 and was the February Maumee Rotary Student of the Month. He has volunteered through the SJJ Daytime Christian Service Program at the Spring Meadows Extended Care Center and at the Goerlich Center working with dementia patients.  He did service in Appalachia during spring break.  At Third Baptist Church he is captain of the Junior Usher Board. Dye has been consistently on the honor roll and is a member of the National Honor Society. He is in the Ambassador Society, a student leadership group that works at school events. He was in the Marching, Concert, Pep and Jazz Bands during his early years at SJJ.

He has been involved in cross country all four years and was named to the All Academic Team.  He has been on the Track and Field Team for four years.  Junior year he was First Team, All TRAC; First Team, All District and First Team, All Region.  He was also Track & Field All Academic.  He was part of the four-man team that competed in the 4x800m Relay at the New Balance Nationals last June in North Carolina.  

                He plans to be an architect and will attend Miami University (Oxford).

Aaron Thompson also founded in 2012 Books 4 Buddies. For the past four years, Thompson has enthusiastically participated in neighborhood outreach programs, meeting target audiences of youth at housing authority complexes like Weiler Homes and Birmingham Terrace.  An extrovert with a great sense of humor, Thompson has participated in book giveaways held in conjunction with Omega Psi Phi, Alpha Phi Alpha and Kappa Alpha Psi fraternities. He has been an ambassador since the program's inception.

He has served as part of the SJJ Daytime Christian Service Program at Rosary Cathedral, participated in Easter on Campus with a preschoolers and Christmas on Campus with Queen of Apostles and Holy Rosary Schools.  He is a familiar face at Titan summer basketball camps.  An honor roll student, Thompson is involved in the Spanish Honors Society and the Athletic Club. 

Thompson will play basketball for Ashland University where he plans to study Forensic Science.  Thompson was Second Team, All TRAC; Second Team, All District and Sports Nightly Player of the Year his senior year.  Junior year he was Honorable Mention, All TRAC.  In the off season, he has played for the King James Ohio Varsity Basketball Team.

He will be studying neuroscience at Ohio University through the Honors Tutorial College.

Pictured (left to right): Kristina White (Director of Community Impact, Leadership Toledo), Aaron Thompson, Ivan Dye, Bryce Roberts (Leadership Toledo)

At times, a deceased person has no family or is homeless with no one to serve as pall bearers for his/her funeral services. St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy (SJJ) have taken this mission to heart by providing this invaluable service when pall bearers are needed and not necessarily available through the SJJ Reginald Dixon Chapter of the Joseph of Arimathea Pall Bearer Society. Read more in THE BLADE:  http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2016/04/15/Students-lay-to-rest-those-who-died-alone.html 

Claudio Cabrera has been named the new Student Life Director at St. John’s Jesuit High School.  The Student Life Program will emphasize extra-curricular activities and clubs even more, according to Joe Cordella, principal. 

The program begins a three-year strategic plan for clubs and activities to include time during the school day for meetings, to encourage young men to step out of their comfort zone to try new things, to further develop their leadership skills, and to create more bonding experiences as classes.  A committee of faculty and staff along with students will utilize a team approach to develop Student Life opportunities over the coming years.

                Mr. Cabrera has impressive credentials.  Currently, a world language teacher at SJJ teaching Spanish, he taught public speaking on the university level at the Universidad Católica del Uruguay, which is managed by the Jesuits.  In 2009 he began teaching Spanish.  He earned his teaching certificate and then his Masters in Spanish Linguistics at the University of Jaen in Spain.  Mr. Cabrera has taught Spanish online for a Mexican school called LiveLingua.  He also taught at the U.S. Embassy in Montevideo and at Spanish by the Sea School in the island of Bocas del Toro in Panama before he joined the SJJ faculty in 2013.  Currently, he teaches Spanish II and IV and will continue to teach part time next fall.

                He has been involved in the SJJ International Christian Service program for two years going to El Salvador and Guatemala his first year and El Salvador this past summer.  He enjoys being the link between the students and the people so they can connect and learn more about each other.

                He played professional soccer in Uruguay for a year and all through college.  According to Mr. Cabrera, the first gift a child receives in Uruguay is a soccer ball. He earned his U.S. coaching license and was the girls’ head coach at Springfield High School for a year. 

Saint Anthony Crawford IV ‘92 embodied the spirit of St. John’s Jesuit.  Committed to his academics as well as to his basketball, Saint maximized his potential both in the classroom and on the court.  His behavior in all his pursuits was exemplary.

After high school, he continued to be a role model for young people.  He maintained high standards while completing his college degree and continuing to make a difference in young people’s lives through the sport he loved – basketball.  He was a loving husband, a devoted father, and an exemplary role model to all he met.

Each year at the Sports Banquet, in memory and honor to a young life cut short in 2010, a basketball team member is honored with the Saint Anthony Crawford IV Award.  A young man who exhibited the same traits as Saint.

The 2016 recipient was Aaron Thompson who will attend Ashland College.  Past recipients are senior Gabe Kynard who will attend Lake Erie College, 2014 Trevor Walsh who is at the Air Force Academy, and 2013 Tyler Thompson who is at the University of Cincinnati.

Seniors Spencer Rogers (left), Isaac Rogers (center) and Brison Woods (right) competed in the 2016 Chess Nationals in Atlanta, GA on April 1, 2 and 3.  They placed 21^st in their category.  Over 469 teams from 39 states competed in the various categories.  They each played seven games of chess and each game had the possibility of being up to four hours long.  The SJJ team was at an immediate disadvantage since there were only three team members as opposed to the traditional four allowed to count toward their final placement.

Isaac, who has been playing chess at SJJ since he was in the Academy, earned 25^th place out of 297 players in under 1600 which is one of the higher categories. He won five out of seven games and played almost 28 hours of chess over the three-day tournament weekend.

These three chess teammates are heading in new directions in the coming months.  Isaac will be attending the Honors Program at Bowling Green State University where he hopes to start a chess program or club. Spencer will row and study optical engineering at the University of Rochester.  Brison is deciding between Miami University and The Ohio State University where he will study pre-med or work toward being an actuary.

This past weekend the Indoor Drumline and Colorguard traveled to Wapakoneta for the Ohio Indoor Performers Association (OIPA) State Championships. The drumline and guard both were moved up a class and both received a sixth place finish in their class.  This was a tremendous accomplishment for it being their first time in a new class. The drumline was also awarded “Most Improved Percussion Ensemble” out of 25 ensembles, an award voted on by all the directors of the ensembles. This award truly shows how far the performers have come in such a short season.

Click here to see the drumline performance.  Click here to see the Colorguard performance.

Seniors Mario Markho (right) and Bradley Marshall (left) accepted the ServeOhio Award. They were nominated by Bittersweet Farms and received the honor at their Annual Meeting on March 31. According to Bittersweet Farms (who serves people with autism), SJJ has logged over 446 volunteer hours in three years and in 2015 alone the students logged 242 hours. Congratulations to these young Men for Others.

What makes a school Jesuit?  Individuals who are committed to being Ignatian ministers to carry on the Ignatian charisma and spirituality to those around them.  After all, the Jesuits were founded by seven lay people before they became priests.

St. John’s Jesuit students are educated in the ways of St. Ignatius.  Twice a day, the entire school prays the Daily Examen together.  SJJ knowing that the numbers of Jesuit priests are dwindling has worked to insure that the faculty and staff are trained in the Ignatian ways.  Over 40% of the faculty and staff have completed the Ignatian Exercises.  Each year the school’s faculty and staff retreat focuses on an Ignatian theme and brings in a notable Jesuit.

This year renowned theologian Mark E. Thibodeaux, SJ, was the retreat guest speaker. Fr. Thibodeaux is a Jesuit priest, writer, spiritual director and teacher who lives and works in Grand Coteau, LA, an internationally recognized center for spiritual formation and transformation. Currently, he serves as novice director for Jesuit in formation at St. Stanislaus Kostka Novitiate in Grand Coteau.  He was also a teacher and campus minister at Strake Jesuit in Houston with current principal Joe Cordella and remains a close friend years later.

Fr. Thibodeaux at the faculty/staff retreat discussed the essence of his book God’s Voice Within: The Ignatian Way to Discover God’s Will. The book focuses in depth on the discernment of spirit.  What is the spirit moving in your heart today? What place am I in? Is the spirit motivating me toward or away from God today? The book guides you on how you can discern God’s will in your life and how the strings are being pulled toward that will.

Fr. Thibodeaux is the also the author of three other books, Armchair Mystic, God, I have Issues and Reimagining the Ignatian Examen.

Armchair Mystic is a step-by-step guide to contemplative prayer and meditation. When Fr. Thibodeaux first began teaching a prayer class to sophomores, he couldn’t find anything he liked for lesson preparation so he began putting together his own case studies and information on contemplative prayer. As he shared his work with others, he was encouraged to put together his first book.

God, I Have Issues provides the reader with bible passages and prayers for every mood and/or situation in book form.  Tabs allow the reader to quickly access a passage and prayer that relates to 50 different situations. 

His newest book, Reimagining the Ignatian Examen, provides fresh ways to pray the Daily Examen.  This five-step daily spiritual tool, invented by St. Ignatius, helps you examine your day and find where God has been in it.

According to Fr. Thibodeaux, Reimagining the Ignatian Examen, provides 34 different prayers in the format of the Examen: a look over your day through guided questions, an ask for forgiveness and a look toward tomorrow. For more information on this book and the App (available for free on Goggle Play or iTunes) or click here.  

Congratulations to seniors Sean Rattay and Matt Padanilam who were honored and recognized by the National Football Foundation for their excellent performances on and off the field as Scholar Athletes.

Sean Rattay (left) committed to play football for the U.S. Naval Academy.  Rattay is a center and guard for the Titans and has earned numerous honors. He was All State and All State Academic. He was First Team All TRAC and First Team All District his sophomore, junior and senior years. He was team captain for the Titans his junior and senior years. He started on the North Team for the Blue Grey All American Game which won the game 35-0.  He was a National Football Foundation Inductee.  He played basketball for the Titans his freshman and sophomore years.

Ratty was recommended for the Naval Academy by Congressman Bob Latta, U.S. House of Representatives.  He is a member of the National Honor Society and consistently on the Honor Roll.  He has a 3.62 GPA. He is a member of the Ambassador Society, Arabic Club and Christian Service.  He has done volunteer work at the Swan Point Care Center and Spring Meadows Extended Care doing activities with the residents.  He participated in Christmas on Campus and Easter on Campus.  He was a peer tutor helping his fellow students. 

Matt Padanilam (right) serves as president of the Student Body and was a class president his freshman and sophomore years.  His leadership activities expand beyond SJJ as part of Youth Leadership Toledo and through participation in the HOBY Ohio West Leadership Conference.  He is in National Honor Society, part of the Ambassador Society and on the Big Brothers Core Team. He is on the Spirit Squad.  Recently, he was named Mr. NDA at Notre Dame Academy.  Freshman year he was involved in the performing arts participating in the spring musical Spamalot and in the Men’s Choir.  He was also a Maumee Rotary Student of the Month.

He lettered in three sports -- lacrosse, wrestling and football.  In lacrosse and football, he was captain of his team senior year.  He was Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) All-Academic for three years.  In football, he was First Team All-TRAC, First Team All-District and All-Ohio Honorable Mention.  He is a Eucharistic Minister.  He also did International Christian Service in Panama helping to build a multi-sports’ court.  He has been involved in the Toledo Labre Program since his freshman year serving meals to the underserved. He participated in the SJJ Daytime Christian Service Program volunteering at Crossgates Preschool and the Autism Model School.  He has served at Kingston Residence of Perrysburg and participated in Easter on Campus.  He plans to study business in college.

Just a second year teacher at St. John’s Jesuit, Chad Marzec is already influencing the young men he teaches in Honors Biology and Environmental Science and on the wrestling mat.  Mr. Marzec was named BCSN Winter Coach of the Season. 

A nine-year army veteran and former helicopter pilot, Mr. Marzec graduated from West Point where he wrestled, of course. After he left the military, he turned to a teaching career for one reason – mentorship.  He feels that if he could impact one student, he could make a difference.  And he does both in the classroom and the wrestling program daily. Just completing his second year as head wrestling coach, he continues to build the program. He had over 40 wrestlers this season.  Mr. Marzec stresses that it is not about winning or losing, but about making each wrestler a better man . . . a man for others. See the video.

St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) seniors, Kenneth Goetz and Sean Wietecki, were named March Maumee Rotary Students of the Month.

Kenneth Goetz (right) is a member of the National Honor Society.  He is on the Campus Ministry Core Team, a founding member of the STEMa Club (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Astronomy) and was an organizer of the Voter Registration and Get Out the Vote Campaign at SJJ.  Junior year he was involved in the spring sports season as a shot put and discus thrower.

He has participated in the SJJ Christian Service Daytime Program tutoring first and third graders at SunBridge Academy.  He also participated in the SJJ International Service Program in Panama where he helped build a multi-purpose court for the town of Chilibre.  He has served at the Cherry Street Mission.  He was a senior leader for the Sophomore Manresa Retreat.  He is an altar server and Eucharistic Minister at SJJ and his home parish St. Joseph, Sylvania.  Junior year he received the Religious Award (one of the five principles of the Jesuit Graduate at Graduation) for taking personal responsibility for developing his religious beliefs.

In his free time, he enjoys the martial arts and has been a Sensi (teacher) for Kempo Martial Arts where he taught all ages from three years old or over 65.

He plans to study Political Science and/or Astro Physics and has applied to Georgetown University, Boston College, Case Western University, University of Michigan, The Ohio State University, Fordham University and Xavier University.

Sean Wietecki (left) has been involved with the SJJ Daytime Christian Service Program for two years volunteering at Reynolds Elementary and the Goerlich Center for dementia patients.  He has participated in the SJJ Appalachia Program serving last year as a camp counselor and this year during Easter break he will help with home reconstruction and with a basketball court rebuilt.  He was a Kairos leader.  He is a lector at SJJ and his parish St. John the Baptist. 

He is a house leader and in the Spanish Honor Society.  He is in the Ultimate Frisbee Club, works behind the scenes in TV-4, the school’s broadcast station and is a yearbook photographer.  He is a Boy Scout obtaining the Eagle Scout rank by building planters and benches for St. John the Baptist.  He is an avid boater and camper in his free time.

He will attend WyoTech in Daytona, Florida, one of the top schools for marine specialist mechanics.  Upon completion of the program he plans to enlist in the Coast Guard.

Connor Long promoted CRAZY FOR YOU on the WNWO Better Living Show.   Click here to see his interview.

CRAZY FOR YOU is the story of Bobby Child, played by Connor Long, who longs for Broadway’s bright lights.  Faced with an ultimatum by his overbearing mother to either marry his frigid fiancée or foreclose on a family theater in Deadrock, Nevada, he chooses the latter.  There he meets Polly Baker, the theater owner, and falls head-over-heels in love with her.  As in any romantic/comedy musical, our hero and heroine find themselves in hot water, time and time again, with many delightful twists before the happy ending.

CRAZY FOR YOU will be performed at the Valentine Theatre on Friday, March 18 at 7 p.m., Saturday, March 19 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., and Sunday, March 20 at 2 p.m. All tickets are $12 (plus Valentine Theatre box charges).  Tickets are online at www.valentinetheatre.com or go to the sjjtitans.org website for a link.

Carson Parish '09 will have an eight-minute film in the 54th Ann Arbort Film Festival on March 20 at 11 a.m.  His short which will be shown at the Michigan Theater is titled Toledo, My Father. The film is described as "an underexposed night on the town with my father."  Carson is currentlly the Audiovisual Coordinator and Cinema Co-curator for the Museum of Arts & Design in New York.  Read more.

Biologist Ryan Walsh '01 and his work as the Toledo Zoo's Wild Toledo Coordinator with monarch butterflies was featured in THE BLADE.  Read the entire article.

What is an SJJ Alumni Volunteer?

The SJJ Alumni Volunteer is a nine-month position assisting the faculty and staff in the mission of St. John’s Jesuit High School and Academy.

Why would I consider becoming an SJJ Alumni Volunteer?

There are many reasons offering a year as an SJJ Alumni at St. John’s Jesuit would be worth considering, including:

• Are you considering graduate school after receiving your college degree, but need some time to think about what to pursue or the right schools for you?
• Have you been deferred from graduate studies for a year?
• Are you looking for a year off from schooling after college before you consider your next career or schooling step?
• Are you wondering about a teaching career?
• Are you considering a vocation as a Jesuit priest?
• Are you looking for a year of service?

What are the requirements for becoming an SJJ Alumni Volunteer?

St. John’s Jesuit is interested in young men who have completed college, believe in Jesuit education and St. John’s Jesuit, and have a strong interest in helping to form young men to be academically competent, open to growth, loving, committed to doing justice, and religious.

What will I do as an SJJ Alumni Volunteer?

You will be fully engaged in serving the young men at St. John’s Jesuit according to your interests, talents, background, and the school’s needs.  Alumni Volunteers may assist:

• in the classroom and with tutoring
• with coaching, directing a play, or directing another extracurricular activity
• the Director of Student Life with involving students in the life of the school
• assist with Campus Ministry or the Christian Service program
• assist administrators, admissions, social media
• help with a Small house group
• help lead retreats.

Our guarantee: you will not be bored!

How does this work?

The SJJ Alumni Volunteer will be paid a small monthly stipend for living expenses.  Living arrangements will be worked out (you may want to live at your family’s home, for example).

Healthcare will be provided if needed (volunteers may be covered on their parents’ policy).

How many Alumni Volunteers is St. John’s Jesuit looking for?

We would engage from one to five volunteers in the ’16-’17 school year.

How do I apply for/investigate this opportunity?

To inquire or to apply please contact:

Mr. Joe Cordella, Principal

jcordella@sjjtitans.org

Apply by submitting a resume and a strong cover letter explaining why you would want to be a SJJ Alumni Volunteer and what talents and background you bring that you believe will help St. John’s Jesuit serve our students.

The Academy OGJJJB Stock Team is the new leader in THE BLADE 12-week contest. Read more: http://www.toledoblade.com/…/Oil-rise-fuels-St-John-s-team-…

Members of the team are left to right:

 Front Row: 
Teacher Matt Johnson, Teddy Walker,

Matthew LaCourse, 

Broc Toth, Jacob Redd, Andres Ramirez,

 Kyle Kucway, Josh Boyk

Back Row: Quinlan White, Nolan Barber, Teddy Wagner, Ian Stawinski, Thomas McNamara,

Cody Korecki,

 Will Gerhardinger

The St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) Varsity Soccer Team was presented with the Eddie Clemons’ Excellence & Sportsmanship Award.  Started in 2010, the honor is bestowed annually to a boys’ and girls’ team from the Northwest Ohio Soccer Officials Association (NWSOA).  During the season, officials meet weekly and assign points to teams based on sportsmanship, that are then tallied. 

“I am very proud of the sportsmanship shown by our Titan soccer team.  By following the examples of our senior captains Chuck Baumgartner, Matt Pinkelman, and Stephen Wainz’s leadership, the team produced a season to remember,” shared Soccer Head Varsity Coach Tom Shook.

It was an exciting year for the SJJ Soccer Team making it to the State Final Four and earning the sportsmanship honor.  Players pictured left to right, row one: Brad Marshall, Connor Savage, Chris Hertzfeld, Jason Wheeler, Frank Almester, Evan Zervas, Matt Pinkelman, Stephen Wainz, Chuck Baumgartner, Sergio Gonzalez-Brana row two: Derek Huddleston, Eli Shope, Leo Gomez, Dane Kalman, Parker Myers, Ted Kentopp, Zach Neenan, Zach Buescher, Daniel Bandelaria, Brady Ryan, Caleb Gibbons, Jackson Pollock.

Football Team Named to the top Eight Academic All Ohio Teams

 Doug Pearson Named TRAC Coach of the Year

The St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) Football Program earned top honors for academics and coaching. For the third year in a row, the Titan Football Team was named to the top eight Academic All Ohio Teams for 2015 announced at the 19^th Annual Ohio High School Football Coaches Association Awards Banquet, February 5. Plus, Head Football Coach Doug Pearson ’82 was named Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) Coach Football Coach of the Year.

Teams have to be nominated for the Academic Honor and it is based on the starting 22 players and their GPA.  This year the Titans’ average GPA was 3.886.  SJJ was the only area team in the top eight with the next schools Whitmer (14), Wauseon (15) and Findlay (17).  Coach Pearson credits this incredible achievement to the hard work the players do on and off the field.  “Our young men are the true definition of student/athletes.”

He also praises SJJ for its programs to support all students, athletes and non-athletes, with the A+ Learning Center, before and after school tutoring, peer tutoring and teachers that are always willing to go the extra mile to help students.  “St. John’s Jesuit wants every student to achieve his greatest academic potential and provides the tools and resources to do that,” explained Coach Pearson.

Pearson Named TRAC Football Coach of the Year

Coach Pearson is the TRAC Football Coach of the Year.  He just completed his 13th season as the Head Football Coach at his alma mater. Prior to SJJ he was the head coach at Start High School and served as an assistant at Start and SJJ before that. 

Coach Pearson left Start as the all-time leader in wins before accepting the head SJJ coaching position in 2002. He led the Titans to the State Playoffs in his first season and a trip to the State Final Four in 2003. The Titans have made four additional Playoff appearances and in 2010 lost in the Regional Final. Coach Pearson was named City League Coach of the Year in 1997, 1998, 2002 and 2003 as well as Division 1 District Coach of the Year in 1997 and 2010. Coach Pearson has been selected to coach in the Ohio North/South game on two occasions and was the head coach for Ohio in the Big 33 game in 2004.

Coach Pearson received his Bachelor Degree from the University of Toledo and his Master’s Degree in Secondary Education from Graceland University. Coach Pearson was the Toledo 2020 Director for three years at SJJ and also has taught Physical Education and Health. He currently is in his fifth year as a Counselor in the Guidance Department.

We have a Jesuit Novice on Pilgrimage who arrived at SJJ Saturday. Thankfully Steve Spenthoff happened to be on campus when he arrived. He was given a bus ticket from Kansas City and has until March 2 to make his way to St. Louis. He was given my name as a contact and was told he needed to beg for the means to make his way to Toledo as well as his next destination. His novice director (Mark Thibodeaux, SJ) told him his primary goal in coming here was to serve a good Catholic family and help out at SJJ. He helped chaperone the dance on Saturday night and will be here today and tomorrow before moving on to the next leg of his pilgrimage.

His name is Peter Bell he is a 19-year-old graduate from Regis High School Colorado and a member of the United Central and Southern Province. Of course he’d be delighted to have the opportunity to share about his discernment to the Jesuits as well as his experiences so far as a novice to our current students.

More information (and a picture) can be found by cllicking here. 

St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) head basketball coach Ed Heintschel will not coach the Titans during games for the 2016 Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) Boys’ Basketball Tournament.  Heintschel was found to have violated OHSAA recruiting Bylaws 4-9-2 and 4-9-4 by following up and speaking at a basketball game about SJJ academics with a parent of an eighth grader who had attended several summer basketball camps.  Assistant Coach Mike Schoen ‘05 will assume head coaching duties during tournament games.

 In addition to the tournament coaching restriction, Heintschel and his entire coaching staff (paid and volunteer) shall be permitted to have only five days of coaching with students from the St. John’s Jesuit basketball team from June 1-July 31, 2016 (rather than the maximum of ten days that are normally permitted).  The St. John’s Jesuit administration and OHSAA will watch the program for compliance over the next three years.

“Both St. John’s Jesuit and Ed take this situation seriously.  Ed is one of the most respected and recognized Ohio high school basketball coaches over the last 30 years. He has taken ownership of this bylaw violation, apologized to the school’s administration and spoken with his players and their families. We have cooperated fully with OHSAA.  All SJJ coaches will undergo a refresher seminar on recruiting rules. We will learn from this and move forward in our work with student athletes,” said Athletic Director Robert Ronai.

“For those who have followed the Titans over the past 30 years, they have to appreciate the strong infrastructure that we have developed.  This year particularly we have strong team leaders. Mike has a wealth of experience helping at the University of Dayton when he was a student; he played for me here and has coached for seven years at SJJ.  He understands what we want in terms of our play.  Our players are very excited for the tournament,” said Coach Ed Heintschel.

                Seniors Knowledge Lacy and Ivan Dye were named February Maumee Rotary Students of the Month.

                Knowledge Lacy (left) is a member of the 20/20 Jesuit Scholars Program.  He is consistently on the honor roll and a member of the National Honor Society. He is in the Ambassador Society and earned the Open to Growth award junior year.  He is in the Ping Pong Club and was in the Sports Club.  He was a senior Kairos leader and is a peer tutor.

                He has participated in the SJJ Christian Service Daytime Program serving the last two years at Martin Luther King Academy as a mentor for young men.  Freshman and sophomore years he volunteered at the Boys & Girls Club tutoring and helping with activities.  He was also involved summers with Kids Unlimited Summer Camp.

                Lacy has been involved with the Youth Opportunities Program that works with disadvantaged youth on their academics, employment and leadership skills.  He participates in the Junior Role Model program that works with young people to become better leaders and role models in their communities.

He has played basketball four years for the Titans including varsity for the last two years. He is an entrepreneur who started his own iPad and iPhone repair business. 

He plans to study computer engineering.  He has been accepted at The Ohio State University, the University of Cincinnati, University of Toledo, Xavier University and Kent State University.

                Ivan Dye (right) has been consistently on the honor roll and is a member of the National Honor Society. He is in the Ambassador Society. He was in the Marching, Concert, Pep and Jazz Bands his freshman and sophomore years.

                 He has volunteered through the SJJ Daytime Christian Service Program at the Spring Meadows Extended Care Center and at the Goerlich Center working with dementia patients.  He did service in Appalachia during spring break.  At Third Baptist Church he is captain of the Junior Usher Board.

He has been involved in cross country all four years and was named to the All Academic Team.  He has been on the Track and Field Team for four years.  Junior year he was First Team All TRAC, First Team All District and First Team All Region.  He was also Track & Field All Academic.  He was part of the four-man team that competed in the 4x800m Relay at the New Balance Nationals last June in North Carolina.  

                He plans to be an architect and has been accepted at Kent State University, Philadelphia University, University of Cincinnati, The Ohio State University and Miami University.

Check out the interview with SJJ athletes Nate '18 and Zach '16 on Sports Flash with Tom Cole '16. Click here.

Congratulations to sophomores Zachary Richards (left) and Jack Spengler, Jr. (right) who received Certificates of Achievement for being Outstanding Witnesses in the State of Harmony vs. Riley Green in the 2016 Ohio Mock Trial District Competition.  

An interesting note:  They were in separate courtrooms and trials for this case when they testified.

Eight SJJ students qualified for the State Tournament in Debate on March 3-5. It's the most the school has sent in the history of the program. The team is coached by faculty members Adam Dane '02 and David Zavac '06.

State Qualifiers are: Lincoln-Douglas - seniors Ammar Abidi & Mario Markho, Public Forum - juniors Marino Markho, Milano Markho, Alex White and Jacob Dzierwa, and Policy - sophomore Dan Leizerman and freshman Adam Braun

Pictured (left to right): Mario Markho, Milano, Markho, Jacob Dzierwa, Alex White, Ammar Abidi, Carmeron Mowat, Marino Markho and Humza Rehman

Four St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) seniors committed to play sports in college: Sean Rattay – Football – U.S. Naval Academy, Gabe Kynard – Basketball – Lake Erie College, Sam McClurg – Baseball – Adrian College, and Matthew Winzeler – Football – University of Toledo Preferred Walk-On.

Sean Rattay is a center and guard for Titan football and has earned numerous honors. He was All State and All State Academic. He was First Team All TRAC and First Team All District his sophomore, junior and senior years. He was team captain for the Titans his junior and senior years. He started on the North Team for the Blue Grey All American Game which won the game 35-0.  He was a National Football Foundation Inductee.  He played basketball for the Titans his freshman and sophomore years.

Ratty was recommended for the Naval Academy by Congressman Bob Latta, U.S. House of Representatives.  He is a member of the National Honor Society and consistently on the Honor Roll.  He is a member of the Ambassador Society, Arabic Club and Christian Service.  He has done volunteer work at the Swan Point Care Center and Spring Meadows Extended Care doing activities with the residents.  He participated in Christmas on Campus and Easter on Campus.  He was a peer tutor helping his fellow students.

Gabe Kynard plays basketball guard for the Titans.  As a junior he was First Team All TRAC and Second Team All District and his sophomore year he was Honorable Mention All TRAC and Honorable Mention All District.  Last summer he played basketball for the All Ohio Black Team and before that for the Hidden Gems.

He is an honor student who plans to study business or become a physician’s assistant.  He is very involved in Christian Service participating both his junior and senior year as part of the SJJ Christian Service Daytime Program both years at Rosary Cathedral.  He participated in Christmas on Campus with underserved youths and Easter on Campus with preschoolers.

Sam McClurg is catcher on the Titan Baseball Team.  He was Honorable Mention All TRAC both his sophomore and junior years.  Summers he plays baseball for the Lima Locos Express.

An honor student, he plans to study athletic training in college.  He has participated in the SJJ Christian Service Daytime Program at Sunbridge Schools.  He has also volunteered at Tam O’Shanter with the Gliding Stars.  He is a familiar face at the Titan Baseball Summer Sports Camp working with young players.  He enjoys fishing.

Matthew Winzeler is quarterback for the Titans and was Honorable Mention All TRAC his junior and senior years.  He is excited to be a part of the Rockets which has always been his dream.  He played baseball and basketball his freshman and sophomore years.

He is active in Northpoint Church as a volunteer doing set up for Sunday worship and at a food pantry though his church.  He volunteered through the SJJ Christian Service Daytime Program at Crossgates Elementary School.  He coached youths at the Titan Football Summer Sport Camp.  He enjoys golf and ping pong.  He plans to study business.

Pictured (left to right): Gabe Kynard, Sean Rattay, Matthew Winzeler and Sam McClurg

Titans headed to the Toledo Municipal Court today to participate in the Mock Trial Competition.  Participants will argue both the prosecution and defense arguments following legal protocol.  This is the first year for these young men participating on a team composed of juniors and sophomores.  They received the case this fall and have been honing their skills intensely.

Pictured (left to right) seated: Daniyal Nadeem, Samuel Hotz, Akhil Katragadda and Evan Elliott standing: Zachary Richards, Thomas Fidler, Hassan Hafeez, Thomas Hurley, Daniel Williams, Jakob Allen and Jack Spengler, Jr.  The team is coached by faculty member Rita Bigras.

Congratulations to students who competed in the Ohio Music Educators Association Solo and Ensemble Event at Lake High School.

The SJJ Vocal Ensemble earned a “Superior.” Members of the Ensemble are: (Left to right) Seated: Tim Glaza, Manny Ramirez, Mike Janson Standing: Connor Long, Kyle Rudolph, Jake O’Brien, Robert Miller Missing: Matt Brangham and Connor Przysiecki.

Earning “Excellent” were vocalists Connor Long and Matt Brangham.

  Congratulations to band students (left to right) Cam Augustyniak, Robert Cornwell and Sam Wagner for receiving a “Superior” at the Ohio Music Educators Association (OMEA) Solo & Ensemble Event at Lake High School.

Seniors Matthew Padanilam and Eric Schneider are January Maumee Rotary Students of the Month.                

Matt Padanilam (right) is a leader on and off the field.  He serves as president of the Student Body and was a class president his freshman and sophomore years.  His leadership activities expand beyond SJJ as part of Youth Leadership Toledo and through participation in the HOBY Ohio West Leadership Conference.  He is in National Honor Society, part of the Ambassador Society and on the Big Brothers Core Team. He is on the Spirit Squad.  Recently, he was named Mr. NDA at Notre Dame Academy.  Freshman year he was involved in the performing arts participating in the spring musical Spamalot and in the Men’s Choir.

He lettered in three sports -- lacrosse, wrestling and football.  In lacrosse and football, he was captain of his team senior year.  He was Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) All-Academic for three years.  In football, he was First Team All-TRAC, First Team All-District and All-Ohio Honorable Mention.  He is a Eucharistic Minister.  He also did International Christian Service in Panama helping to build a multi-sports’ court.  He has been involved in the Toledo Labre Program since his freshman year serving meals to the underserved. He participated in the SJJ Daytime Christian Service Program volunteering at Crossgates Preschool and the Autism Model School.  He has served at Kingston Residence of Perrysburg and participated in Easter on Campus.  He plans to study business in college.

Honor student Eric Schneider (left) participated in the SJJ Leadership & Alumni Mentoring Program, serves in the Ambassador Society and is a Small House Group Leader.  He cheers the Titans on as part of the Spirit Squad.  He is an anchor on TV-4, part of the Titan broadcasting channel.  He has competed on the cross country team for three years serving as captain for two years and is a member of the track and field team as well. 

He has done service as part of the International Christian Service Program in Panama where he helped build a multi-sports’ court for the village of Chilibre.  He volunteered at Glendale Assisted Living as part of the SJJ Daytime Christian Service Program that provides help when organizations need it during the day. He has also served at the Lutheran Village at Wolf Creek.  He served dinners at part of the Toledo Labre Program, been involved with Easter on Campus and serves as a Eucharistic Minister.  He plans to study business in college.

Congratulations to Titan wrestlers who captured the Catholic Cup Championship. Titans wrestlers took down Central Catholic for the first time in seven years -- 70-14,  The Titans defeated host St. Francis 69-11. 

St. John Jesuit’s President Michael R. Truesdell has decided to not seek renewal of his contract when it expires on June 30. 

Both Truesdell and St. John’s Jesuit Board of Trustees Chair, Daniel Anderson, confirmed that the decision is being announced now to allow the Board to begin looking for a new president.

The Provincial of the Chicago-Detroit Jesuits, the Rev. Brian G. Paulson, SJ, said:  “Mike Truesdell, as first lay president of St. John’s, has carried the Jesuit mission with great integrity and faith.  We are confident his efforts have established the groundwork for his successor to continue St. John’s great work in the Toledo area.”

Truesdell said in a letter to faculty and staff he believes it is time to move to his next challenge and for St. John’s to welcome a new leader.  “It is my hope that my leadership in faith and business during my time here has been what St. John’s needed.  The future is bright, and a new leader will bring fresh ideas and needed gifts.” 

Board Chair Anderson said:  “We thank Mike for his time with us.  He has led the school in looking toward the next 50 years with a continued strong Jesuit influence.  We have grown through his leadership as a school looking squarely at our bright future.”

Truesdell has been president since July 1, 2013.

The school’s Board of Trustees will form a transition team which will be responsible for the selection of the next St. John’s president.  Among the criteria to be considered when choosing a new president will be a proven record of successful leadership, experience with Jesuit education, practicing Catholic and vision and energy for St. John’s mission. 

A strong and committed leadership team is in place and will continue the fine work of St. John’s during the transition.  

After an exciting Spelling Contest in the Academy, the top speller representing SJJ in the Lucas County Spelling Bee is eighth grader Nolan Barber.  Congratulations to seventh grader Jeremy Mahoney who took second place and eighth grader Jack Ryder who took third place.

Pictured left to right: Nolan Barber, Jack Ryder and Jeremy Mahoney

St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy (SJJ) had great success in the Middletown Forensifest Tournament January 9 with four winners.  Seniors Mario Markho took first and Ammar Abidi took sixth in Lincoln Douglas Debate and juniors Alex White and Jacob Dzierwa took third in Public Forum Debate.  With his fourth tournament win of the season, Abidi qualified for the State Tournament, a first in SJJ debate history.  Pictured (left to right) competitors in the Middletown Forensifest Tournament Ammar Abidi, Marino Markho, Mario Markho, Jacob Dzierwa, Alex White and Milano Markho.

            St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy (SJJ) faculty member Aimee Waliszewski has been selected to be a member of the Ohio Network of Regional Leaders (NRL) for World Languages. The network of regional leaders for World Languages work collaboratively with the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) to assist districts and schools with implementation of the learning standards, the writing of integrated performance assessments, and other professional development needs. Ms. Waliszewski is just one of the regional leaders that represent various languages and levels of experience and expertise.

            Ms. Waliszewski teaches Latin, Exploratory Language for the Academy, and ACT Prep for SJJ.  She holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Illinois (Chicago) (UI) in Classical Studies where she also minored in Art History and Italian.  She was an UI Teaching Assistant for two years at the collegiate level.  She interned at the National Hellenic Museum (Chicago) and the Art Institute of Chicago in the Ancient & Byzantine Department.  After graduation from UI, she was a Visiting Teaching Associate there co-teaching Roman Civilization before coming to Toledo. 

Center Reflects Latest Trends for Male-Enhanced Learning

                “We are proud to say that from overuse, we wore the A+ room out,” explained Michele Nixon, Director of the A+ Learning Center (A+) at St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy (SJJ).  A+, which was the first high school learning center in the area, started in 2003 in a small classroom.  Today, there are two A+ centers, one for the high school and the other for the Academy, specifically designed for student studying and learning staffed by eight academic coaches, seven professional tutors, and 45 peer tutors.

                The newly designed A+ continues to be modelled on the latest collegiate learning centers with bright colors, multiple seating options, and a more open concept.  “The only thing missing is a Starbucks,” said Mrs. Nixon.

“Studies show boys need open spaces to be comfortable.  With our new configuration we have more open space than before with comfortable chairs, high tops, low tops, and booth-style style seating along with group learning and study areas with Apple TV screens.  Everything is designed to be student centered,” explained Ms. Nixon.

                The high school learning center can seat 75. In addition, to A+ being renovated, the glass-enclosed classroom located inside A+, designated as the Writer’s Block, was also updated with new seating for 30 that is more conducive to teaching and group work.

                Ms. Nixon drew on her years of experience and ideas garnered from the National College Learning Center Association Conference she attended for input.  Alum John McNerney ’88, President of The McNerney Companies which specializes in general contracting, land development, design, and furniture, was instrumental in the design.  The McNerney Companies have done numerous learning centers. John’s son, John ’16 also known as “Mac”, an A+ user, provided another perspective.

“As an SJJ alum who has had two boys attend SJJ, I was honored to have the opportunity to work on the new A+ Learning Center project.  My son’s first reaction seemed to be of worry when he knew that a change was coming to the area.  His feedback since completion has been 100% positive with the professional and collegiate feel the new center provides,” explained Mr. McNerney.

The new Learning Center was a total collaboration between McNerney designers and the A+ team.  “A series of meetings enabled us to gather the vision that was desired by Ms. Nixon and her associates.  In my visits to the new Learning Center since it has been in use, I truly get a sense of pride and professionalism as I look around.  Much like similar environments at universities we have worked with, SJJ has provided an amazing environment for their student body,” he said.

                Ms. Nixon has seen the role of professionals in learning centers change over the years.  “We have ‘academic coaches’ who motivate young men to develop study skills, stay on task, perfect their time management, and monitor grades in addition to professional tutors and peer tutors,” she said. 

                Who uses A+?  Everyone.  “We see honor students who form their own study groups.  We see athletes before practice.  Freshmen and sophomores are heavy users.  We particularly see students that need writing help as well as math and science tutoring. Throughout their career at SJJ every student uses A+ at least once, and the majority far more often,” she said.

                Right before final exams A+ held exam prep sessions for the whole freshman class to help them prepare.  Plus, for all grade levels there were multiple exam prep sessions.

“A+ is always evolving and never static.  We are always adapting to the newest brain-based research and the most recent technology changes. Nothing is every status quo in A+,” she said.



SJJ delivered almost 250 gifts to Martin Luther King, Jr. Academy. Each Small Mentor Group purchased three gifts for the young boys with input on what they liked from the school. This special project has been a part of SJJ for several years.

Photos by Digital Photography students Adam Newell '17 and Elijah Pickett '16.

High School and Academy  is on a Two Hour Delay

Families interested in the Academy are invited to stop by on Dec. 1 and learn more. From 6-6:30 p.m. is an informal meet and greet and the perfect time to find out about tuition assistance. From 6:30 - 7:10 p.m., families can tour the Academy. At 7:15 p.m. there is a formal Academy presentation. Openings are available in all three grades for fall 2016. Tell your friends or come and see how the Academy challenges boys to be Men for Others.

Daniel Eid '17 reflections at the Thanksgiving service were shared on the Ignatian Network as well as with his fellow SJJ brothers and the community.  Read his reflections.

Mario Marko '16 recently shared his thoughts on the Ignatian Teach-In with the CATHOLIC CHRONICLE. Read here.

The SJJ Debate Tournament was this weekend. The Team finished second out of sixteen high schools in the competition.  In Public Forum Debate, juniors Jacob Dzierwa and Alex White took First Place, seniors Nicolas Granato and Vamsi Chodisetty took Fourth Place and juniors Marino and Milano Markho took Sixth Place. In Policy Debate, sophomore Dan Leizerman and freshman Matt Drouard took Third Place.

St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) Coach Doug Pearson '82 was named the Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) Football Coach of the Year.  Coach Pearson completed his 13th season as the Head Football Coach at his alma mater. Prior to SJJ he was the head coach at Start High School and served as an assistant at both Start and SJJ before that. Coach Pearson coached under his former high school coach, Head Coach Fred Beier, for three seasons before leaving for a teaching and coaching position in Toledo Public Schools.

Coach Pearson left Start as the all-time leader in wins before accepting the head SJJ coaching position in 2002. He led the Titans to the State Playoffs in his first season and a trip to the State Final Four in 2003. The Titans have made four additional Playoff appearances and in 2010 lost in the Regional Final. Coach Pearson was named City League Coach of the Year in 1997, 1998, 2002 and 2003 as well as Division 1 District Coach of the Year in 1997 and 2010. Coach Pearson has been selected to coach in the Ohio North/South game on two occasions and was the head coach for Ohio in the Big 33 game in 2004.

Coach Pearson received his Bachelor Degree from the University of Toledo and his Master’s Degree in Secondary Education from Graceland University. Coach Pearson was the Toledo 2020 Director for three years at SJJ and also has taught Physical Education and Health. He currently is currently in his fifth year as a Counselor in the Guidance Department.

Pictured: Coach Pearson leading the Titans!

Over 10,000 St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) graduates have experienced opportunities that have changed their lives and defined who they are.  SJJ graduates know that when you have helped someone and touched his life it makes a world of difference within you.  Although many graduates go on to successful careers because of the premier academic education.  Jesuit education has always been more about internal formation based on the teachings of St. Ignatius of Loyola, about the SJJ brotherhood and about becoming a man for others.

See for yourself the opportunities that await young men in grades 6-12 at the SJJ Open House on November 15 from noon to 3 p.m. Conveniently located at 5901 Airport Highway, families are invited to tour with student guides, meet the faculty and staff, experience the fine arts, connect with coaches, learn about Christian Service opportunities, and explore all the leadership programs available for young men. Programs such as:

• A+ Learning Center that is modeled after college learning centers to help students with an overnight assignment or a more comprehensive support system.  The learning center is there to help young men be successful.
• College counseling starts right as a young man walks in the front door.  The Class of 2015 earned over $18.2 million in college awards and 83% of the class earned a scholarship.
• A three-year engineering program culminates with the SJJ Ohio State University (OSU) Engineering Class that closely follows of the curriculum of the OSU Introduction to Engineering taught to college freshmen in Columbus. SJJ is one of two schools in Ohio that offers the program.
• The most Advanced Placement (AP) courses in northwest Ohio, 24 AP courses, can lead to college credit.
• The Jesuit Virtual Learning Academy (JVLA), a classroom without walls, is taught by Jesuit school faculty from around the country offering over 25 AP and specialty courses.
• A Freshman Year Life Skills Building Program lays the groundwork for young men’s success.
• A Fine Arts Program includes a variety of courses in art and music with AP options. 
• A national and international Christian Service Program offers opportunities locally, in Appalachia and Central America. Each year the SJJ brotherhood volunteers 20,000 hours locally, nationally and internationally.
• Athletics that offers nearly 50 teams in 13 different sports.  Titans have captured the TRAC All Sports Championship for three years in a row.
• Only school with the Leadership & Alumni Mentoring Program (LAMP) to provide interested sophomores, juniors and seniors with special career programs and mentors.
• An Academy for grades 6-8 helps boys get a jumpstart on a college-prep high school education.

It’s been 50 years since SJJ opened its doors to all boys in 1965 with the gym, auditorium and chapel still under construction.  Today, the campus has 54 acres and continues its 50-year mission to educate young men in grades 6-12.  The academic facilities feature a high school for grades 9-12 with a wing for grades 6-8.  The campus includes the dome gym, auxiliary gym, The Lyden Fitness Center, Lyden Field - a state-of-the-art sports stadium, soccer/lacrosse field, a baseball complex, the McQuade Theatre, Sawicki Family Music Center, the Carty Fox Commons, a food court, the technology wing, the Iott Center that houses the A+ Learning Center and a chapel that seats the entire student body. Families can see it all on Nov. 15 from noon to 3 p.m.

For almost 475 years Jesuit education has been producing tomorrow’s leaders in a Christ-centered atmosphere.  St. John’s Jesuit is part of a network of 63 high schools and 28 colleges in the U.S. and hundreds of institutions worldwide that all share the same ideals and programs. Founding documents based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, orient and guide all Jesuit institutions and its employees to effectively carry on the educational mission and services of the Society of Jesus (Jesuit). For more information, contact Admissions at 419-720-0766 or email admissions@sjjtitans.org.

Photo Captions:

St. John’s Jesuit celebrates 50 years of teaching all boys and invites families to the Open House Nov. 15 from noon to 3 p.m. Tour and see science in action.  

Read more about the exciting game and what is next for the Titans.  Click here.

The Titan Soccer Team captured the 2015 District Championship.  Read more at the BCSN/THE BLADE.

Titan golfers finished Second at Districts. Tommy Sullinger ’17 qualified for the State Tournament.  Members of the winning team were (left to right) Head Coach Mussa Orra, Alex Morrison '17, Tommy Sullinger '17, Logan Hodak '16, Eric Mancinotti '17, Tommy Hurley '17, Brodie Kajfasz '18 and Assistant Coach Julie Brown.

SJJ graduate Kevin Smith Kirkwood '95 performer and Tony Award winner honored his mentor from high school Fr. Ron Torina, S.J. in song.  Hear it here.

St. John’s Jesuit High School and Academy (SJJ) is proud to announce that five young men have been named Commended Students in the 2016 National Merit Scholarship Program – Grant Barnett, Matthew Brangham, Jacob Hasselbach, Mario Markho and Bilal Yassine. A Letter of Commendation from SJJ and the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) will be presented to these scholastically talented seniors. About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation were recognized, the top five percent of more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2016 competition by taking the 2014 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT).

Grant Barnett is a member of the National Honor Society, the Integrity Committee and an Ambassador. He is a House Captain, on the Spirit Squad and a peer tutor. He has been a leader for freshman, sophomore and senior retreats.  He has done service in El Salvador as part of the SJJ International Service Program.  He has been the bunny for Easter on Campus for preschoolers.  He volunteered for Food for Thought and the Sunbridge Academy. He is a Monday volunteer for the Labre Program that weekly feeds around 75 local families. He is active in the Little Flower Parish Youth Group and is a Eucharistic Minister for parish as well.

                He has been involved in Boy Scouts since the fifth grade and is working toward his Eagle Scout. 

                He is a four-year member of the Titan cross country and track and field teams where he earned varsity letters in both. He is a member of the Frisbee Club.  He was in the SJJ musical West Side Story.

                An AP Scholar having taken AP courses in U.S. History, U. S. Government, English Literature, English Language and Composition, Biology, Calculus BC and Latin. He plans to study medicine and is applying to The Ohio State University, Miami University, Princeton University, Harvard University and University of Chicago.

                Matthew Brangham is in National Honor Society.  He has been active in the SJJ Fine Arts Program.  He is a member of the Vocal Ensemble.  He has performed in three SJJ musicals Spamalot, Godspell and West Side Story as well as the Notre Dame Academy production of Pride & Prejudice: The Coffee Shop Edition.  He will be appearing in the upcoming Waterville Players Community Theatre Production of Into the Woods. He is teaching himself to play the piano.

                He has earned his Boy Scout Eagle Award for a landscaping project he did for his church Grace United Methodist in Perrysburg.  He rowed crew for the Titans for five seasons. He has done Christian Service at the Catholic Club, Cherry Street Mission and participated in the SJJ daytime Christian Service Program tutoring. He volunteered at Grace United Methodist Kids Own Worship program for two years.

                He has taken AP Music Theory and AP Calculus BC.  He is participating in the SJJ Ohio State University Engineering class and plans to study optics and acoustic engineering.  He is applying to Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Illinois Institute of Technology, Valparaiso University, Case Western University, Hope College and University of Dayton.

                Jacob Hasselbach is in National Honor Society, an Ambassador and a senior class representative on Student Council.  He has participated in the Leadership Alumni & Mentoring Program. He earned the Outstanding Freshman Award. 

                He has performed Christian Service work internationally in Guatemala as well as locally during the SJJ Day Time Christian Service Program at Pickett Academy helping in the fifth grade classroom.  He has also served at Glendale Assisted Living and Kid’s Unlimited.  He participates in the SJJ Labre Program that feeds 75 families every Monday, Easter on Campus and Christmas on Campus.  He taught Junior Water Polo Camp.

                He is a member of TV-4 Broadcasting and serves as a senior news anchor.  He is in the Ski Club and a member of the Men’s Chorus.  He swims for the Titan Swimming Team, plays on the Sylvania Water Polo Team and enjoys indoor soccer.

                He is an AP Scholar having taken courses in Calculus BC, Statistics, Biology, Chemistry, English Literature, English Language and Composition and Latin. He has taken the SJJ Ohio State University Engineering Course and plans to go into Biomedical Engineering.  He is applying to The Ohio State University, University of Cincinnati, Harvard University, Duke University, Johns Hopkins University, Vanderbilt University and Washington University (St. Louis).

                Mario Markho is in National Honor Society, on the Student Arts Committee, an Ambassador, and on the Integrity Committee.  He is Debate Team Captain, was a founding member of the SJJ Invitational Debate Tournament when he was a freshman and has been a Debate State Qualifier.  He is Secretary General (Captain) of the SJJ Model United Nations and co-founded the program when he was a sophomore.  His leadership qualities have grown while at SJJ through the Leadership & Alumni Mentoring Program and as a leader for freshman, sophomore, junior and senior retreats.  He participated in the Ignatian Solidarity Network Jesuit Teach-In in Washington D.C. where worldwide social justice issues were discussed.  He received the Committed to Doing Justice Award his junior year.

                He is a member of the Spirit Squad, a TV-4 senior anchor, an Ignatian Scholar, Eucharistic Minister and a Mass reader. He has done Christian Service for Lutheran Village, Ebeid Hospice, Bitter Sweet Farms and internationally in Guatemala. 

                He is an AP Scholar and has taken advantage of the largest AP Program in northwest Ohio taking classes in U.S. History, English Language and Composition, Government, Biology, English Literature and Calculus AB.

                He plans to study medicine and is applying to Notre Dame University, The Ohio State University, University of California (San Diego), Johns Hopkins University and Duke University.

                Bilal Yassine is in National Honor Society, Ambassador Society and participates in the Leadership & Alumni Mentoring Program. He has rowed all four years on the Titan Crew Team and serves as Team Captain.  He earned the St. John Berchmans Crew Award.  He was a member of the Titan Swim Team for two years.

                He was a Freshman Retreat Leader and is a House Group Leader.  He did service at Glendale Assisted Living and Flower Hospital.  He has done Christian Service nationally in Appalachia and internationally in Guatemala.

                He has taken full advantage of the SJJ AP Program taking U.S. History, Biology, Chemistry, U.S. Government, English Language and Composition, English Literature, Calculus BC, French and Psychology.

                He is applying to Princeton University, Harvard University, The Ohio State University, Boston University and Northwestern University.

Pictured left to right:  National Merit Commended Students are Bilal Yassine, Jacob Hasselbach, Matthew Brangham, Mario Markho and Grant Barnett.

The Men for Others Hall of Fame ten honorees were inducted October 2:

Fred Beier (posthumously) in recognition of his great contributions to SJJ as a teacher and a coach as well as his many trips to Appalachia with SJJ students,

Rick Corbett ’69 in recognition of his professional accomplishments as former President and CEO for Superior Vision, Inc. and his community volunteer service for American Cancer Society and Boys and Girls Club,

Carl “Doc” Demarkowski in recognition of his more-than-three decades of service as a teacher and coach,

Hon. Doug Ducey ’82 in recognition of his professional accomplishments including his election as Governor of the State of Arizona and as former CEO and Chairman of Coldstone Creamery along with his extensive volunteer service for Thunderbird Charities, the Catholic Community Foundation and Teach America, to name a few,

Brandon Fields ’02 in recognition of his athletic career at SJJ, Michigan State and the NFL Miami Dolphins as well as his service to youth through NFL Play 60 and the Brandon and Katie Fields Youth Fitness Fund,

Ed Gemerchak ’80 in recognition of his deeply altruistic spirit in working with those in need as Executive Director of Y-Haven (Drug Treatment & Transitional Housing for homeless men),

Fr. John Libens, S.J. in recognition of his work in forming SJJ for its first 50 years,

W. Geoffrey Lyden III in recognition of his professional accomplishments as CEO of TrueNorth Energy, his leadership as chairman of the SJJ Board of Trustees, and his deep volunteer commitment to Toledo education at SJJ and Lourdes University and to the community with such organizations as the Port Authority,

Tim Malone ’69 in recognition of his contributions to SJJ as a thespian, performing arts director, teacher and administrator as well as his involvement for Habitat for Humanity, SJJ Appalachian trips and International Samaritan trips,

Don Mewhort ’83 in recognition of his athletic career at SJJ, his professional success as President and Owner of Midland Title and Escrow, Ltd., his effective work as a SJJ Board Member and for his service to the community for the Boys and Girls Club, Lucas County Plan Commission St. John’s Jesuit Will Induct Ten into the Men for Others Hall of Fame multiple other organizations.

Pictured left to right: Don Mewhort, Carl Demarkowski, Tim Malone, Tony Beier accepting for his father Fred, Fr. John Libens, Rick Corbett, Geoffrey Lyden III, Ed Gemerchak and Brandon Fields.

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Every student, teacher and staff member listened as Pope Francis addressed the U.S. Congress on September 24 and applauded his powerful words. Through the Ignatian Solidarity Network, St. John's Jesuit participated in a huge Pope Watch Party with over 20,000 participants.  Four SJJ students tweeted messages of their impressions during the Pope's address.  A game of bingo was played with squares referencing topics the Pope would touch on.  Throughout the day discussions were held on the Pope's address.  A big thank you goes to Phil Skeldon, John Weinandy, Social Justice Alliance and the Christian Service Team for planning and helping with the event. Read more in THE BLADE.

The Titan Golf Team are TRAC Champions. Tom Sullinger '17 was TRAC Golf Player of the Year and Coach Mussa Orra '02 was TRAC Golf Coach of the Year.  Sullinger '17, Eric Mancinotti '17 and Alex Morrison '17 were TRAC First Team. Brodie Kajfasz '18 was TRAC Second Team. Logan Hodak '16 and Tom Hurley '17 were TRAC Honorable Mention. Read more in THE BLADE.

Senior Connor Long has hit the trifecta of high school academics honors he scored a perfect SAT score of 2400, a perfect ACT score of 36 and was named a 2016 National Merit Semifinalist.

Long is one of 16,000 Semifinalists in the 61^st annual National Merit Scholarship Program.  These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,400 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $32 million that will be offered next spring.  To be considered for a Merit Scholarship® award, Semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition.  About 90 percent of the Semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing, and about half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar® title.

Long has been at SJJ since seventh grade spending two years at the St. John’s Jesuit Academy before advancing to the high school.  He is Student Council Vice President and serves on the Integrity Committee. He did international Christian Service this summer in Panama and participated in the SJJ daytime Christian Service program at Rosary Cathedral last year.        

At SJJ he has taken a rigorous course load and has already earned college credit through Advanced Placement (AP) courses in Calculus BC, English Language & Composition, English Literature, U.S. History, Statistics, Latin, U. S. Government and Music Theory.  He writes music and is taking an independent study in song writing. He will have his works performed at a recital at the end of the semester.

He is a familiar performer in SJJ musicals with roles in productions since he was in seventh grade. He was in Titanic, Anything Goes, Spamalot, Godspell and West Side Story.  He has also performed in Notre Dame Academy musicals Seussical, Shrek, Oliver and Mary Poppins.  He is a member of the SJJ Men’s Chorus and Vocal Ensemble all four years.

He plans to study musical theatre in college and will be applying to Baldwin Wallace University, University of Michigan, New York University, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Ithaca College, Wright State University, Carnegie Mellon University, and the University of Oklahoma.

Long was recently featured on Yahoo Parenting.: Read More about Connor on YAHOO

What does a Mr. Potato Head have to do with engineering?  Members of the St. John’s Jesuit Ohio State University engineering program learned about the importance of quality control and making a product to exact specifications. Check out the production line.  Then CEO (and teacher) Rob Holman does the final inspection under the tight time constraints. St. John’s Jesuit is one of only two schools in Ohio that partner with The Ohio State University Engineering.

St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy has five National Merit Semifinalists in the 61^st Annual National Merit Scholarship Program – the most of any of the other area high schools.  They are seniors Fuad J. Abbas, Nicolas V. Granato, Connor A. Long, Shohan Shetty and Luke Tracz.  These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,400 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $32 million that will be offered next spring.  About 90 percent of the Semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing, and about half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar® title.

Fuad Abbas is in National Honor Society and a member of the Ambassador Society. He participated in the Leadership & Alumni Mentoring Program. He received the “Man for Others” Award for his involvement on the Christian Service Core Team. He has volunteered in Appalachia and done international Christian Service in El Salvador.  He has participated in both Easter on Campus and Christmas on Campus. He has served as a Freshman Retreat Leader, a House Group Leader and a Big Brother.  

As a part of the Social Justice Alliance he helped create an Awareness Week for social justice and human rights in the Middle East. He has participated in an Ignatian Summit on Peace and Justice in Washington D.C. and in a Global Summit on Innovation in China on globalized economy. He earned the Saint Michael’s College Book Award for his achievement in academics as well as leadership in the community for service and social justice.

He was on the crew team for two years and played on the JV tennis team his junior year.

He has taken Advanced Placement (AP) courses in U. S. History, Latin, Biology, Calculus BC, Chemistry, English Language and Composition, English Literature, U. S. Government and Statistics.

He plans to study Economics and is applying to The Ohio State University, University of Michigan, Georgetown University, Northwestern University and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Nicolas Granato is a member of the National Honor Society. He was one of the founders of the National Spanish Honor Society his sophomore year and now serves as president.  He is a member of the Young Politicians Club that he helped form.  He is a captain on the Debate Team and was a State Qualifier in debate as a junior.  He is an Ambassador.  He participates in the Leadership & Alumni Mentoring Program. He has been a school Big Brother. He was in the Campion Hall Players production of Tom Jones.

He was a freshman retreat leader, worked with children at Rosary Cathedral as part of the SJJ daytime Christian Service Program, participated in both Easter on Campus and Christmas on campus and volunteered at Glendale Assisted Living for two years. He volunteered for a summer at the YMCA Camp Chingachgook in upstate New York before being a counselor there last summer. He played rugby for two years, wrestled his freshman and sophomore years, and was on the JV tennis team.

He has been involved in the AP Program taking courses in French, Spanish, U. S. History, U. S. Government, Calculus BC, English Language and Composition, English Literature, Statistics and Chemistry.  He will take AP Microeconomics and AP Macroeconomics through the SJJ Jesuit Virtual Learning Academy.

A dual citizen of the United States and France, he plans to study finance.  He is applying to Yale University, Princeton University, Brown University, Pomona College, University of California (Berkeley) and McGill University.

Connor Long is Student Council Vice President and serves on the Integrity Committee. He did international Christian Service this summer in Panama and participated in the SJJ daytime Christian Service program at Rosary Cathedral last year.        

At SJJ he has taken a rigorous course load and has already earned college credit through AP courses in Calculus BC, English Language & Composition, English Literature, U.S. History, Statistics, Latin, U. S. Government and Music Theory.  He writes music and is taking an independent study in song writing. He will have his works performed at a recital at the end of the semester.

He is a familiar performer in SJJ musicals with roles in productions since he was in seventh grade. He was in Titanic, Anything Goes, Spamalot, Godspell and West Side Story.  He has also performed in Notre Dame Academy musicals Seussical, Shrek, Oliver and Mary Poppins.  He is a member of the SJJ Men’s Chorus and Vocal Ensemble all four years.

He plans to study musical theatre in college and will be auditioning at Baldwin Wallace University, University of Michigan, New York University, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Ithaca College, Wright State University, Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Oklahoma.

Shohan Shetty is a member of National Honor Society and has participated in the Leadership & Alumni Mentoring Program. He is secretary for the National Spanish Honor Society, an Ignatian Guild Scholar and in the Ambassador Society. He was on the Chess Team and was involved in Student Council sophomore year.

He has rowed four years and earned the Ignatian Growth Crew Award. He also plays for the Sylvania Basketball Recreational League and Maumee indoor soccer. An active volunteer he was a Freshman Retreat Leader, served at Flower Hospital, St. Vincent’s Medical Center and Glendale Assisted Living, participated in Easter on Campus and did international Christian Service this past summer in Guatemala.

He is has taken AP courses in U. S. History, Biology, English Language and Composition, Government, Chemistry, English Literature, Calculus BC and Spanish.  He plans to study Pre-Med and is applying to Georgetown University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, The Ohio State University, Duke University and Boston University.

Luke Tracz is a member of the National Honor Society.  He is an Ambassador and an Ultimate Frisbee Club member.  He is a peer tutor and serves on the Integrity Committee. He participates in the Leadership & Alumni Mentoring Program.

He has taken AP courses in English Language & Composition, English Literature, U. S. History, U. S. Government, Chemistry, Biology, Calculus BC and Statistics.  He has taken the three-year engineering program which partners with The Ohio State University.

He takes the school model of being a man for others to heart having gone on three trips to Appalachia and this past summer to El Salvador.  He has also served at Ebeid Hospice, tutored at Sylvania Family Services and volunteered at Wildwood Metro Parks.

He is a captain of the crew team and has participated all four years at SJJ and has qualified for the Nationals and the prestigious Head of the Charles race in Boston.

He plans to pursue a career in civil or environment engineering and is applying to Cornell University, University of Michigan, University of Illinois (Urbana) and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

Pictured are the SJJ National Merit Semifinalists (left to right): Luke Tracz, Shohan Shetty, Fuad Abbas, Connor Long and Nicolas Granto.

St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy (SJJ) will begin its celebration of its 50^th year of re-establishment in Toledo on Friday, September 4, 2015 at 11 a.m. with Mass of the Holy Spirit.  The Mass will be concelebrated with Fr. Brian Paulson SJ, Provincial of Chicago-Detroit Province, Fr. Tom Doyle SJ, Vice President of Jesuit Identity at SJJ, Msgr. Charles Singler, Vocations Director, Diocese of Toledo, Fr. Jerry Odbert SJ, Fr. Frank Canfield SJ, Fr. John Libens SJ, Fr. Bill Murphy SJ, Fr. Dan Zak, Fr. Mark Davis '78,  Fr. Marty Connell, SJ '81, Fr. John Bamman, OFM Conv. '85, Fr. Brian Lehane, SJ, Fr. Pat Peppard, SJ, Fr. Geoff Rose, O.S.F.S., Fr. Ronald Olszewski, O.S.F.S., Fr. Don Vettese, SJ and Deacon Jerry Ziemkiewicz have been confirmed.

At the official opening in September, 1965, Fr. Nicholas Gelin S.J., the first president, said, “Today, St. John’s begins its second springtime with a planting that we pray will yield a harvest comparable to the first.”

And it has.  Many of Toledo’s leaders in education, business and government have their foundation in a St. John’s Jesuit education as do many others around the country. Over the 50 years St. John’s Jesuit graduates have included Pulitzer Prize winners Michael Sallah ’73 and Nick Anderson ‘85, Tony Award winner Kevin Kirkwood Smith ’95, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey ’82, CBS Correspondent Steve Hartman ’81, Mayor of Columbus Michael Coleman ’73, Olympic contenders Scott Parsons ’97 and David Colturi ’07, CEO & President of Pitney Bowes Marc Lautenbach ’79, Colonel Mark Swentkofske USAF Attaché  Beijing China, three local superintendents of schools Chris Knight ’78, Secretariat Leader/Superintendent of Catholic Schools, Dr. Michael O’Shea ‘69, Superintendent of Springfield Schools and Pat Hickey ’81, Superintendent of Washington Local Schools, numerous judges, priests, captains of industry locally and nationally, NFL players and coaches, NBA players and coaches, community leaders and on and on.

That first freshman class in 1965, the Class of 1969, would yield the CEO of The Andersons Mike Anderson, the President/CEO of Superior Vision Services Inc. Rick Corbett, renowned neon light artist Rocky Pinciotti, Springfield Schools Superintendent Dr. O’Shea, former City Council member, writer and political activist Michael Ferner, actor Mike Saad and a future principal of the school Tim Malone.

The high school opened its doors to all boys in 1965 with the gym, auditorium and chapel still under construction.  Today, the campus has grown to 54 acres and continues its 50-year mission to educate young men in grades 6-12.  The academic facilities feature a high school for grades 9-12 with a wing for grades 6-8.  The campus includes the dome gym, auxiliary gym, The Lyden Fitness Center, Lyden Field, a state-of-the-art sports stadium, soccer/lacrosse field, a baseball complex, the McQuade Theatre, Sawicki Family Music Center, the Carty Fox Commons, a food court, the technology wing, the Iott Center that houses the A+ Learning Center and a chapel that seats the entire student body.

Plans are underway for other celebrations and remembrances throughout the year to

commemorate St. John’s Jesuit 50 years of proven success in educating young men who are the leaders of today and tomorrow in the Catholic Jesuit tradition.

Over 10,000 young men over their four years at St. John’s Jesuit have experienced opportunities that have changed their lives and defined who they are.  Graduates know that when you have helped someone and touched his life it makes a world of difference within you.  Although many graduates go on to successful careers because of the premier academic education.  Jesuit education has always been more about internal formation based on the teachings of St. Ignatius of Loyola, about the St. John’s Jesuit brotherhood and about becoming a man for others.

For 475 years Jesuit education has been producing tomorrow’s leaders in a Christ-centered atmosphere.  St. John’s Jesuit is part of a network of 63 high schools and 28 colleges in the U.S. and hundreds of institutions worldwide that all share the same ideals and programs. Founding documents based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, orient and guide all Jesuit institutions and its employees to effectively carry on the educational mission and services of the Society of Jesus (Jesuit).

SJJ Mother/Son Mass and Breakfast  Sunday September 13 2015  @ 9a.m.

All Titan Mothers and Sons are cordially invited to a special Mass & Breakfast for SJJ High School and Academy. It is with great pleasure that we extend this invitation to keep a great tradition going.

NOTE: If you are unable to attend Mass, please join us for the breakfast buffet. You will have the opportunity to meet your son's friends and their Mothers, and become better acquainted with the St. John's Jesuit Family. Mass celebrated at 9a.m. in the St. John Berchmans' Chapel Breakfast buffet in the Carty Fox Commons at 10:30 a.m.

*School attire is appropriate wear.*

Plan to join fellow moms and their sons for this memorable morning.

St. John’s Jesuit faculty member Claudio Cabrera became a U. S. citizen on Thursday, August 27.  He was one of 49 people who were honored and the one person from Uruguay.  He started the process four years ago.  According to Mr. Cabrera he feels blessed and honored to receive his citizenship.

                Mr. Cabrera has impressive credentials.  He taught public speaking on the university level at the Universidad Católica del Uruguay, which is managed by the Jesuits.  In 2009 he began teaching Spanish.  He earned his teaching certificate and then his Masters in Spanish Linguistics at the University of Jaen in Spain.  Mr. Cabrera has taught Spanish online for a Mexican school called LiveLingua.  He also taught at the  U.S. Embassy in Montevideo and at Spanish by the Sea School in the island of Bocas del Toro in Panama before he joined the SJJ faculty in 2013.  Currently, he teaches Spanish II and IV. He plans to pursue his Ph.D. in Spanish literature and/or culture

                He has been involved in the SJJ International Christian Service program for two years going to El Salvador and Guatemala his first year and El Salvador this past summer.  He enjoys being the link between the students and the people so they can connect and learn more about each other.

                He played professional soccer in Uruguay for a year and all through college.  According to Mr. Cabrera, the first gift a child receives in Uruguay is a soccer ball. He earned his U.S. coaching license and was the girls’ head coach at Springfield High School for a year.  He will coach a girls’ team for Toledo Metro F. C. in the spring.

                Whether he is earning his U.S. Citizenship, striving to be the best Spanish teacher, coaching soccer, pursuing his academic career or helping young men connect during International Christian Service – he is always pursuing the Jesuit motto of Magis, doing more and being more.

Photos: Mr. Cabrera at the ceremony.  Other photos are of the Academy students and their special presentation to Mr. Cabrera.

                St. John’s Jesuit High School was recognized by the members of the House of Representatives of the 131^st General Assembly of Ohio on receiving the 2014-2015 All Sports Trophy for the Three Rivers Athletic Conference.  The recognition was under the sponsorship of Representative Michael P. Sheehy, House District 46.

                The All Sports Trophy is presented to the school that achieves the best overall performance across ten common team sports.  The declaration reads, “. . . the All Sports Trophy is a fitting tribute to St. John’s Jesuit High School, which won TRAC titles in baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, and track and field during the 2014-15 year, and it has earned this prestigious honor for three consecutive years.  By taking part in athletics, the students have learned valuable lessons of self-discipline, perseverance, hard work, and fair play that will undoubtedly be of great benefit to them throughout their lives.”

                The declaration continues, “With athletic competition playing such an important role in the total education of our young people, we are extremely pleased to acknowledge St. John’s Jesuit High School for its outstanding sports programs.  We are certain that in the years to come, this fine institution will continue to display the same unwavering dedication to athletic excellence for which it has become known.”

Michael Truesdell, President of St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy, (left) and Robert Ronai, Director of Athletics, display the proclamation from the Ohio House of Representatives.

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Beginning Monday July 20^th, the west parking lot will be closed for one week for sealing and striping work. When this is completed the contractor will close the east parking lot and complete the second phase of the project. The Holland Sylvania entrance will be closed for the first week and the Airport Highway entrance for the second week. This is all subject to weather conditions and any rain we might have could stretch the project out. Please be patient during this process as we continue to maintain our excellent facilities and grounds.

Our final group of Christian Service guys are on their way to Guatemala from July 16-25. You can follow their service journey on sjjguatemalatrip2015.blogspot.com

SJJ has had four different groups of young men doing service this summer in Appalachia, El Salvador, Panama and now Guatemala.

Leading the Guatemala group are faculty members Adam Dane '02, Jack Kelly '06 and Kyle Zwyer.

Seven SJJ young men along with staff and faculty members Rob Taylor, Phil Skeldon and John Weinandy are in Appalachia doing service this week. Keep Cameron Bernath, August Dreier, Pat Gorman, Daniel Perales, Sean Wietecki, Matt Orchard and Bo Taylor in your prayers. They are carrying on a 20 plus year tradition of SJJ service in Appalachia!

A special fundraiser is being held for St. John's Jesuit junior Joey Sabol on Wednesday, July 15 at LaFiesta Mexican Restaurant, Reynolds Road, Maumee from 11 a.m. - 11 p.m.  Joey will have an operation to remove a tumor in the next couple of weeks.  To assist his family with missing work and medical bills, a fundraiser has been organized.  

You need to present the flyer when ordering to donate.

Show your Titan Spirit and support Joey.

Click here for the flyer Joey Sabol 2

There is a scheduled computer, internet and phone maintenance scheduled for July 10.  We apologize for any inconvenience.

Senior Sean Rattay committed to play football for the United States Naval Academy.  Rattay is a center and guard for the Titans and has garnered honors. He was First Team All TRAC and First Team All District both his sophomore and junior years. He played basketball for the Titans his freshman and sophomore years.

Rattay is a member of the National Honor Society and consistently on the Honor Roll.  He is a member of the Ambassador Society, Arabic Club and Christian Service.  He has done volunteer work at the Swan Point Care Center and Spring Meadows Extended Care doing activities with the residents. 

According to Rattay, he selected the Naval Academy for its top academics and football programs.  He plans to major in business and marketing.  He was also pursued by The University of Toledo, Ball State University, University of Pittsburgh, Purdue University, University of Cincinnati, United States Air Force Academy and United States Military Academy.

SJJ junior Robert Miller was one of the leaders of the team chosen for first place out of over 100 teams by the judges of the Innovation Village at the Global Student Leaders Summit held in Davos, Switzerland on the topic of "Innovation and the Future of Education." In the photo, Robert is explaining the project from the main stage in front of 1,500 students, teachers, administrators and conference organizers. Congratulations Robert!

Fr. Thomas Ryan, S.J. who taught at St. John's Jesuit from 1980-85, passed away on June 21 at Colombiere Center, Clarkson, MI. The wake for Fr. Ryan will be Sunday, June 28, from 3-7 p.m. in the Colombiere Chapel.  There will be a wake service at 7 p.m.  Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:45 a.m., on Monday, June 29 in the Colombiere Chapel.

Twelve St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) young men will join with hundreds of students from around the world to participate in the Global Student Leaders Summit in Davos, Switzerland on June 27-28.  The summit theme is “Innovation and the Future of Education” with Sir Ken Robinson, one of the foremost leaders on creativity in education, as the keynote speaker.  Students will attend expert-led workshops.  Then, using the same creative problem-solving technique used by companies like Apple and Google, the Design Thinking Process, international teams of students will be challenged to solve a pressing global education issue and present their solutions.

Before coming together for the summit, international students will explore how the culture, history and politics impact education systems throughout Europe.  SJJ students will be immersed in the Italian culture and language all while exploring the past, present and future of Italy’s education system.  They will examine Montessori education, an innovative approach founded in Italy.  They will gain a local perspective by connecting with students from Rome.

Students attending the program are recent 2015 graduates Alex Caserta, Bailey Cedoz, AJ Kaminski and Liam Rogers, seniors Noah Elliott and Brad Marshall, and juniors Marquis Holmes, Dakota Logan, Robert Miller, Cameron Mowat, Drew Parson and Patrick Smyth.  Faculty advisors on the trip are group leader Stacey Wisnieski and Barbara Trimble.

Previously, SJJ students have attended a Student Leaders Summit in Shanghai, China on the topic of “The Global Economy and Social Responsibility” in March, 2014.

The St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) Titans have won their third straight Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) All Sports Award. Out of a possible ten sports, SJJ won seven conference titles.  The Titans won conference titles in Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Golf, Soccer, Tennis and Track/Field. In addition, Basketball, Golf, Tennis and Track/Field won District Titles, while Golf and Tennis both reached the State Tournament.

Representing their sport are members of the Class of 2016: Baseball - Sam McClurg, Basketball – Gabe Kynard, Crew – Austin Buck, Cross Country – Jake Barnes, Football – Sean Rattay, Golf – Logan Hodak, Hockey – Hayden Wyper, Lacrosse – Matt Padanilam, Soccer – Charlie Baumgartner, Swimming & Diving – Robert DiSalle, Tennis – Rajeev Laungani, Track/Field – Corey Pargo and Wrestling – Brendan O’Brien.

Pictured are Class of 2016 athletes that helped St. John’s Jesuit earn the TRAC All Sports Award for the third year in a row: (left to right) front: Sean Rattay, Charlie Baumgartner, Matt Padanilam, Gabe Kynard center: Brendan O’Brien, Austin Buck, Robert DiSalle, Corey Pargo back: Hayden Wyper, Rajeev Laungani, Logan Hodak, Sam McClurg, Jake Barnes

Tyler Norris ‘16 received the prestigious Harry Denman Evangelism Award at the West Ohio Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church annual session.  The award celebrates the outstanding personal evangelism ministry of clergy, laity and youth in West Ohio.  As the youth recipient Norris was recognized for his living example and passion in helping others experience God’s transforming love through Jesus Christ.

An honor student, Norris is extremely involved at SJJ in the Social Justice Alliance and in Christian Service.  He serves as a Drum Major for the Marching Titans.  Outside of school he is involved in Troop 210 Boy Scouts of America (BSA) and served as a staff member for this summer’s BSA National Youth Leadership Training Program.  He is a youth board member for Chrysalis (young program of Emmaus) and is one of the senior high school counselors for the junior high program at Epworth United Methodist Church.

Norris received his award from the Rev. Linda Middelberg, Superintendent, Maumee Watershed District.

A Welcome Mass and Brunch for New High School Principal Mr. Joe Cordella and his family will be held on Sunday July 12^th  at 11 a.m. in The Chapel of St. John Berchmans.

SJJ High School students and families are welcome to attend!  RSVP no later than June 30^th to cstruck@sjjtitans.org  with your name and number of family members attending Mass and Brunch.

The Picnic Style Fare Brunch will immediately follow Mass and will be held in the Carty Fox
Commons.  For more information call 419-865-5743 ext. 0702.

First, they were Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) champions, than they placed third in the State and set a new St. John’s Jesuit High School varsity school record for the 4 x 800m Relay of 7:51.09. Now Nick Jarrell ’15, Ben Clark ’16 , Ivan Dye ’16 and Jake Barnes ’16 will compete against top high school teams across the country in the New Balance Nationals on June 25 in Greensboro, North Carolina.                

This was a banner year for St. John’s Jesuit Track and Field team that were TRAC and District Champions. Seven young men were State Qualifiers.  They were Jarrell in the 4 x 800m Relay and the 3200m Run, Clark in the 4 x 800m Relay, Dye in the 4 x 800m Relay and 4 x 400m Relay, Barnes in the 4 x 800m Relay, 4 x 400m Relay and 800m Run, Keionn Gray ’15 in the 4 x 400m Relay, Jelani Young ‘15 in the 4 x 400m Relay, and Tycen Anderson ’17 in the High Jump. Young, Dye, Gray and Barnes set a varsity school record for the 4 x 400m Relay of 3:20.93. Young also set a varsity school record of 49.58 in the 400m Dash.

Shown with their Third Place State Medals and headed to the New Balance Nationals in Greensboro, North Carolina are (left to right) Nick Jarrell, Ben Clark, Ivan Dye and Jake Barnes.

Twins Nathaniel “Nate” and Zachary “Zach” Chapman'15 received their official Eagle Scout Awards at a ceremony on June 2.  Both young men are graduates of St. John’s Jesuit High School (SJJ) and are headed to John Carroll University (JCU) this fall. They are members of Troop 210 in Holland, Ohio and are the first twins in the troop to ever both earn their Eagle Scout Award.

Nate’s Eagle Scout project involved collecting school supplies for Rosary Cathedral.  Each kit contained a folder, spiral notebook, pencils, crayons, and pens.  He made a supply kit for every student in the school.  He spent over 100 hours calling sponsors, going door to door, and assembling the kits.

In addition to Boy Scouting, Nate was in the National Honor Society for two years and was in the Spanish Honor Society.  He was a peer tutor in the A+ Learning Center. 

He was involved in the Anime Club (a Japanese culture club) and on the Speech and Debate Team for three years. He acted in the Campion Hall Players in Tom Jones and Midsummer Night’s Dream. He was involved in the SJJ Marching Band where he played the French horn. He was a section leader and uniform manager for the Marching Band as well as served as the Band Representative for the Student Art Committee. He was a mentor to fellow band students in the SJJ Community Band.                 

He was a patrol leader for Providence Lutheran Church (Holland) for grades 6-12. He plans to study International Business and Language and Culture at JCU with a concentration in Spanish and German.

Zach created three raised flower beds at Wolf Creek Home for his Eagle Scout project.  Residents in wheelchairs can roll themselves up to the beds to plant flowers and tend to the gardens.  This allows all residents who love to garden a chance to still enjoy this hobby.  This project involved over 50 hours.

Zach was in Marching Band and played the tuba. In the band he was a section leader for the brass instruments, was a community band mentor, and involved in the Concert Band as first chair for two years.  He was in Campion Players with roles in Tom Jones and a Midsummer’s Night Dream as well as Notre Dame Academy’s The Drowsy Chaperone.  He was a two-year member of the Speech Team and was journalist for the school newspaper THE SPECTRUM.

He mentored underclassman as a Small House Group Leader, was a sophomore retreat leader, and served as a peer tutor.  He was in the National Honor Society for two years and the Spanish National Honors Society.  He helped at Easter on Campus and was an altar server.  He was a Zoo Teen for three years. He has been a Boy Scout Troop Leader for three years, a Senior Patrol Leader, and a Troop Leadership Advisor.               

He will participate in the Leadership Scholars Honors Program at JCU and will pursue an advanced degree in Economics.

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Mr. Tim Martin will be the new SJJ Band Director. He was a member of the prestigious Ohio University Marching 110 performing on the snare drum for five years.  He has performed with the Glassmen Drum and Bugle Corps.  Although the snare drum is his instrument of choice, he has taught percussion, brass, and woodwind classes. One of his strengths is helping band students discover their best instrument fit. Plus, he has been involved in  leadership activities through the Americorps Program and Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Program. 

Join us on Tuesday, June 9, at 6:00 p.m. at Community Homecoming Park, 7807 Angola Road, Holland Ohio.  Come and meet Mr. Martin plus band students and parents.  Frisbee, hamburgers, and football will make the evening fun.  New band members need not bring anything; they are our guests! New band members should bring their $350 camp fee. Hope to see you there.

Brett A. Molnar was named the new Titan Varsity Hockey Coach.  Mr. Molnar joins the Titans with over 15-years-experience as a player and coach.  He played for Sylvania Northview High School and was voted team captain his junior season and was NHC First Team during that season as well.  He played Junior A Hockey for the Toledo Wolfpack ‘03-‘04 and the Markham Waxers (Toronto, Ontario) ‘04-‘06.  While with the Markham Waxers in ’05-’06, he was Team Captain, voted MVP, was part of the South Division regular season champions and earned the South Division scoring title.

He went on to play in college at Bowling Green State University (Division 1 CCHA) then transferred to Ohio University where he played for the Bobcats Varsity Hockey (Division 1 Club) serving as Team Captain his junior and senior seasons.

He was Assistant Head Coach of the Carmel Icehounds and helped coach the team to a Division 2 State Championship in March, 2012 and was Assistant Head Coach at Sylvania North Stars ’02 AAA from March 2013 to the present.  He has completed his USA Hockey Level 3 Certification – MidAm District.

He earned a Bachelor Degree of Specialized Studies from Ohio University and is a Marketing Manager/Program Manager for the Madison Avenue Marketing Group. 

He is a firm believer of promoting a student-athlete’s maturation on and off the ice and believes in the importance of academics.

“First and foremost, academics must be the most important aspect of a student-athlete’s high school and collegiate life.  Hockey may be a student-athlete’s first love and they may have aspirations of playing collegiately or even professionally, but a student-athlete must prepare himself for life after hockey.  Academic success will assist a student-athlete throughout their life by forcing them to learn to manage their time, problem solve, study, sacrifice and learn accountability.  It is important that these young men learn to become well-rounded individuals on and off the ice,” explained Mr. Molnar.

Sixty One St. John’s Jesuit Academy eighth graders graduated May 28 with parents, siblings, grandparents, faculty, staff, and friends on hand to celebrate their accomplishments.

John Malkoski received the CYO 8^th Grade Leadership Award for exhibiting strong leadership qualities on the CYO playing field, in the classroom, and throughout the community.

Andrew Horvath earned the St. Alphonsus Rodriquez Award for constantly being happy to be at school and always putting all his effort into everyday with a smile on this face.

Frankie Lizcano accepted the St. Francis Xavier Award.  This honor identifies a student who has utilized his efforts, commitment, and leadership to make contributions to the well-being of their teams, their classes, and the St. John’s Jesuit community as a whole.

Arafa Amin earned The Pedro Arrupe Service Award for being a thoughtful and caring individual who always puts others before himself, is willing to try or do something new, and who gives back to his local community and school through the act of serving others.

Sam Rodgers received the Eric Floyd Spirit Award for demonstrating leadership, poise, toughness, tenacity, fearlessness, and most of all an attitude of confidence that was contagious amongst his teammates and coaches.

Isaac Munoz was honored with the Ignatian Growth Award for demonstrating the five pillars of Jesuit education, which are open to growth, intellectually competent, religious, loving, and committed to doing justice.

Connor Bishop, Aaron Brimmer, and Joey Thaman earned the Saint Robert Bellarmine Award for earning all A’s in their quarter classes for their entire seventh and eighth grade classes and epitomizing the Ignatian pillar of intellectually competent.

President Mike Truesdell in his closing remarks challenged the graduates this summer to find God in all things and come back after break and share how they found God with him.

The Titan Baseball Team are TRAC Champions.  Click here to read more in THE BLADE/BCSN.

 Nine students will leave with Mr. Phil Skeldon and Mr. Adam Dane ’02 on May 28 for a ten-day trip to build a multipurpose athletic court in an impoverished community in Panama.  Joining with Jesuit High, New Orleans, together they are participating in the Courts for Kids Program. 

A multisport athletic court is a great project because it requires the help of many community members, provides plenty of work for everyone, and becomes an asset that provides not only safe places for children to play, but it is also a location for the community to come together for celebrations.

SJJ volunteers going on the trip are Rolando Muniz '16, Eric Schneider '16, Leo Sandri '16, Gavin Chisholm '16, John Kahmann '16, Connor Long '16, Kenny Goetz '16, Matt Padanilam '16, and Aedan Martindale '16.They are the first of four student groups doing Christian Service work in Guatemala, El Salvador, Appalachia, and Panama.

If the Panama internet cooperates you can follow their postings.  Click here for a link.

For the first time in Titan History there were not one but two boats in the Nationals.  The Junior 4 placed Fifth in the Nation.  Rowers on the Junior 4 boat were Austin Buck '16, Luke Tracz '16, Spencer Rogers '16, Bilal Yassine '16, and Shohan Shetty '16. The Varsity 4 placed 18th in the Nation and Fourth in the Region. Rowers were Aaron Parsons '15, Greg Miller '15, Jared Schwallie '15, James Miller '15, and Sohum Mehta '15. Sohum and Greg were Valedictorians for the Class of 2015.

The Junior 4 Boat (below) Placed Fifth in the Nation

Gabe Scarlett '15, BCSN Student of the Year, is featured in THE BLADE. Click here to read more about his mission work in Haiti.

"I am not content to stay the same way, if there is a better way to teach I am going to go after it, not remain stagnant,” explained St. John’s Jesuit High School faculty member Scott Zura.

That willingness to be open and do what is best for his students is what helped earned Mr. Zura the 2015 Golden Apple Award.  The Golden Apple Award was established by the Jack and Rhodora Donahue Family Foundation of Pittsburgh in 1992 to honor outstanding Catholic educators.  This program has been expanded to the Diocese of Toledo and is in its tenth year.

Teachers are nominated for the award by a parent, student or fellow teacher.  Mr. Zura was nominated by James Miller, Class of 2015. Nominations are sent to a selection committee comprised of educators, administrators and members of the Bishop’s Education Council.

Mr.. Zura received a check for $5,000, a certificate of achievement, a Golden Apple keepsake decorated with a 24-karat gold cross, and a lapel pin.

Mr.. Zura teaches Physics and Advanced Placement (AP) Chemistry.  He has taught at St. John’s Jesuit High School 21 years.  He is head junior varsity tennis coach and varsity tennis assistant.  He handles prom, and is STEM Club moderator.  He is a mentor for new teachers.

He believes in always searching for the best way for students to learn.  Within the last two years, he changed his physics course to a more inquisitive-based way of teaching.  Students are given a problem and they must determine the best way to handle.

As he explains, it is not the cookbook science lab that so often is taught – follow the instructions step by step. 

"It’s amazing to watch students collect the data, determine how to do it, draw their own conclusions, and defend how they did it,” he said.

To learn the new approach he attended an intense two-week, eight to five, summer session at Bowling Green State University that included intense homework at night.  The new teaching method just completed its second year at St. John’s Jesuit High School.  Last summer he attended a Chemistry Program at Ohio Northern University.

“The St. John’s Jesuit administration is very supportive of professional development and encouraging teachers to attend the right conferences,” he said.

In the last five years, four St. John’s Jesuit teachers have earned the Golden Apple Award – Butch Welling, Ron Miller, and Phil Skeldon.

Scott Zura received his award from Bishop Daniel Thomas.  Also pictured is Fr. Thomas Doyle and Dr. Brad Bonham. At the podium is Chris Knight, Superintendent of the Diocese of Toledo.

Last summer St. John’s Jesuit students worked with Greg Taylor, a Peace Corps volunteer, in El Salvador as part of the Courts for Kids project.  Wanting to make an even bigger impact, one of the mission collections this year raised funds for a rural community called La Peña.  Titans contributed $1,400 for the community.

Greg sent an update on how funds were used. 

Eco-Bricks: Over 1,300 soda bottles were filled with over 1 ton of inorganic waste to build garden retention walls at the school.  Each bottle holds about 2 pounds of trash that otherwise would have been laying on the roadside.  SJJ money went towards construction materials and funding for the local contractor.  See picture.

Church Windows: Don Santos put in new glass windows in the tower at the La Peña church.  

Soccer Uniforms: The men's La Peña soccer team purchased brand new uniforms and a new soccer ball that they now wear every Sunday for team competition.

Soccer Field Fencing: The men's soccer team used part of the SJJ donation to put in about 100 yards of mesh wire fencing at the community soccer field.  You may recall that half of the soccer field was missing a fence and when balls went out of play there could be long breaks in the game while someone went looking for the ball.

Basketball Court Improvements: The boy's and girls' basketball teams both helped to paint lines on the basketball court according to the FIBA regulation measurements.  See picture.  Three powerful outdoor lights have also been installed to allow play at night. 

Greg shared in a note to Phil, “On behalf of La Peña, I'd like to thank you and all of the St. John's guys that contributed to the community's development.  Your guys truly effected a significant change in the lives of the people of La Peña and the community will be forever grateful.”

The St. John’s Jesuit High School Class of 2015 earned an outstanding over $18.2 million in college scholarships and awards and celebrated their Graduation on May 20.

Valedictorians were Zachary Chambers'15, Sohum Mehta '15, James Lazenby '15, Alex Hasselbach '15, and Gregory Miller '15.  Mr. Lazenby gave the Commencement speech.  Matthew Theis was Salutatorian.

Jacob Dziubek'15 received the Bishop’s Cross given to outstanding seniors, who through their example, service and leadership have been notable in living out the Christian commitment.

The Scholar Athlete award presented to a versatile senior who demonstrates academic achievement and natural athletic ability went to Richard Anderson '15.

The Spirit of St. Ignatius of Loyola Award is given to an outstanding senior who exhibits determination, courage and love.  He has exhibited exceptional concern for the betterment of humankind throughout his career at St. John’s Jesuit both in and out of the classroom.  William Beebe '15 received the honor.

Aidan Reed '15 earned the JSEA Award.  It is presented under the auspices of the Jesuit Secondary Education Association. The award is given to the student who most closely resembles the following ideal:  A well-rounded person who is intellectually competent, open to growth, religious, loving, and committed to doing justice in generous service to the people of God.

The St. John Berchmans Award was conferred on Nicolas Jarrell '15, who, by the vote of his classmates, is judged to be an outstanding senior.  In addition to general excellence, academic achievement, co-curricular involvement, leadership, and social awareness, he embodies the Christian ideals modeled by St. John Berchmans of the Society of Jesus.

Brock Connor '15 will play baseball for Heidelberg University.

Chandler Dippman '15 will play baseball for the College of Wooster.

Ian Waddell '15 will play baseball for Ohio Wesleyan University.

Kaleb Vaughn '15 will play basketball for Louisburg College.  Kaleb was Second Team All-TRAC, Second Team All-District, and played in the Ohio-Indiana All Star Game.

Gabe Scarlett '15,  the BCSN November Student of the Month, was officially named the BCSN Student of the Year.  Gabe is interested in photojournalism. He was active on the Christian Service Team and performed service in Appalachia and Guatemala.

Read more.

Nicolas Jarrell '15 was named an Evans Scholars and received the Chick Evans Caddie Scholarship, a full, four-year tuition and housing college scholarship for golf caddies.  The Evans Scholars Program, one of the country’s largest privately funded scholarship programs, is sponsored by the Western Golf Association.  It is named in honor of Chick Evans, one of golf’s greatest amateurs, whose charitable legacy was to send deserving caddies to college.  Applicants are evaluated and compete on four criteria caddie record, ACT Score, financial need and character and leadership.  He caddied at the Inverness Club and Bloomfield Hills Country Club. Nicolas will be attending The Ohio State University. 

Pictured (left to right) John Kretzschmar, Director Western Golf Association, Nicolas Jarrell '15, and Greg Kopan, Director of Western Golf Association.

SJJ Faculty member Todd Black, Chair of Academic Guidance and Head Coach for Cross Country receives recognition and induction into the Hardin County Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the BGSU Sports Hall of Fame  in 2006  . Follow the link to learn more about his accomplishments as a runner and coach. http://www.bgsufalcons.com/news/2015/4/23/GEN_0423154937.aspx?path=general

The St. John’s Jesuit Advancement Department is looking to fill the position of Director of Alumni Relations.

This full-time position is responsible for overseeing, directing, and implementing alumni relations activities at St. John’s Jesuit. This position includes primary responsibility for alumni leadership giving, including personal solicitation of leadership donors and prospects. This position reports to the Vice President for Advancement.

Director of Alumni Relations job description

Please submit cover letter and resume by May 22 to Vice President of Advancement, St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy, 5901 Airport Hwy, Toledo, OH 43615 or to jobapp@sjjtitans.org.

We would like to thank Nick Butler ’01 for his work in guiding our alumni efforts for the past three years. Nick has been promoted to Advancement Officer, Annual Fund & Major Gifts.

Mr. Joe Cordella, a Catholic high school administrator in the Baltimore area with eight years of previous leadership experience at Jesuit high schools, has been selected as the next principal of St. John’s Jesuit High School, SJJ President Mike Truesdell announced today. Mr. Cordella will work alongside Ms. Beth Hyder, SJJ’s newly appointed Academic Assistant Principal.

Mr. Cordella will take over his new position effective July 1 and succeeds Dr. Brad Bonham, who is departing St. John’s Jesuit to become the next President of Carmel Catholic High School in Mundelein, Ill.

“It is with deep gratitude to our Principal Search Committee that I share the good news that Joe will be joining SJJ as Principal of the High School,” Mr. Truesdell said. “We sincerely thank everyone who participated in this very important decision. The process of finding our new principal truly reflected a Jesuit approach from start to finish.”

Read the Principal Search Committee's letter recommending Mr. Joe Cordella as SJJ's next High School Principal

Mr. Cordella joins St. John’s Jesuit from Calvert Hall College High School in Towson, Md., where he served as Assistant Principal for Student Affairs. At Calvert Hall, he organized and oversaw all extracurricular clubs, activities and moderators in addition to teaching in the Theology Department.

Prior to that, Mr. Cordella was Director of Campus Ministry and later Director of Student Activities at Loyola Blakefield High School, a Jesuit-sponsored institution in Towson, Md., from 2009-2013.

“I am excited and humbled by this opportunity to be the next principal of St. John’s Jesuit High School,” Mr. Cordella said. “St. John’s is at a great time in its history and tradition celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. I’ve been impressed with everybody I’ve met there, and there’s a lot of energy and excitement in the SJJ school community right now.”

Mr. Cordella’s association with Jesuit education began at Strake Jesuit College Preparatory in Houston, where he served as Retreat and Liturgy Coordinator from 2005-09.

Mr. Cordella holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology degree from Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, a Master of Arts in Pastoral Studies degree from the University of St. Thomas (Houston) and will complete a Certificate in Administration and Supervision from Loyola University (Md.) in May 2015.

He and his wife, Samantha, have two daughters, Seraphina (6) and Andalucia (4).

Ms. Hyder is not a new face at St. John’s Jesuit, having spent the past year preparing to succeed long-time SJJ administrator and teacher Cherie Bischoff as Academic Assistant Principal. Mrs. Bischoff is retiring from St. John’s Jesuit at the end of the 2014-15 school year after more than four decades of service to the school.

“I’ve been blessed to be a part of the SJJ community as a parent [David ’14], a teacher and now an administrator,” Ms. Hyder said. “I’ve been additionally blessed to shadow Cherie Bischoff during this year to learn our day-to-day operations, gain historical perspective and share ideas for a future that continues to make SJJ the academic leader of our region.”

Ms. Hyder has been a Science teacher at St. John’s Jesuit since 2011 and served as Chair of the Science Department since 2013. She also serves as chair of the Educational Excellence Committee as part of the ongoing strategic planning process at St. John’s Jesuit. She possesses more than 12 years of teaching experience and another five years in the environmental sciences sector, including working as Environmental Regulatory Specialist to the U.S. Secretary of Energy from 1991-92.

Ms. Hyder holds a Bachelor of Science in Zoology degree from Miami University (Ohio) and a Master of Science in Environmental Science from Indiana University.

The Board of Trustees has decided that St. John's Jesuit High School & Academy will remain a single-gender, all-male school.

A discussion about a co-ed educational offering arose as part of a strategic planning process. As with any effective strategic planning process, we explored a variety of industry trends and options for growth that may advance the school. The co-ed issue was highlighted publicly and, in some cases, perceived as a stand-alone issue.

While the strategic planning efforts are ongoing, the Board has made a decision to continue to offer only single-gender, all-male enrollment. This decision was reached based on a number of factors, including preliminary survey findings, feedback from alumni, parents and the community, as well as the Board's vision for the future of the school. We are committed to providing an excellent Jesuit education to the young men of our community.

Dan Anderson, Board of Trustees Chairman
Mike Truesdell, President

William Beebe '15 will represent Northwest Ohio at this year’s Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund Government Day on March 21-24 in Washington, D.C. The goal of Government Day is for JDRF Advocacy volunteer leaders to advocate for JDRF’s priorities to their respective local constituents on Capitol Hill and back home through programs like the Promise to Remember Me Campaign.

William, SJJ's Student Council President, is a type 1 diabetic who has been actively involved with JDRF since he was diagnosed at age 5, and was most recently named as the Northwest Ohio Advocacy Chair.

This will be William’s third trip to D.C. to advocate for JDRF. He represented the Northwest Ohio Chapter at the 2011 Children’s Congress where he joined hundreds of other kids on Capitol Hill to secure continued government funding, as well as to raise awareness about the burdens of living with T1D. He also earned the right to attend 2012’s Government Day as a young teen after recruiting the most advocates in the country in 2011. His work in government continues through his close relationship working with Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur and attending Promise Me Campaigns with other local politicians.

William was the recipient of JDRF’s Cure Crusader of the Year Award in 2014. The Cure Crusader Award goes to an individual who has embraced his diagnosis of T1D and campaigns tirelessly to make a change in world of T1D.

The St. John's Jesuit Chess Team won the championship match against St. Francis on Wednesday in the Greater Toledo Area High School Chess League.

The Titans also came in first place during the regular season against teams from St. Francis, Perrysburg, Clay, Central Catholic, Maumee Valley, Ottawa Hills, Rossford and Waite high schools. Advancing to the four-team playoffs were SJJ, St. Francis, Perrysburg and Clay.

The SJJ Chess Team is coached by Mr. Kyle Zwyer.

The St. John's Jesuit High School Robotics team wrapped up the 2014-15 season Saturday as one of the Top 10 programs in the state.

The Titans won four out of five matches in the qualifying rounds of the FTC state championship and finished the meet ranked 8th out of 32 invited teams.

SJJ earned an invitation to the state meet by virtue of claiming the championship at the Van Wert regional tournament last month.

The St. John's Jesuit High School Speech and Debate Team's appearance at last weekend's district tournament produced a team first. The Titans had a team-record five state qualifers.

Haris Ahmad '15, Alex Lazenby '15, Vamsi Chodisetty '16, Nick Granato '16 and Mario Markho '16 will represent SJJ at the state tournament.

The Speech and Debate Team is coached by Mr. Adam Dane '02.

Michael Downing, a member of the Class of 1971 and a former St. John’s Jesuit administrator and teacher, is returning to his alma mater to serve as Vice President of Institutional Advancement, SJJ President Mike Truesdell announced Thursday.

Mr. Downing has served as the Vice President for Institutional Advancement for the last seven years at Notre Dame Academy. Prior to that, he was Vice President at St. John’s Jesuit from 1991-1994 and again from 2000-2008.

“I am enthused to be part of the St. John’s Jesuit team,” Mr Downing said. “The school has provided a distinctive, nationally recognized Jesuit education to thousands of young men with academic programs and personal formation second to none.”

During his last stint at St. John’s Jesuit, Mr. Downing helped raise funds for over $10 million in capital projects, including the construction of the Lyden Center and the Sawicki Family Music Center, renovation of the Carty Fox Commons and science labs, and the creation of the St. John’s Jesuit Academy. He also directed enrollment efforts leading from record low to record high enrollment and led fundraising efforts leading to endowment growth from $500,000 to $12 million.

At Notre Dame Academy, Mr. Downing helped launch the International Baccalaureate (IB) World School Program, directed admissions efforts that led to three years of enrollment growth with record freshman enrollment in a declining market, and led efforts that increased fundraising by 45% over three years from 2008-2011. In 2012, he started Eyes on the Future, a continuing major gifts effort that is responsible for several of the major facility and program updates at NDA over the past several years.

“Michael Downing has an impressive background, and he returns to his alma mater with great encouragement from the Board of Trustees and me,” Mr. Truesdell said. “We look forward to his contributions to St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy.”

During his third tenure at St. John’s Jesuit, Mr. Downing will be tasked with leading the effort to celebrate the 50th anniversary of St. John’s Jesuit High School, planning major gift and capital campaigns to continue facility improvements, and implementing continuous academic improvements.

“As a member of one of the early graduating classes, Michael possesses an institutional memory that will greatly assist us as St. John’s Jesuit looks to its next 50 years,” said Mr. Truesdell.

Added Mr. Downing: “As St. John’s Jesuit celebrates 50 years of service to Toledo area families this year, it is a rewarding time to participate in positioning the school for service for the next 50 years. Great things are happening at SJJ, and it’s a privilege to be part of advancing the school.”

St. John’s Jesuit High School Principal Dr. Brad Bonham will leave at the end of the 2014-15 school year to become President of Carmel Catholic High School in Mundelein, Ill., SJJ President Mike Truesdell announced Friday.

Dr. Bonham has served as the High School Principal at St. John’s Jesuit since 2009. Prior to that, he served as the Director of Admissions at St. John’s Jesuit from 2002-09.

“I am grateful to Mike Truesdell, the Board of Trustees and the St. John’s Jesuit community for the opportunity to serve as the High School Principal,” Dr. Bonham said. “St. John’s Jesuit is a family who has shown a consistent outpouring of love and care to my family. I am extremely grateful and humbled by the experience and I feel very fortunate to have been part of such a tremendous school community.”

During Dr. Bonham’s tenure as High School Principal, St. John’s Jesuit implemented several new initiatives for the benefit of its students, including becoming the first school in Ohio to implement a one-to-one iPad Program that revolutionized classroom learning. St. John’s Jesuit has since been recognized as an Apple Distinguished School for Innovation, Leadership, and Educational Excellence for its commitment to technology in the classroom.

Under Dr. Bonham, St. John’s Jesuit also increased the number of Advanced Placement classes it offers to 24 – the most in Northwest Ohio – allowing students to obtain college credit while still in high school in several different subject areas. Other new initiatives included a comprehensive substance abuse testing program, the House System, revamped ACT/SAT preparation course, a three-year engineering program, public speaking course requirement for all students and a freshman study skills program.

“It is with pride in his accomplishments that we acknowledge Dr. Bonham’s departure. This is a wonderful opportunity for him to advance his outstanding career in education,” Mr. Truesdell said. “Such moments are indeed bittersweet. We will miss Brad and his beautiful family, and we wish them all the best as they join the Carmel Catholic community.”

A search committee to identify and recruit a new principal has been formed. Among the committee members are Rev. Thomas Doyle, S.J., Vice President for Jesuit Identity at St. John’s Jesuit; SJJ Board of Trustees member Mr. Dan Pienta ’87; SJJ faculty members Mr. Dave Simmons and Mr. Phil Skeldon; SJJ parent Ms. Lisa Gathard; Toledo Catholic Schools Superintendent Mr. Christopher Knight ’78; University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy Principal Mr. Anthony Trudel; and Dr. Catherine Karl from the Office of Secondary and Pre-Secondary Education of the Chicago-Detroit Province of the Society of Jesus.

A delegation of 12 students from St. John's Jesuit attended a Model UN conference at the University of Michigan on January 15-18.

SJJ students represented Brazil and Iraq in eight different committees that addressed issues ranging from cyber warfare and the militarization of the Internet to protecting artistic freedom to energy and climate change, among other topics.

Mario Markho '16 earned verbal commendation for Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). Bradley Marshall '16 earned honorable mention for Disarmament and International Security Council (DISEC). Ammar Abidi '16 was named best delegate for Joint Committee as the historical figure Matsudaira Norikata. Laith Shehadeh '15 earned verbal commendation for Special Political and Decolonization Committee (SPECPOL).

Also participating in the conference were Will Beebe ’15, Mark Houdi ’15, Nick Kranjec ’15, Sohum Mehta ’15, Carson Nye ’15, Marino Markho ’17, Milano Markho ’17 and Cameron Mowat ’17. They were accompanied by their advisor, Ms. Stacey Wisnieski, as well as Mrs. Barb Trimble, who chaperoned.

The conference had over 600 student delegates from 30 schools overall. This was the second year St. John’s Jesuit participated.

Both SJJ Robotics teams advanced to the elimination rounds in last Saturday's regional tournament in Van Wert.

The Smoking Motors finished in 6th place in the qualifying rounds and were knocked out in the semifinals. The Broken Axels finished in 3rd place in the qualifying rounds and went on to earn the regional championship trophy as well as four others (Control Award for best programming, Connect Award for reaching out to community through robotics, Design Award for unique and effective design of robot, and Inspire Award for doing well in all categories and showing gracious professionalism), bringing this season's trophy count to seven.

Enzo and the team will now compete at the state championship on February 13-14.

Broken Axels team members include Nick Garver, Isaiah Leach, Joe Braun, Alex Schifko, James Lazenby, Matt Theis and Bryce Flickinger. The team is coached by Mr. Robert Holman.

The St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy community is currently in the midst of a strategic planning process, during which we are examining all options to ensure our sustainability for the near future and beyond. That process began in December 2013 and is ongoing. Continuing renewal is a pillar of Jesuit education, and this type of process is not a new endeavor for St. John’s Jesuit and other Jesuit high schools around the country.

The next step in the strategic planning process is underway, which involves conducting surveys with current and prospective SJJ families to gauge their views on a wide variety of options for the future make-up of our school. We have already solicited opinions from other members of our community, including alumni, alumni parents, faculty, staff, students and friends of St. John’s Jesuit, and their input has helped guide this process. There is no timetable for the completion of the strategic planning process, as we want to ensure the best possible outcome for the future of St. John’s Jesuit.

Two St. John’s Jesuit seniors have been named National Merit Semifinalists in the 2015 National Merit Scholarship Competition. Students recognized for outstanding scores include Gabriel Scarlett ’15 and Matthew Theis '15.

Semifinalists are in the top one percent of more than 1.5 million students who entered the competition by taking the 2013 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.

Six SJJ seniors were recognized as Commended Students, including Joseph Braun '15, Benjamin Dubielak '15, Nicholas Kranjec '15, James Lazenby '15, Zach Prephan '15, and Jared Schwallie '15.

About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are being recognized for their academic promise. Commended Students placed among the top five percent of more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2013 PSAT/NMSQT competition.

Since 1987, St. John's Jesuit has more National Merit scholars than any other school in Northwest Ohio.

Connor Moore '15 has advanced as a semifinalist in the Coca-Cola Scholars Program. Connor was chosen as one of nearly 2,200 semifinalists from a pool of over 102,000 applicants from across the country because of outstanding leadership, academic achievements and dedication to community service.

Connor will now complete the semifinalist candidacy materials, and once applications are reviewed, 250 regional finalists will be chosen to continue through the selection process. Notifications informing semifinalists of the decisions will be delivered in late January 2015. Regional finalists will then participate in interviews resulting in the selection of 150 Coca-Cola Scholars, who receive a $20,000 scholarship.

To learn more about the Coca-Cola Scholars Program for high school seniors, visit their website at www.coca-colascholars.org.

The Tower Brass Quintet, a Toledo area ensemble which has gained national status, will perform on the WGTE “Live from FM 91” program, Friday, December 5 at 10 a.m. Highlighting the performance will be the world premiere of Luke D. Rosen’s “Wanderings,” A Suite of Oak Openings Preserve Experiences for Brass Quintet and Piano.

In addition to composing, Mr. Rosen is the choir director for both St. John’s Jesuit and Corpus Christi University Parish. An accomplished keyboard player, he will be performing the premiere with the Tower Brass.

Hosted by WGTE Radio Program Manager and Music Director Brad Cresswell, the program will include works by two other Toledo area composers, David Jex and David Saygers. The broadcast will air on WGTE-TV 30 on December 21, 11:30.

Watch Live

St. John's Jesuit and St. Ursula Academy delegates will join over 1,300 social justice advocates affiliated with Jesuit universities, high schools, parishes, and the larger Catholic Church at the Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice (IFTJ), November 15-17 in Washington, D.C. The 17th annual Teach-In will coincide with the 25th anniversary of the murders of six Jesuit priests and two laywomen, killed in El Salvador on November 16, 1989, by Salvadoran military for their defense of the economically poor.

The IFTJ is a nationwide social justice conference sponsored by the Ignatian Solidarity Network, a national lay-led, faith-based, social justice organization that works to mobilize Jesuit universities, high schools, parishes, and ministries and the larger church throughout the United States in order to effect positive social change on critical issues facing the world. Teach-In attendees represent over eighty Catholic institutions in 25 states, Canada, and Mexico.

Keynote speakers include Marie Dennis, Co-President of Pax Christi International; Michael Lee, Ph.D., Professor of Systematic Theology at Fordham University; Fr. Ismael Moreno Coto, S.J., a Honduran human rights activist; Caroline Brennan, Senior Communications Officer at Catholic Relief Services; Fr. James Martin, S.J., editor-at-large at America Magazine; Fr. Tom Reese, S.J., columnist at National Catholic Reporter; and Daniel Misleh, Executive Director of the Catholic Climate Covenant.

“One of the tenets of the Jesuit Graduate at Graduation is ‘Committed to Doing Justice.’ We want our students to be more than servants. We challenge them to be advocates for change, to be ‘Men for and With Others’ who cannot speak for themselves," said SJJ Christian Service Director Phil Skeldon. "The Ignatian Teach-In For Justice gives our students the opportunity to live up to this tenet of the ‘Grad at Grad.’ The Teach-In also allows our students to see firsthand that they are part of a huge Jesuit network all committed to the same Ignatian principles.”

This year’s Teach-In includes the national premiere of a documentary depicting the story and legacy of the Jesuit murders in El Salvador. Entitled “Blood in the Backyard,” the approximately 30-minute documentary produced by Loyola Productions includes interviews with Rep. Jim McGovern, former U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador William Walker, El Salvadoran Ambassador Francisco Altschul, and Fr. Jon Sobrino, S.J. The documentary will be shown on Saturday (11/15) evening and will be followed by a communal prayer service commemorating the lives of the murdered Jesuits and their lay companions.

In addition to the workshops, keynote addresses, and policy discussions, participants will rally on Capitol Hill on Monday, November 17, before collectively meeting with over 125 U.S. Congressional offices. Advocates will visit with their respective lawmakers to urge Congress members to pass humane comprehensive immigration reform, support human rights oriented policies in Central America, and respond to climate change and effects marginalizing the economically poor.

“Not only will the Teach-In participants commemorate the lives of the murdered Jesuits, they will put the martyrs' legacy into action by advocating on Capitol Hill for key issues facing people across the world today,” said Christopher Kerr, executive director of the Ignatian Solidarity Network. Kerr continued, “This is a critical time for faith-based advocates to be calling on our country's leaders to act morally on important issues like immigration reform, climate change, and human rights in Central America.”

The Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice is sponsored by: Boston College School of Theology and Ministry, Catholic Relief Services, Jesuit School of Theology at Santa Clara University, Loyola University Chicago Institute of Pastoral Studies, Loyola University Maryland, University of San Francisco, Xavier University, America Magazine, Appalachian Institute at Wheeling Jesuit University, Bread for the World, Fairfield University, U.S. Jesuits National Advocacy Office, John Carroll University, Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor at Georgetown University, Loyola Press, Oxfam America, and Villanova University.

Full Schedule of Events

St. John's Jesuit and Saint Ignatius high schools, in conjunction with the Toledo Walleye, have announced that the two programs will play an outdoor hockey game on Jan. 1, 2015 at Fifth Third Field. The game is part of the Toledo Walleye's 10-day Winterfest in downtown Toledo.

The Titans and Wildcats will face off at 6:35 p.m. on Jan. 1 as part of the community winter celebration at both Huntington Center and Fifth Third Field from Dec. 26, 2014 through Jan. 4, 2015, presented by ProMedica.

"We couldn't be more excited to have the opportunity to participate in Winterfest," said SJJ Varsity Hockey Coach Mike Hayes. "This is a once in a lifetime experience for our players, and it's something they'll remember for the rest of their lives. We feel very fortunate to be part of this great event."

Fifth Third Field, the home of the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens, is currently in the process of being converted from a baseball field into an outdoor hockey rink for Winterfest. The full-size 200' x 85' rink will stretch across the infield with the two goals near first and third base.

The Toledo Walleye will play two games on rink -- December 27 at 5:30 p.m. against the Fort Wayne Komets and January 3 at 6:30 p.m. against the Kalamazoo Wings. There will also be more than 150 youth, high school and adult hockey games at the outdoor rink, including the championship games of the inaugural Walleye Winterfest Youth Hockey Tournament, presented by St. John's Jesuit High School & Academy.

“We are thrilled St. John’s and Saint Ignatius can be part of our Toledo Walleye Winterfest line-up. The two teams have great programs and to see the two compete on the outdoor rink should be a thrill for all the fans,” says Walleye Special Events Manager Mike Keedy.

St. John's Jesuit and Saint Ignatius met two times last season, with the squads tying 1-1 in their first meeting and the Titans picking up a 4-0 win in their second contest. SJJ finished the year with a 22-8-5 record, and the Wildcats (30-4-6) went on to face Sylvania Northview in the state championship game, resulting in a historic 1-1 tie as both teams were declared co-state champions after seven overtimes.

Saint Ignatius is no stranger to outdoor games, as the Wildcats defeated Lakewood St. Edward 4-2 in a matchup at the Cleveland Indians' Progressive Field in January 2012.

"St. John's Jesuit is one of the top hockey programs in Ohio, and we are honored that they have invited us to be the opponent in this game, which will be the headliner in a day full of youth, high school and junior hockey games at Fifth Third Field," said Saint Ignatius Varsity Hockey Coach Patrick O'Rourke.

Admission is free to the New Year's Day matchup between the Jesuit school rivals, with additional details regarding the contest forthcoming on sjjtitans.com and on the Titans' Twitter page, @sjjtitansports.

Jonathan Wright '15 was recently honored as one of the finest musicians in the state of Ohio by being chosen to perform as the baritone sax player for the OMEA All-State Concert Band during the first week of February 2015 in Cleveland.

Now Jon has also been selected to perform in the prestigious Carnegie Hall Honor Band two weeks later. Jon will spend five days with some of the nation’s top musicians in New York City rehearsing for a concert in one of the world’s greatest concert halls on Sunday, February 22.

Tune in Tuesday, November 11 at 1 p.m. to WNOC 89.7 FM to support our school's hour on Annunciation Radio's four-day Fall Sharathon.

High School Principal Dr. Brad Bonham will guest host with Holy Trinity Principal and former SJJ English teacher and coach Mr. Matt Daniels.

The Campion Hall Players of St. John's Jesuit High School proudly present this year's Fall Play, "A Midsummer Night's Dream," by William Shakespeare.

Performances will be Friday, November 8 and Saturday, November 9 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, November 10 at 7 p.m. in the McQuade Theater.

All SJJ students will be admitted free with school ID. Adults are $6 and students/senior citizens are $5. Tickets are available for purchase in the SJJ Business Office during normal business hours.

St. John's Jesuit will host a Military Appreciation Night during its Varsity Football game vs. Lima Senior on Friday, Oct. 10 at Lyden Field.

All current and former members of the military will be admitted free with proper identification.

The Titans will debut special camouflage jerseys, which the players will be allowed to keep after the game. In return, players' families have been asked to make a donation to Wounded Warriors, with over $1500 already raised.

Presale tickets for the game will be sold in the Titan Bookstore Wednesday-Friday during the week of the game. Cost is $6 for adults, $4 for students and seniors. All tickets are $7 at the gate.

St. John's Jesuit is currently soliciting bids for sealcoating and striping of its parking lots. Bids must be submitted before December 1 for work in July 2015.

For project information or to schedule a site visit, please contact Bill Harrison, Superintendent of Buildings & Grounds, at 419-720-0761.

Daniel Kennedy, S.J. '08 and 10 other Jesuit novices professed first vows to Fr. Brian G. Paulson, S.J., Provincial of the Chicago-Detroit Province of the Society of Jesus, during a Vow Mass on August 9.

“I’m really excited,” Kennedy said. “I feel really special that some of my family and closest friends have come here to celebrate this day with me.”

By professing first vows, Kennedy took the next step in the 10-12 year formation of a Jesuit, that includes the ordination to the priesthood and final vows. No longer a novice, Kennedy will be a scholastic known as “Mister” or “Brother.”

“I was a little bit nervous, but overall peaceful,” Kennedy said. “It really is another step on a journey I’ve been walking but nonetheless it’s a big giant leap into the Society of Jesus.”

After graduating from St. John's Jesuit, Kennedy studied philosophy and theology at Boston College, where he was awarded the Edward H. Finnegan SJ memorial Award in 2012. He has worked at hospice and tutored at Nativity Prep (both in Boston), done service work in Kathmandu and Guatemala, and is active in sacramental ministry at St. Ignatius Parish.

Kennedy entered as the Novitiate of the St. Alberto Hurtado in St. Paul, MN in 2012. Presently, there are 442 Jesuits living in the Chicago-Detroit Province, which is comprised of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan and Ohio.

On the occasion of the 200th Anniversary of the Universal Reconstitution of the Society of Jesus, the Holy Father, Pope Francis will be presiding over the Thanksgiving Liturgy (vespers) held at the Church of Gesù, Rome, this coming Saturday, 27th September 2014 at 4.50 pm (Roman time). (9:50 am CDT, 10:50 EDT)

The event will be live telecasted by the Vatican Radio for the universal participation of Jesuits, friends and benefactors of the Society of Jesus. Here is the YouTube link for the standby telecast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1tmyy3sl_g

You can also download the Booklet from sjweb following the link: http://sjweb.info/documents/2014Restoration/libretto12.pdf

Jonathan Wright '15 has been accepted for the Ohio Music Education Association all-state band. Jonathan is a saxophone player in the Titan Marching Band.

"This is a huge honor, as students from all over the state audition for the all-state band, and only one baritone sax player is kept," said Mr. Xavier Smith, SJJ's Director of Instrumental Music.

Jonathan will participate in a concert in February with the all-state band at the 2015 OMEA state conference in Cleveland.

The Holy Father, Pope Francis, today named the Most Reverend Daniel E. Thomas as the eighth Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Toledo in America. Bishop Thomas has been serving as an Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania since his Episcopal Ordination on July 26, 2006. He fills the office left vacant by the Most Reverend Leonard P. Blair, who was installed as the Archbishop of Hartford, Connecticut in December 2013. Since that time the Toledo Diocese has been under the direction of the Reverend Charles Ritter, serving as Diocesan Administrator.

Bishop Thomas will be installed as Bishop of Toledo at a Mass to be celebrated at 2 p.m. October 22, 2014, at Our Lady, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Cathedral.

"I am honored, humbled and excited to be your new bishop," Bishop Thomas said. "I express my profound gratitude to Pope Francis for his confidence and trust in appointing me the shepherd of the Lord's flock here in northwest Ohio."

An interesting side note about Bishop Thomas — he earned a licentiate in sacred theology (S.T.L.) in 1989 from Rome's Pontifical Gregorian University, which was the first university founded by the Society of Jesus.

To the St. John’s Jesuit community,

In the event of another ban on drinking or using tap water in the Toledo area, St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy has developed a water safety plan to ensure the health and well-being of our students, faculty and staff.

If there is a ban on consuming water but it is still safe to use, St. John’s Jesuit will remain open and we would need your assistance in order to remain in session. St. John’s Jesuit has stockpiled bottled water to provide our students and school personnel with safe drinking water in the event there is another ban on drinking tap water. Students would be required to pack a lunch on those days that tap water is not available, as food service would be shut down.

If there is a ban on drinking and using tap water, St. John’s Jesuit would be closed and school events may be canceled. We will also abide by any orders from the Lucas County Health Department that we must be closed during a water emergency.

It is our hope that this water safety plan never needs to be put into place, but we will be ready in the event that tap water becomes unsafe again.

Sincerely,

Members of the St. John's Jesuit community are invited to participate in the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola.

Below is a letter of invitation from Adult Chaplain Greg Richard:

Yesterday, Fr. Doyle mentioned The Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius Loyola as the basis for most everything that happens at Jesuit high schools. To understand the spirit behind the mission of the Society of Jesus in their schools, and their other apostolates, this retreat is an important, wonderful experience.

Ignatius Loyola described The Spiritual Exercises this way: “The Spiritual Exercises is a method of prayer. For just as taking a walk, journeying on foot, and running are bodily exercises, so we call Spiritual Exercises every way of preparing ourselves to recognize and drop all attachments that prevent us from following God’s will. And, after their removal, of seeking and finding the will of God in the experiences of our life…”

The Spiritual Exercises are not meant for just Catholics, or those of theological sophistication. Nor does one need be holy or advanced in the spiritual life to make use of these exercises. It has been said that the single greatest fruit of the Exercises is to discover what God wants of the individual.

If you would like to do this retreat, there are five, trained directors at SJJ that would love to be your guides: Barb Bauer, Tom Harms, Fr. Tom Doyle, Kim Hall, and I.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO GET A GROUP – OF ANY SIZE – TOGETHER TO DO THIS RETREAT THAT WOULD WORK. IF YOU WANT TO DO THIS RETREAT BY YOURSELF, THAT, ALSO, WORKS.

Anybody interested in going through the Spirtitual Exercises may contact Adult Chaplain Greg Richard at 419-865-5743, ext. 0773, or grichard@sjjtitans.org.

St. John's Jesuit High School welcomes all students to audition for this year's fall play, "A Midsummer Night's Dream," to be presented November 7-9.

Auditions will take place September 2-3 from 3:30-5:30 p.m. in the McQuade Theater.

The St. John's Jesuit email system is in the process of an upgrade. Students receiving an error message upon signing into their email accounts should call the Principal's Office or stop by the Principal's Office from 10-2 p.m. Monday-Thursday beginning July 7 for assistance.

Thank you for your patience as we perform this upgrade to our email system.

Returning to his alma mater, Mike Savona ’75 will succeed Bryon Borgelt as Academy Principal at St. John’s Jesuit beginning tomorrow, July 1.

For the last five years, Mike has been the Principal of Sandusky Central Catholic Middle and High Schools. As a former math teacher at both St. John’s Jesuit and Swanton high schools, Mike brings a strong academic focus to his administrative role. As Mike explained, “Students are looking for guidance, structure and clarity of expectations. As we set these high expectations we must also work to provide the resources and modeling for them to be successful.”

Please join us in welcoming Mike back to St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy.

St. John's Jesuit Varsity rowers Bailey O'Brien '14 and James Miller '15 unofficially broke the world record on Sunday for most consecutive hours rowed on an indoor rowing machine.

Bailey and James successfully rowed alternately for 48 consecutive hours in the McQuade Theater, shattering the previous record of 40 hours, 31 minutes. They started rowing at noon Friday and finished at noon Sunday.

The pair's pursuit of a world record was done to benefit the Toledo Labre Program, a joint outreach between St. John's Jesuit and St. Ursula Academy to serve the poor and homeless in our area. Already approximately $8,000 has been collected toward their goal of $20,000. Donations can be made online at www.sjjtitans.org/makeagift, specifying the Labre world record row in the comments section.

Read more in Monday's edition of The Blade

Two St. John's Jesuit Varsity rowers, Bailey O'Brien '14 and James Miller '15, will be attempting to break a world record this weekend for most consecutive hours rowed on an indoor rowing machine.

The pair are setting out to shatter the previous record of 40 hours, 31 minutes, by alternately rowing for 48 consecutive hours. It's all being done to help raise money for the Toledo Labre Program, a joint outreach between St. John's Jesuit and St. Ursula Academy to serve the poor and homeless in our area.

They will begin rowing at noon Friday in the McQuade Theater and hope to complete their challenge at noon Sunday.

The entire SJJ community is invited to stop by and cheer them on at any point throughout the weekend. Donations to the Labre program will be accepted.

Watch a LiveStream of the record-breaking attempt

Toledo Blade columnist Keith Burris offered an outstanding glimpse into the Toledo 2020 Jesuit Scholars Program at St. John's Jesuit in a column that appeared in the newspaper on Friday, June 13.

Read Mr. Burris' column on 2020

Mr. Burris recently attended an information session for prospective donors and community members to learn more about the 2020 program.

For more information on the 2020 program or to inquire about how you can help, contact 2020 Director Fr. Tom Doyle, S.J., at tdoyle@sjjtitans.org or 419-865-5743, ext. 0777.

All Members of the St. John's Jesuit Community

Dear All,

Dr. Bryon Borgelt has accepted the invitation to become the principal of St. Rose School. As this is the parish to which Jenny, Gracie and Bryon belong, and given Bryon’s marvelous abilities, it is an understandable step. St. Rose School is very fortunate.

We will miss Bryon!

We are blessed that he will continue his work on the Educational Excellence strategic initiative as part of the SJJ strategic planning process.

With the help of the Academy faculty, a position specification will be posted shortly on our website soliciting applications for the position Bryon will be leaving on June 30, 2014. We will fill the position before the start of the 2014-2015 academic year.

When you see Bryon, please thank him for his 15 years of exemplary service to St. John’s Jesuit High School & Academy.

Be assured, since Sheila and I frequently see Bryon, Jenny and Gracie at the 7:30 a.m. Sunday Mass at St. Rose, we will have no difficulty securing his advice on any issues that may arise.

Best regards,

Mike Truesdell,
President

Dear Brothers,
P.C.

Several years have passed since my election as Superior General of the Society and I have recently reached the age of 78. Reflecting on the coming years, I have reached the personal conviction that I should take the needed steps towards submitting my resignation to a General Congregation. After obtaining the initial approval of the Assistants ad providentiam and having informed his Holiness Pope Francis, I formally consulted the Assistants ad providentiam and the Provincials, as our law requires (NC 362). The result of the consultation is favorable towards the convening of a General Congregation.

After having discussed the matter with my Council, through this letter I wish to inform the whole Society that, towards the end of this year, I will convoke the 36th General Congregation, to be held during the final months of the year 2016.

Therefore, the meeting of Provincials originally scheduled for January 2015 in Yogyakarta and convoked on 12 March of this year (Circular Letter 2014/03) is canceled.

Let us ask Our Lady of the Way to place the Society with Her Son on this journey of discernment that we now begin.

Fraternally yours in the Lord,

Adolfo Nicolás, S.I.
Superior General
Rome, 20 May 2014