BC High viewbook 2016-2017

Q Will you be the Graduate at Graduation?

At our Jesuit core:

Educating Men For and With Others 1,590 students in

AVERAGE class size 7th — 8th grades

grades

20

7—12

15,000

living alumni who share lifelong bonds of brotherhood

just 5 minutes

walk from train station or drive from I-93

Average

AVERAGE class size 9th — 12th grades

8:1

22

students to teacher ratio in advising classes

Companions FOR Life

“Only by being a man for others does one become fully human.�

Pedro Arrupe, SJ 28th Superior General of the Society of Jesus

Boston College High School is a Jesuit, Catholic college preparatory school.

We strive to challenge our students to become young men of integrity, educated in faith and for justice, committed to academic excellence and service to others.

As a Jesuit, Catholic high school, we strive to reflect the diversity of our church and community.

Our mission since 1863 has been to form leaders of competence, conscience and compassion who seek to do all things ad majorem Dei gloriam — for the greater glory of God.

Table of Contents An Overview of Boston College High School / 4 The Graduate at Graduation / 5 - 15 • Open to Growth / 6 • Intellectually Competent / 8 • Religious / 10 • Loving / 12 • Committed to Doing Justice / 14 At a Glance / 16 Boston & Beyond / 18 Visit With Us / 19 Applying / 20

AN OVeRVIeW OF

BOSTON COLLeGe HIGH SCHOOL As a world-class Jesuit preparatory school, BC High has formed leaders across every field — and every walk of life — for more than 150 years. starting in seventh grade and continuing throughout high school, BC High students tackle complex, relevant subject matter within an academic environment that celebrates collaboration, creativity, and multidisciplinary thought. our challenging curriculum combines the best contemporary learning models with a reflective spirituality that fosters students’ knowledge — both of the wider world and of themselves. our location in the dynamic City of Boston plays a vital role in exposing students to a variety of experiences; our extensive Jesuit network expands their horizons across the globe.

BC High students graduate fully committed to succeed at college and in their careers. More importantly, they emerge as caring and compassionate citizens of the world, committed to justice. they are members of a brotherhood who act in the spirit of our Jesuit founders.

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YOu CAN Be

THe GRADuATe AT GRADuATION We are a community of men and women charged with forming young men who compassionately pursue justice and truth throughout their lives. We rely upon our Jesuit identity and ignatian tradition to lead and serve others ad majorem Dei gloriam, for the greater glory of God. the BC High community has great hopes for the young men who graduate from our school. life will hold many challenges for you and it is our role to prepare you with the intellect, spiritual awareness, and physical strength to deal with these challenges in your own lives.

As you complete your education at BC High, you will be a young man who is equipped to continue the mission of st. ignatius as you embody the five essential characteristics of the Graduate at Graduation.

Q open to growth intellectually competent religious loving committed to doing Justice

5

6

Q

Open to Growth When you are open to growth, you will have matured in your time at BC High intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually.

You will seek opportunities to expand your mind, imagination, feelings, and religious consciousness, as you assume intentional responsibility for your continued growth.

Learning That The World is yOur Home

F

arhad Aminpour and June Matte P’15, ’17 had specific requirements for educating their two boys, Navide ’15 and Ariyand ’17.

As a multicultural and two-religion family, they wanted the boys to understand and embrace different cultures, backgrounds, and faiths.

Through the Hyde Center for Global Education, Navide traveled to Tanzania first as a junior and then as a senior leader. Traveling with ten other BC High students, he lived with a host family and engaged with students from Loyola High School, our partner Jesuit school. During this collaborative retreat, he focused on spiritual, academic, and personal growth, stepping out of his comfort zone to embrace the unique culture of Tanzania.

Ms. Matte comments, “Watching him take that step was really important.

To me he was being a risk taker, opening himself for that type of experience, being open to growth. He has grown and now he views himself as a citizen of the world.”

“Navide has really developed since his days in the Arrupe Division; we are so proud that he came to BC High and we want to thank BC High for turning him into the man he is, truly a man for others.”

June Matte P’15, ’17

7

Q

Intellectually Competent At BC High, your academic prowess will extend beyond being scholastically prepared for college. You will acquire an appreciation of learning and intellectual integrity, as well as develop self-motivation in your quest for truth and justice as you explore the greater world around you.

SOLVING challengeS LEADS TO ENHANCED LEARNING

I

magine a city that has no poverty, where all homes meet high standards of energy efficiency, and everyone can easily walk to the town hall and the farmer’s market. Our students have yet to find it so they are creating their own city and so could you!

This endeavor, known as the Arrupe City project, has developed into an interdisciplinary approach among social studies, science, and English classes to study a vast array of topics from population growth to lifestyle inequities.

Working in small groups to plan all aspects of city life, these classes teach our students to make thoughtful and intentional decisions.

For example, in science, students are challenged to evaluate energy sources for their city to use. The wind turbine project helps students visualize and experience how turbines work, and what considerations must be made when building them. As students are introduced to engineering, they overcome their fear of failure and learn from their mistakes. Instead of looking at their struggles as an end-all to the project, students are encouraged to learn from design elements that did not perform well in order to make improvements in their next production phase.

Social studies teacher Eric Gartside finds that problem-based learning develops a student’s sense of curiosity, encourages dialogue between students and teacher, and creates a resilience among participants. Both Gartside and fellow teacher Jiar Ahmed teach their class with an open sense of exploration; there are no wrong questions. “The only rule is to respect yourself and others,” Ahmed remarks with confidence.

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9

10

Q

Religious The Ignatian spirituality at BC High will provide you with the tools to further examine your feelings and beliefs to establish an active relationship with your religious tradition and community.

REFLECTIon IS A HALLMARK OF A JESUIT EDUCATION

F

undamental to Jesuit teaching is the importance that reflection plays in character formation. While our students are led in prayer every morning and participate in a weekly Examen, the Kairos Retreat is recognized as the most transformative experience for a BC High student.

Community members spend four days on Cape Cod seeking a metanoia, a turning of their hearts to God. The goal is to focus on all aspects of their lives, sifting through both the beauty and chaos, to see how God is at work. For many, this translates into a redirection of priorities, goals, and desires — so life is better oriented towards something greater than oneself and instead, that of God. The teachers and advisors who attend are active participants and the school covers all financial costs to attend this retreat.

“Kairos is a powerful experience — the equivalent to an emotional roller coaster. It is formative, powerful, and rewarding. There is nothing more fulfilling than watching the slow work of God take hold in someone’s life.”

Sean Manning ’15

11

Q

Loving During this formative time of identity development, we will help you to build meaningful relationships. You will begin to form deeper connections and disclose yourself to others while learning, appreciating, and cherishing them.

LOVING OTHERS AS YOU LOVE YOURSELF

B

C High challenges our students to not only succeed academically, but to also become young men of competence and compassion.

Rooted in Jesuit and Ignatian tradition as far back as the 16th century, we help our students grow in faith and service through active participation in their communities and churches.

The Lazarus Ministry at St. Anthony’s Shrine honors death with dignity by holding funeral services for those who have been homeless, incarcerated, indigent, and are alone at the end of their life. Our juniors and seniors are called upon to serve as pallbearers which students agree is a beautiful, powerful, and humbling experience.

As Delano Franklin ’17 reflected on one particular Wednesday afternoon, “It was sobering to think that this man, who had lived on this earth for many decades and through countless moments and memories, somehow fit into this small box. I knew nothing about the man inside, but I felt that his life must have been much bigger than that.”

Dating back to the 1920’s, the Mite Box is a weekly tradition at BC High where faculty, staff, and students have the opportunity to donate to the chosen non-profit organization advocated by a member of our community. As the box is passed around in classes, donations are collected. In the past five years, the Mite Box has collected nearly $210,000 for charitable organizations.

12

13

14

Q

Committed to Doing Justice As you gain a wider view of both local and global communities, you will acquire an understanding of their needs and prepare to join them as a competent, responsible, and concerned member. You will have the motivation and skills necessary to serve others.

being a man for and with others

A

t the core of a Jesuit education, students are taught what it means to be a man for and with others. A senior Models of Leadership class experienced this intersection first hand when it tackled a list of issues facing the world, including world hunger, climate change, and access to clean water throughout the year.

One group of students, researching access to clean water, contacted Bill McQueeney ’52 and Tom Cunningham ’52 of Rural Water Ventures to learn more about their work. Their mission is to save lives and reduce occurrences of serious disease in rural Nicaragua by funding projects that bring clean water to each home via locally sustainable systems.

Each fall, Mr. McQueeney is a guest lecturer who inspires current students by sharing his experiences, making the learning process even more engaging, and reminding students to continue on their path of living as men for others.

Social responsibility and bonds of brotherhood are fundamental lessons taught during your time at BC High and extends throughout your life.

Our proud alumni continue to give back to BC High in a variety of ways.

For almost 15 years, Bill McQueeney has returned to his alma mater to inspire the Models of Leadership class on behalf of Rural Water Ventures.

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At a Glance the basics

1 & Only Jesuit high school in Boston

40

Academics

85 44 24 501 elective courses

acre campus situated alongside the JFK Library and UMass Boston

classes offered in Fine and Performing Arts

average class size in 7th & 8th grades

Advanced Placement (AP) courses

20 22

average class size in 9th — 12th grades

students took 1,232 AP exams in 23 subjects; 83% scored 3 or higher in 2015

91% 55

of the faculty hold masters degrees

students have earned prestigious National Merit Commendation in the past three years

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CAMPUS LIFE

100+

sports, clubs, and organizations with the option to form new ones

75

organizations in and around Boston provide service opportunities for our community

35K+

hours of community service performed each year

11

performing musical groups including Concert Band, Jazz Rock Ensemble, Drum Line and Chamber Choir, among others

28

interscholastic and intramural sports offered

HYDE CENTER FOR GLOBAL EDUCATION

1,000 schools in the Jesuit network around the world provide opportunities for our community

12

countries and counting including Tanzania, India, Argentina, where our students visit to study, retreat, and do service

200 students travel abroad annually to participate in academic exchanges, spiritual retreats, and service projects

COLLEGE GUIDANCE AND PLACEMENT

98% 150 3 125+

of students attend 4-year colleges/universities

National Merit Scholarship winners named in 2016 — the highest number for one year

71%

colleges and universities participate in the fall college fair at BC High

colleges and universities meet with students at BC High for a round-table discussion

accepted to the most or highly competitive schools in the U.S. (as defined by Barron’s)

“ The best lesson that I took away from the trips to India, Tanzania, and Dominican Republic is that no matter where we come from we are all intrinsically the same.”

— Matt Veale ’15

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Boston & Beyond engagement IN AND OUTside OF THE TRADITIONAL CLASSROOM

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Arrive each day by Train, Car or Bus

Work, Learn, and Play in Boston

find yourself Around the World

Only a 5 minute walk from the Red Line train stop at JFK/UMass and conveniently located close to a major highway, our campus is easily accessible. Our students represent more than 120 communities in the greater Boston area.

In addition to the City of Boston, our students travel as far north as New Hampshire, as far south as Cape Cod, and as far west as Shrewsbury. It is through a student’s commute to school each morning that he learns essential skills as he ventures onto the train, takes the car ride or relies on bus service. Having this experience contributes to character formation as the ideals we teach come to life — cleaning up after oneself on the train, quietly respecting the professionals gearing up for the office or giving up a seat for an elderly passenger.

BC High benefits from a convenient urban location just minutes from downtown Boston.

Here traditional classroom instruction is complemented by visiting a variety of sites in and around the city. From the Moakley Courthouse to the Museum of Science to the JFK Library, our students become active participants as they take advantage of partnerships with service organizations, internships with renowned businesses, and cultural exhibitions that allow them to broaden their horizons.

Beyond Boston, the Jesuits truly consider the world to be their home. Being part of a worldwide network translates to exciting and unique global opportunities.

The Hyde Center for Global Education at BC High is committed to establishing partnerships with other Jesuit schools around the world. This provides our students with academic, service, and retreat programs throughout the year to numerous countries including Costa Rica, Australia and India, among many others. To us, it is not just about traveling the world; we want our students to develop leadership skills and become more compassionate and conscious of the greater world as they commit to justice for all.

Visit With Us learn ABOUT CHARACTER FORMATION AT BC HIGH The best way to learn more about BC High is to meet with us in person. We host a number of events both on and off campus for you to talk with community members, who are eager to share their personal experiences.

on campus

off campus

Open House

Community Receptions

Open House, scheduled on the fourth Sunday in October, is the best opportunity to meet a variety of our community members.

During this event, you and your family can: • take a guided tour of the campus with a current student who will share more about his transition to BC High as well as his maturation and growth at the school; • interact with faculty to learn how they will engage and challenge you in the classroom; • talk with current students, coaches, staff, administrators, and alumni to hear more about the distinctiveness in a BC High education; • get the inside scoop on applying for admission and financial assistance.

These events are held in October, November, and December and provide an opportunity to speak with Admission staff members and current BC High students and parents in a relaxed setting. Even if you have been to campus before, this is a great opportunity to engage with other community members to hear more about the school from other perspectives.

Information Nights

Information Nights are offered in November, December, and January. These smaller programs are available for the Arrupe Division and High School for families who would like to learn more about BC High. You will engage with our committed faculty, talk with current students, and participate in interactive sessions designed to provide more insight into the classroom experience.

School Visits and Fair

You will find a BC High Admission staff member in attendance at many of these programs held throughout the fall on the campuses of area middle and secondary schools. Generally, these programs are open to the public. For a listing of School Fairs which BC High Admission staff is attending, please go to www.bchigh.edu/visits.

Eagle for a Day

This program offers prospective seventh and ninth graders the opportunity to experience BC High first-hand by shadowing a student. Your day will include attending classes and having lunch in the student cafeteria. The program runs from mid-October through mid-March.

Campus Tours

This is a great opportunity to see all aspects of the school including the classrooms, art studios, music rooms, athletic facilities, Corcoran Library, and the Hyde Center for Global Education. Personalized tours are offered throughout the year regardless of the academic calendar.

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Applying WE ARE HERE TO ASSIST YOU THROUGH THE APPLICATION PROCESS Just as you are trying to find

GRADES 7 and 8 APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

the best school for you to learn

A completed online application consists of: 1. Parent Questionnaire 2. Arrupe Division Student Application 3. School Report Form 4. English or History Teacher Evaluation Form 5. Math, Science, or Language Teacher Recommendation Form 6. Official results from the Independent School Entrance Exam (ISEE).

Students must register for the exam directly with the testing agency by visiting www.erblearn.org. The test may be taken up to three times in a 12-month period and scores must be sent to BC High by the application deadline.

and grow, we too are looking for a diverse group of students to join our community. We are committed to the formation of the whole person who believes in serving others and creating change to better the world around them.

GRADE 9 APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS With this in mind, we believe in partnering with families to navigate the complex and challenging school search process.

To apply to BC High, you will need to create a Ravenna account which can be accessed on the Admission section of our website.

For a detailed listing of all admission requirements, please go to www.bchigh.edu/apply.

Q 20

Our best advice: Pay attention to deadlines and forms needed to complete an application.

A completed online application consists of: 1. Parent Questionnaire 2. High School Student Application 3. School Report Form 4. English or History Teacher’s Evaluation Form 5. Math, Science, or Language Teacher Recommendation Form 6. Official results from the High School Placement Test (HSPT) or Secondary School Admission Test (SSAT). Students may take either the HSPT or SSAT. The HSPT can only be taken once; however, the SSAT exam may be taken multiple times. To register to take the HSPT at BC High, please go to boston.stsusers.com. To register for the SSAT, please visit www.ssat.org.

GRADES 10 and 11 APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS A completed online application consists of: 1. Parent Questionnaire 2. High School Student Application 3. School Report Form 4. English or History Teacher Evaluation Form 5. Math, Science, or Language Teacher Recommendation Form 6. Official standardized test results taken within the past 2 years from one of the following: HSPT, SSAT, MCAS, PARCC, PSAT, SAT or ACT.

testing site BC High is a testing center for the standardized tests we require; however, the exam does not need to be taken at BC High. Plan accordingly to ensure we are able to receive your test results by the indicated deadlines.

in financial assistance was distributed for 2016-2017

49%

Q

$6 million

ADMISSION deadlines

of students receive some form of financial aid

financial Assistance information All students who apply for admission are considered for merit-based scholarships, and awards are granted based on the strength of the applicant pool. If you wish to apply for need-based financial aid, applications may be submitted between September 8 and December 31.

Late applications will be considered in late spring and any financial assistance will be based upon availability of funds.

Families who are applying to BC High for entrance in fall 2017: When applying for financial aid, please use your 2015 tax forms and 2015 W-2s as you fill out the TADS application forms. The TADS link is available at www.bchigh.edu/costs by clicking on Tuition & Financial Aid.

9th grade entry

12/15/2016 7th grade entry

1/17/2017 Transfers for grades 8, 10 & 11 entry

2/15/2017 financial Aid deadline For all applicants

12/31/2016

how to contact us

Office of Admission Boston College High School 150 Morrissey Boulevard Boston, MA 02125

tuition facebook.com/bch1863

@bchigh Phone: 617-474-5010 Fax: 617-474-5015 E-mail: admission@bchigh.edu

@bchigheagles

For 2016-2017

$19,400

@bchigheagles

facebook.com/bch1863

@bchigh

Boston College High School • Office of Admission • 150 Morrissey Boulevard • Boston, MA 02125