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Five Exceptional Students from the Class of ’21 Gain Admission to Notre Dame.

With commencement now just a happy memory in the rear-view mirror for the Christian Brothers High School Class of 2021, the graduates are set to embark on their respective undergrad journeys. But while the school has a long history of exceptional students going on to high-achievement colleges and universities, the Class of ’21 stands on its own with regards to a specific toptier institution. Five young men gained admission to the University of Notre Dame, paying tribute to both their commitment to academic excellence and the school’s cultivation of young minds.

The University of Notre Dame, recently ranked as the 19th best national university in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges rankings, has a notoriously low acceptance rate of under 20 percent. It’s a remarkable statistic that Reese Sellers, would all be accepted; even more so considering that they each pursued different paths to get there in the end.

“All the students are very driven, but very different,” says Dr. James Callicott, associate director of college counseling. “That’s the great thing about CBHS. Some students were much more into leadership, while others were heavily involved in athletics. They could be involved in anything from medicine, to engineering, to business. So you saw a wide variety of student interests and what their passions are.”

Providing a variety of opportunities for students to pursue is a key value of the school. While academic excellence is no doubt crucial for college aspirations, the school always strives to provide options for students to pursue passions outside the classroom, as well as other growth opportunities. “We’re blessed to have a strong academic foundation,” says Callicott, “but we have strong athletics, and also possess a focus on students getting involved in the community. There are great arts programs, a myriad of different clubs, and a great student council.”

Amir and Nadim Khouzam took that wellrounded approach to heart. From day one, they had their sights set on attending Notre Dame. And beyond high-level AP classes, they dove head-first into extracurricular activities and other hobbies. “I always felt like I wanted to have a leadership position,” says Amir, “so I joined our version of student government, the Brothers Leadership Council, starting my sophomore year, and Nadim and I were elected president and vice president, respectively, our senior year.”

But that was only the tip of the iceberg. With a career in medicine at the forefront of his mind, Amir founded the Brothers in Medicine program, where members could interact with local physicians and visit hospitals and labs to see medical specialties in action. Physicians also came to CBHS to speak about their careers. “I also did medical research,” says Amir, “and I joined a cardiology research group. Through the editing process, I was able to have my name on five published papers.”

On the day Notre Dame announced it would be sending out acceptance notifications, the Khouzam brothers counted down the minutes while sitting around the kitchen table with their family. “My mother was on my side, my father was on Nadim’s side, with my sister right behind us. I saw I got in, but suppressed my excitement to make sure my brother got in too. I saw he did on his computer screen, so we all started yelling at the top of our lungs,” laughs Amir.

Accepting the offer was an easy choice. Not only did Notre Dame provide good access to top medical programs, but it also felt like the right cultural fit. “My parents immigrated here from Egypt,” says Amir, “and raised me and my siblings as Roman

Catholic. I knew I wanted to continue that, which made it an easy choice. I also felt it reflected Christian Brothers. It feels like both schools encouraged not just growth of the mind, but the heart as well. And that really called to me.”

There’s an inherent prestige that comes with an acceptance to Notre Dame. But Callicott and other CBHS leaders urge students to look beyond the rankings and analyze all the factors that might make a school the right fit. For Amir’s fellow classmate and Brothers in Medicine founding member Drew Oxley, a career in the medical profession also beckoned. But while an acceptance to Notre Dame was no doubt an impressive achievement, Oxley’s interests eventually saw him turn to UT Knoxville.

“I had a friend who introduced me to Notre Dame back in middle school and it was always appealing,” says Oxley. “But I applied to seven schools, and when I visited the UT campus I was absolutely blown away. My dad is also a UT alum, so I grew up hearing a lot about the school, and it’s always been extremely important to me. Plus, UT has a pipeline to UTHSC in Downtown Memphis, and that made the college an attractive option.”

When UT gave a generous merit scholarship after seeing Oxley’s 5.2 weighted GPA and an ACT score of 35, it made the final choice an easy one. And as one of the region’s top-ranked golfers, there’s a chance that Oxley can pursue the sport as a walk-on in Knoxville.

And while their career paths ultimately diverged at the collegiate level, both Amir and Oxley believe their experience at CBHS has prepared them well for what lies beyond Memphis. “Teachers, counselors, and faculty were all very supportive and caught my interest in subjects I might not have thought about otherwise,” says Oxley. “Beyond academics, I came from a small middle school, and didn’t feel very well socially versed. I feel like I’ve grown socially as a person at CBHS and can take those skills with me to college.”

Amir, for his part, agrees. “It might sound cheesy, but I really feel like CBHS has made me into a man. And I look forward to the next steps I’ll be taking when I leave home.” • — Samuel X. Cicci