SPECIAL EDITION
$16 Million
Schaefer ’70 gift to fund Sciuto Institute for
BY The Prep News Editors
John
Schaefer ’70 made history this evening by announcing the largest single donation in the history of St. Louis U. High. The $16 million dollar gift, made by Schaefer and his wife, Pamela Zilly, will fund the establishment of the Sciuto Institute for Teaching Excellence (SITE), in honor of Schaefer’s classmate and longtime SLUH theology teacher Matt Sciuto ’70.
All aspects of the Institute will fit roughly into the core themes of Research, Partnerships, Instructional Coaching, Educational Technology, and Professional Development, all to support the high quality of teachers and teaching at SLUH. The announcement of the gift and of SITE was first made to the faculty during an assembly yesterday afternoon.
As the program takes shape, the hope is that it will improve the teaching of content in classes and build on Jesuit principles of education.
“How do you change teaching and evolve teaching? To still do what we do most, which is forming young men,” said Schaefer. “At the end of the day, that’s what we do. It’s not to teach you calculus. You can learn calculus in a lot of places. You can learn to speak French in a lot of places. But you can’t learn to be
men for others and develop a moral compass.”
Once a Jr. Bill, always a Jr. Bill From 1966 to 1970, Schaefer walked the hallways of 4970 Oakland Ave., where he was most interested in classes that would be considered STEM today.
“If I think about what I really liked, it was much more quantitative things. It was algebra, physics, biol-
The faculty are the fabric of our school, and investing in them directly affects the future of St. Louis U. High.”
-Matt Stewart S.J.
ogy. I like to frame these classes as what contributed to my career success. And I would always tell people that there’s life success and there’s career success, and I think I’ve had both. I think everyone underappreciates what you learned about life at SLUH until you get much later in life.”
Schaefer is a proud member of
the Class of 1970, which started several SLUH traditions.
“Our class did a lot of things for SLUH, and we didn’t even realize it,” said Schaefer. “We were the first ones to come up with Spring Fling, and we went around to girls’ schools and invited them to come; we tore up the locker room to the studs and then refinished it; and we were also the first class to help with CASHBAH. And ever since then, we’ve been incredibly connected.”
After graduating from SLUH, Schaefer attended the University of Notre Dame, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting, and then the Harvard Graduate School of Business, where he earned a master’s degree in business administration.
Following his long journey of schooling, Schaefer began his 30year career in financial services. He started at E.F. Hutton in 1976 and retired from Morgan Stanley in 2006 as President and COO of the firm’s Global Wealth Management business.
After retirement, Schaefer served on several corporate and nonprofit boards, including the SLUH Board of Trustees from 2017–2023.
Schaefer’s wife, Pamela Zilly, earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and American history from Connecticut College and continued
Teaching Excellence
onto the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University, where she earned a master’s of science degree in industrial management.
Zilly had a 32-year career in investment banking and financial restructuring, starting her career at E.F. Hutton in 1977. She later moved to Blackstone in 2009, where she be-
came the first-ever female partner. Now, Zilly serves as treasurer of the American Theater wing and is a member of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Schaefer and Zilly met one another at E.F. Hutton, and their relationship unfolded from there.
“If I didn’t go to SLUH, I wouldn’t have gone to Notre Dame,
St. Louis University High School | Saturday, September 27, 2025
John Schaefer (left) with friend and classmate, Matt Sciuto photo | Will Linhares
photo | Kathy Chott
Sciuto teaching a theology class in 2019.
Thanks to the extraordinary generosity of John Schaefer ’70 and his wife Pamela Zilly, SLUH has initiated a bold new chapter in Jesuit education. The Sciuto Institute for Teaching Excellence (SITE) positions SLUH as a national leader in classroom teaching, empowering our faculty to form young men of competence, conscience and compassion.
At its heart, SITE is a commitment: to invest deeply in teachers and to elevate the craft of teaching. Guided by the SLUH mission to “build Christ’s kingdom of truth, justice, love and peace,” SITE unites research, formation, collaboration and innovation so that every student is shaped by teachers who are not only masters of their subjects, but also models of Ignatian wisdom and care.
SITE: A SNAPSHOT
STRATEGIC PRIORITIES
SITE will provide resources and programming that allow SLUH to set the standard for excellence with classroom teaching. Through the following strategic priorities, SLUH is positioned to respond to an ever-changing educational landscape.
• Research: Commissioning and directly conducting research will allow SLUH to stay ahead of the rapidly changing landscape of education.
• Partnerships: Expanding and deepening partnerships with organizations like the Jesuit Schools Network
(JSN) and others will introduce fresh perspectives and promote the pursuit of best practices.
• Instructional Coaching & Curriculum Development: Broadening the reach of instructional coaches will ensure high standards of excellence in the classroom; faculty will enjoy increased opportunities for interdepartmental collaboration and forward-thinking about curricular enhancements and evolution.
• Educational Technology: Forward-looking approaches to integrating new and existing technologies will help teachers engage with
Why SITE Matters
For more than 200 years, SLUH has been committed to forming Men for Others. At the center of this mission are our teachers – mentors, role models and guides who shape young men for lives of faith, leadership and service. SITE exists because when we invest in teachers, we transform students. By elevating teaching excellence, SLUH deepens its capacity to fulfill its Catholic, Jesuit mission in a rapidly changing world.
Our Jesuit Identity SITE carries forward the Ratio Studiorum’s insistence on rigor, the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm’s call to context, experience, reflection, action and evaluation, as well as the Jesuit conviction that education must form not just the intellect but the whole person. Through SITE, Jesuit identity is not just a slogan but a living, dynamic force that shapes teachers – and through them, generations of young men who are both intellectually excellent and spiritually grounded, prepared to transform the world For the Greater Glory of God.
“The Sciuto Institute for Teaching Excellence will ensure the best classroom experience for students through a range of resources for faculty to grow in their subject expertise and approach to pedagogy.”
– SLUH PRESIDENT ALAN CARRUTHERS
Read the official announcement of the establishment of the Sciuto Institute for Teaching Excellence.
INTEGRATING A TRADITION OF FACULTY SUPPORT
students more effectively today, and to prepare them for how to reach students with future technological change.
• Professional Development: Teachers will be supported at every stage of their career through a range of programs and opportunities, especially through continuing education, peer learning and access to resources that promote pedagogical excellence.
SITE does not begin from scratch. It builds upon the long history of SLUH investing in teachers – a tradition that has made the school a destination for educators who are both passionate about their craft and committed to the Jesuit model of education. The below hallmarks of faculty culture are now integrated into SITE, ensuring they are strengthened, expanded and sustained for generations to come.
Reduced Teaching Load
For decades, SLUH has maintained a reduced teaching load compared to peer schools — a deliberate investment in the quality of teaching and learning. By giving faculty more
time for lesson planning, assessment, and one-on-one student engagement, the school ensures that teachers can sustain the highest levels of content mastery and provide meaningful, high-impact feedback. Integrated into SITE, this practice becomes a signature feature of the instructional model, aligning time with mission: more energy for deep learning, cura personalis, and student formation.
Degrees, Coursework and Conferences
SLUH has always encouraged faculty to remain lifelong learners, advancing both subject expertise and pedagogical skill. SITE guarantees that faculty will continue to be resourced to pursue graduate courses, advanced degrees, professional conferences, and spe -
Matt Sciuto ’70 taught theology at SLUH from 1980-2019, in addition to coaching football, baseball and serving as the school photographer. As a student at SLUH, he was the senior class president for the Class of 1970 and he continues to keep his class connected to this day.
cialized training. By investing in ongoing education — including formation in Jesuit spirituality and the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm — SITE ensures that teachers remain not only masters of their disciplines but also reflective practitioners who model a love of learning for their students.
Attracting & Supporting
New Faculty
SITE enhances the school’s ability to attract, hire and retain extraordinary teachers. Central to this is the New Ignatian Educator program, which orients new faculty to the academic culture, Ignatian mission and collaborative community of practice. With increased classroom observations, mentoring from seasoned colleagues and connections to the wider Jesuit network, new faculty are sup -
“The Jesuits’ answers were better than society’s answers to some of the big questions I had. They gave us the tools to think critically, the freedom to think for ourselves, to have an open mind and not always think that we’re right… My life is better in every aspect because of St. Louis U. High.”
– MATT SCIUTO ’70
Learn more about Sciuto in the article, At Home on Oakland Avenue, published in 2025
ported from the very beginning of their careers. Integrated into SITE, the onboarding process becomes a model for how Catholic schools can form teachers not just as professionals, but as Ignatian educators committed to mission.
Sabbatical Program
One of the most distinctive commitments to faculty is the Sabbatical Program, which provides tenured teachers with the opportunity to take a semester or year away from teaching to pursue a project that will benefit the wider community. Integrated into SITE, this program becomes a regular and sustainable feature of the teaching career at SLUH, no longer dependent on short-term financial conditions. Sabbaticals embody the Jesuit spirit of renewal and magis , allowing
THE SCIUTO LEGACY
The creation of SITE is made possible by the extraordinary generosity of John Schaefer ‘70 and Pamela Zilly whose commitment to Jesuit education will impact generations of students. SITE honors their longtime friend and former SLUH faculty member Matt Sciuto ‘70.
On September 27, 2025, SLUH announced the largest gift in its history – a $16 million commitment from Schaefer and Zilly to establish the Sciuto Institute for Teaching Excellence.
Learn about Schaefer and Zilly
the
teachers to return to the classroom refreshed, inspired, and equipped with new knowledge and experiences to share with students.
A Cohesive Model of Excellence
By integrating these longestablished practices into the Sciuto Institute for Teaching Excellence, SLUH unites tradition and innovation. SITE honors what has long made the school a beacon of Catholic, Jesuit education while providing the structure, resources, and vision to carry these supports into the future. The result is a comprehensive, mission-driven model of faculty development — one that sustains extraordinary teaching and transforms student lives.
“Matt and I became kindred spirits early on at SLUH. We each had recently lost a parent. All I can say is that SLUH was there for us, and we were there for each other during particularly challenging times. For all grads of this wonderful school, the two things most remembered are classmates and teachers. Watching Matt develop into a beloved member of the faculty brought back great memories of all the lay and Jesuit teachers we had. Matt is the embodiment of what teaching excellence is all about.”
– JOHN SCHAEFER ‘70
Watch moving remarks by Schaefer at the 2018 launch of the SLUH Go Forth campaign
Milestone Reunion Effort CLASS OF 1970
Congratulations to the Class of ’70, which celebrated its reunion by reconnecting and reminiscing – and by giving back with an incredible $15 million in estate gift commitments. Coupled with the historic $16 million gift from John Schaefer ‘70 and Pamela Zilly, the class has raised more than $30 million to advance the SLUH mission well into the future.
SLUH is grateful to all class leaders who helped to lead this extraordinarily successful expression of love and devotion to SLUH. Special thanks to Steve Klug ’70, who together with his wife, Debbie, conceived of the The Ignatian Pledge and were among the first signatories. Signers to this pledge commit to making an annual charitable gift to SLUH for the rest of their lives, in addition to a gift from their estate that will fortify the school mission for generations to come. In gratitude for launching the Ignatian Pledge so successfully, SLUH has named the circle drive at the campus entrance “Class of ’70 Way” for the next year.
To learn more about the Ignatian Pledge, visit sluh.org/pledge.
We Want to Hear from You!
The Sciuto Institute for Teaching Excellence (SITE) is a tribute to the legacy of Matt Sciuto as well as all SLUH faculty, past and present. What teachers most influenced your path in life? Who helped form you as a Man for Others?
As SLUH celebrates the launch of SITE, give a shout out to the heroes who made SLUH your launch site for personal growth, professional accomplishment and spiritual striving.
ONLINE: sluh.org/site/news
sluhigh | sluh | sluhjrbills
Use hashtag #SLUHlaunchSITE
By Jack DuCharme ’20, Prep News
JOHN SCHAEFER ’70 & PAMELA ZILLY
MATT SCIUTO ’70
View
2019 Prep News Tribute to Sciuto
Below: Matt Sciuto ‘70 in high school and today
SPECIAL EDITION
Schaefer gives $16 million gift for Institute for Teaching Excellence
and if I didn’t go to Notre Dame then I wouldn’t have wound up on Wall Street and met my wife,” said Schaefer. “The list goes on, but I think it all started with SLUH—it was a tremendous building block for me.”
Schaefer ended up at SLUH thanks to his mother, who told him that he didn’t have a choice … he was going to SLUH.
“I had a very determined and stubborn mother who, without consulting with me, decided I was going to St. Louis U. High and there was no debate. It was over. So I took the test, and I went to St. Louis U. High,” said Schaefer. “And I often say if I had not gone to SLUH, I’m not sure where I would’ve ended up.”
A Friend, A Brother Schaefer, the only SLUH student in his class from St. Louise de Marillac Parish in North St. Louis, endured a challenging freshman year on Oakland Ave. After suffering the loss of his mother in February, Schaefer found a sense of community at SLUH when he befriended Matt Sciuto, a classmate whose father had passed away in seventh grade.
Since the doors to SLUH were always unlocked at that time, Sciuto and Schaefer would stay late some nights, spending time on campus and bonding regularly over dinner.
“He and I hung out a lot,” said Schaefer. “It was just the comfort level of being around Matt. And over time, of course, our relationship developed more.”
Schaefer describes himself as not the athletic type, but Sciuto, who grew up in St. Ambrose Parish, played three years of both baseball and football. Sciuto went on to become the Senior Class President for the Class of 1970, and he has served in the role of an ambassador—for both his class and the school—ever since.
“He was the class president, so by definition, when he left, he thought it was his responsibility to stay in contact with people. And to this day, however many years later, he’s still torturing people every month to update the mailing list,” joked Schaefer. “We get stuff from the school through him every month.”
Following his graduation from SLUH, Sciuto attended Rockhurst
University, initially majoring in psychology in order to become a counselor. While attending Rockhurst, Sciuto switched to humanistic psychology, a mesh of both theology and psychology, in order to become a theology teacher and coach.
The first college graduate of his family, Sciuto went on to earn his master’s in religious studies from Saint Louis University. Immediately out of college, Sciuto went from being an avid student to a classroom leader when he started teaching at St. Thomas Aquinas high school
I often say if I had not gone to SLUH, I’m not sure where I would’ve ended up.”
-John Schaefer
in 1974. After six years at Aquinas, Sciuto returned home.
In his 39 years at SLUH, Sciuto did just about everything. Whether it be coaching the baseball and football teams or capturing photographs for the school, Sciuto developed a notable reputation. Part of this reputation came because of his fascinating teaching style. He emphasized the theme of metanoia, which means “change of heart” in Greek, urging students toward radical spiritual transformation through repentance and healing.
“He is very passionate about
kids,” said theology teacher
Navarro. “The tag-word he would keep bringing up with them was metanoia, a special change of heart. He believed school was not just about learning facts, but about change. He taught with such intensity, and he wanted students to ask questions and really think through issues.”
Before announcing the gift and the Institute to the faculty, Schaefer shared the news with Sciuto in a private meeting, alongside president Alan Carruthers, Vice President for Advancement Sean Agniel and Principal Matt Stewart, SJ. After the private meeting, Sciuto entered the Si Commons to find his wife, kids, grandchildren, and classmates. Shocked once again by the support of loved ones, Sciuto humbly began to catch up with old colleagues.
The Sciuto Institute for Teaching Excellence
Through jokes about SLUH in the 1970s and acknowledgements of Sciuto’s inevitable embarrassment, Schaefer introduced the program and its meaning to the faculty. His announcement preceded further clarifications from Stewart for the faculty audience. A final toast from Stewart to Sciuto, Schaefer, and Zilly resumed the cocktail party, as teachers began to consider and celebrate the significance of the announcement.
“It’s an incredibly generous gift, and it’s humbling and exciting. I don’t really have words,” said Modern and Classical Languages Depart-
ment Chair Kate Toussaint.
“I think it’s really exciting to be recognized in this way as a faculty member here. That amount of money is just absurd—it’s staggering,” said Fine Arts Department Chair Simone Anzalone. “Also that it’s named after his classmate, Matt Sciuto, is really touching. I’m excited!”
Beyond being a recognition of the work of the faculty and the importance of their diligent service to the school, the donation is notable because of its investment in the Jesuit tradition with which SLUH was founded.
“I find myself inspired by my colleagues every day, and I know that by seeking our input for what it is the Institute could do and be will ensure that this very generous gift is used in really inspiring, formative ways that are rooted in our mission,” said theology teacher Lindsay Kelleher.
Stewart announced that a survey would appear in faculty inboxes towards the end of their assembly. As of now, SITE has few concrete goals on the agenda, but it will begin to bear fruits at the start of the ’26-27 school year. The survey that the teachers took will develop the program based on their needs, including questions on the individual, team, departmental, and school-
wide levels.
“We attract really high-end students,” said Principal Fr. Matthew Stewart, SJ. “But they’re only here for four years. The faculty are the fabric of our school, and investing in them directly affects the future of St. Louis U. High.”
The administration began conversations with Schaefer about what a major gift might accomplish. Over the course of discussions, Schaefer decided to make a gift that went to support teaching excellence, something that would help the school be flexible enough to adapt to the needs of teachers even far into a future that can’t be imagined now.
“What I don’t want to do is bake in an answer today that might change in three years,” said Schaefer. “We want to be able to continue to use the resources that come off this new endowed fund to do what is needed at that time, rather than lock in on an idea of what we may need in the future. It’s very much set up to be flexible over its life, which is perpetual.”
There will be five initial focus areas for SITE: research, partnerships, instructional coaching, educational technology, and professional development. Teachers will be able to expand their knowledge through re-
search funding, join nationwide educational societies, receive coaching through third-party observations, gain further access to programs like EdPuzzle and POGIL, and further their own education through sabbaticals and graduate courses. Some of these systems and supports already exist within the school, but SITE will consolidate them under one program and increase the funding for even greater opportunities.
“Using this donation to create this program sends the message that teaching, learning, and faith formation are the core of everything we do,” said Carruthers. “The gift makes
Teaching, learning, and faith formation are the core of everything we do.”
-Alan Carruthers
a powerful statement to our current faculty, the future faculty, and the greater community, that St. Louis U. High is doubling down on quality academics.”
The gift is intended to attract, retain, develop, and support teachers through the promotion of teaching fundamentals.
“When I was at SLUH, it was two-thirds Jesuit, one-third lay. Obviously that’s different today,” said Schaefer. “In the absence of Jesuit educators, how do we keep people approaching education the same way the Jesuits did? How do we keep the tradition of what you’re doing now, and how do we make sure that happens for the next 25 years? So that’s really the intent of this.”
Celebration Continues Schaefer’s gift happened to coincide with the Centennial Grand Finale celebration, which will serve as the cherry on top of last year’s Backer Memorial Centennial celebration. The fireworks from last year’s celebration were canceled due to poor weather, so this will be a chance to finally celebrate the Centennial with fireworks.
“What makes us a community is that we share the gift of SLUH in our lives,” said Vice President of Advancement Sean Agniel. “We all appreciate it and need opportunities like this to come together, give thanks to God, and to celebrate how special it is to have such remarkable people like the SLUH faculty to inspire us.”
helping
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photo | Will Linhares Schaefer speaking to the faculty Friday afternoon.
Schaefer’s senior photo.
Schaefer in 2025.
photo | Steven Gorsuch Schaefer talking with Prep News editors on Zoom.