Fr. Tony Azzarto, S.J. • Faculty Member, Chaplain, and/or Alumni Chaplain: 1963-present (2023)*
*Includes some periods of non-Prep assignments
The following has been edited and condensed from Fr. Azzarto’s broader reflection on his years at Prep. His complete essay can be found at spprep.org/ViewFromAbove.
It was June in 1963 when I joined a few fellow scholastics at midnight in the basement of the Jesuit seminary in Shrub Oak (Westchester County, New York) to place a phone call to the Brooklyn Prep Jesuits. We were anxious to find out where we would be assigned. (It would be posted the next morning at 8:00 a.m. at Shrub Oak, but we were eager to know.)
I hoped to be assigned to Xavier High School, but instead I was directed to Saint Peter’s Prep. There, from 1963 to 1966, I taught Latin and English, and also moderated the Dance Committee and the Mission Drive. I was blessed with student friends—Pat Kane, ’64; Tom Leane, Joe O’Donnell, Tim Hawkes and Joe Urbanovich (from the Class of ’65); and John Milsop, ’66, to name a few. Years later they asked me to be the minister of marriage and the baptisms of their children.
After ordination in 1969, I returned to Prep from 1972 to 1980, teaching English and religion. It was a time of rebellion, questioning authority, and a decline in enrollment. Lay teachers became a large part of the school, and I bonded with a new generation of Prep students—including Gary Cardiello, ’73; John Chester and Peter Colford (Class of ’74); Peter Cardiello, Ed Hartnett and Tom Oser (Class of ’78); Jack Raslowsky, ’79; and John Feeney, ’80.
Father Ned Coughlin began the Emmaus retreat program, and there were no cell phones or Facebook distractions. Instead, students would hang out together on weekends. Prep was still a community of mostly Catholic students, but this was beginning to change.
I spent 1980 to1985 in Nigeria, West Africa, but still kept in touch with Prep (for those who could read my writing!). Upon my return in 1985 through to 2005, I was involved with Campus Ministry as chaplain. Father John Mullin had the Emmaus program running smoothly, and then one-day retreats were introduced for seniors. At Prep, Campus Ministry expanded to include service projects to Kentucky and West Virginia. Teaching evolved from formal lectures to include films, group discussions, and small liturgies.
In 2005 I returned to Nigeria for a two-year assignment, and during that time Prep made an appearance there as Fr. Jim Keenan and Jim DeAngelo, ’85 visited me in Lagos. It was great to see them, and in 2007 I returned to Prep to be a guidance counselor for freshmen and to teach a senior elective on the saints. While the number of Jesuits declined, Ignatian spirituality (Men and Women for and with Others) continued to grow. Lay men and women were a witness in their lives to the presence of God in all people and all things, and Maura Toomb showed great leadership in Campus Ministry.
The motto “Prep for Life” rings true, exemplified by the alumni continuing the tradition of programs including Mass on the Road, Theology on Tap, the Bereavement Committee, and great support of the Gala and other initiatives that support our scholarships and financial aid programs. I have been blessed to be part of Saint Peter’s Prep since 1963...truly a sacrament of God’s presence. God was at work in 1963 in missioning me to Jersey City. I am now physically in the Bronx, but my heart is—and will always be—at 144 Grand with all Prep’s Pride and Glory.
Fr. Jim Joyce, S.J. • President: 1990-94
Also: former trustee, faculty member, assistant football coach
The following has been edited and condensed from Fr. Joyce’s broader reflection on his years at Prep. His complete essay can be found at spprep.org/ViewFromAbove.
In 1990, I was asked by the Provincial to apply for the position of president of Prep to succeed Fr. Edward Salmon. The intent was that my tenure could be for just a few years, during which there would be a search for someone with more educational administrative experience than I had. I certainly committed to do my best. I loved the school and the students, but certain parts of the job I could have done without.
In most ways, Prep was sound. Academics, by any objective measure, continued to be outstanding. Advanced Placement offerings were broad, and modern language achievements were great. Acceptance at quality universities was very high; however, parents still had expectations of possible academic scholarships at good colleges, but these had already begun to disappear as collegiate tuition assistance based on need became the main focus.
Latin was still a vibrant part of the curriculum, and many students continued beyond the minimum requirement. Greek continued to be offered as an elective, with a small number of students taking it seminar-style each year. However, science courses did not have all the up-to-date laboratory equipment that they would have liked, and computers for the classrooms needed to be updated, as did the entire library computer system. There was also a need for safety improvements—e.g., non-skid stairs, crash bar safety doors, and increased handicap accessibility.
So, a serious campaign for much needed capital improvements was begun, called Keys to the Future. With the great contribution of trustees, alumni and the Development Office staff, as well as very good consultants, it ended up being quite successful and was completed by the next president, Fr. Jim Keenan.
Remuneration for faculty and staff was another issue of concern, with the result including a revised benefits package that was more family-friendly. Also, merit-based scholarships and need-based tuition assistance required a boost to both attract top students and to serve families who had quantifiable financial need.
The school’s ethnic diversity increased, and the trend toward greater diversity proved not only desirable but productive in all parts of educating the whole person—academically, socially, physically and spiritually.
At one point, a serious incident occurred when an African American student had a racial slur written on one of his textbooks. His parents were outraged and reported the incident to the school authorities, along with their expectations of what should happen. When the incident was investigated, it was confirmed and the culprits were identified. With great counsel from Rev. Ercel Webb, P’81,’83,’89, local pastor, part-time faculty member and Prep dad, our student handbook was updated to include issues such as “hate speech” and similar unacceptable behaviors that were not in accord with the values of a Jesuit school.
Also, the all-Jesuit Board of Members, as well as the Board of Trustees, was a major factor in the school continuing to thrive, headed by lay folks stepping up in their responsibilities—especially chairman Don Moriarty, ’48, followed by Vince Butler, ’45 and Tom Sullivan, ’53, P’93.
As to other such changes, for the first time in its history a lay person was hired as principal. He was Jack Raslowsky, an alumnus (’79), as well as a former teacher and coach, with all the advanced academic degrees in the field of education that were appropriate. In addition, he was very well versed in all things Jesuit.
And so, Saint Peter’s Prep “marches through” sub umbra Petri, under the shadow of its patron, St. Peter, in the place it was planted, the heart of downtown Jersey City.
Dr. Rich Kennedy • Faculty Member: 1967-2015
The following has been edited and condensed from Dr. Kennedy’s broader reflection on his years at Prep. His complete essay can be found at spprep.org/ViewFromAbove.
It was January 15, 1967, when Max McGee snagged a pass from Bart Starr for a 37-yard touchdown for the Packers against the Chiefs—the first touchdown in the first Super Bowl game. The Vietnam War was raging, Lyndon Johnson was president, and Robert Kennedy would challenge him before very long.
Just over a week later, on January 25, I stepped into a classroom at Saint Peter’s Prep for the first time.
The school was in its 95th year and likely had not even begun anticipating the centennial celebration that would take place five years later, let alone the 150th anniversary event half a century beyond that.
In my earlier days at Prep, most of the boys were of Irish, Italian or Polish descent. A majority were from Hudson County, probably largely from middle-to-low-income households. Politically they were fairly conservative, despite the division in the country at large caused by the Vietnam War.
And, of course, let us not forget the jolt to the culture brought about by the emergence of disco, polyester leisure suits, and mutton-chop sideburns.
A majority of the students would go on to Catholic colleges, including a large number who would be the first in their family to pursue a post-secondary-school degree.
The faculty and staff were also very different back then. When I started teaching, many of the faculty had been at Prep for decades. Some half dozen had fought in World War II—members of the Greatest Generation. Math and science teachers wore white lab coats, while humanities faculty wore black judges’ robes. How different this environment, covering the first half of my tenure on the faculty, was from the second! The administration gradually became staffed by lay men and women, and the number of Jesuits on campus was in gradual decline that manifested itself annually. Females eventually comprised almost half of the faculty and staff.
Great changes have occurred, as well, in the curriculum, and its evolution is reflective of the society at large. For most of my 1967-2015 tenure in the English Department, the course material was dominated by the proverbial “dead white men,” with the occasional female author making the cut (as I used to describe it, “from Beowulf to Virginia Woolf”). The most striking change, reflective of the world at large, was the introduction of computer science into the curriculum, as well as computers in the classrooms.
Modern foreign languages early on consisted of French and German, with Italian and Spanish gradually being added as options. Also, and strikingly, Mandarin Chinese is a relatively recent addition to the curriculum. Even more so, the campus and the neighborhood have undergone astounding change. Major renovations to Burke (now the Moriarty Science Center), Hogan, and Mulry have transformed the campus, along with the church being converted into O’Keefe Commons. The classrooms have the latest technology—and no one mourns the passing of reel-to-reel or VHS tapes, slide projectors, and LP records.
Perhaps it is not too much of a stretch to recall Ernest Hemingway’s beautiful words about Paris—where he spent some of his happiest days—when considering our own memories of SPP: “If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a movable feast.”
PREP LORE That’s the Spirit
In 1978, the Fathers’ Club presented a Spirit of Prep Award to a deserving senior at its year-end Activities Awards Dinner. In November 1981, Principal Fr. John Browning, S.J., ’46 reimagined the award as an opportunity to recognize young men who quietly but effectively spread “Prep spirit” throughout the school. He formalized the nomination and selection process, and the Prep Spirit Awards were born. This special award is presented to students—many of whom are considered unsung heroes—who model the qualities and values that best define a Prep man, especially regarding their “above and beyond” support of their classmates. That tradition lives on to this day, with the presentation of the Spirit Awards being a rousing highlight of the quarterly schoolwide assemblies.
VIEW FROM ABOVE / LEGEND OF PREP INDUCTEE: 2018
Fr. Bob Reiser, S.J. • President: 2006-13 Also: former trustee, faculty member
The following has been edited and condensed from Fr. Reiser’s broader reflection on his years at Prep. His complete essay can be found at spprep.org/ViewFromAbove.
No matter how many times a Prep man crosses the street at the corner of Grand and Warren, he cannot help but be awed by the magnificence of the Statue of Liberty. Living in her shadow is one of Prep’s greatest treasures as she beckons our students and adults alike to imagine a future unthinkable without her.
As I reflect on my seven years as Prep’s 26th president, the mandate to imagine our future describes my experience best. Very early on, we began our imagining by enhancing an already storied school experience. We upgraded academics, cocurriculars, and religious formation experiences. We enhanced our curriculum with additional Advanced Placement courses and complemented that by introducing a student support resource center named for John E. Browning, S.J., ’46, one of Prep’s heroes. We also strengthened our unique Jesuit mission of “educating the whole person” by introducing initiatives such as the Kairos retreat program, Vox student choir, and the robotics and crew teams. Imagining the future of academics and student life quickly became an important focus of my time as president of Saint Peter’s.
With the winds of Jersey City’s growth at our backs, we ambitiously developed a multi-phased facilities master plan that would transform Prep’s entire downtown campus. Construction began almost immediately with the renovation of Saint Peter’s Church into the O’Keefe Commons. We next transformed Burke Hall into the Moriarty Science Center and finally set foundational stones for the Perkins Athletic Center. At the same time, we increased our endowment in support of underserved students and introduced the Sheehan Scholars Program. Community has always been at the core of the Prep experience, and so we boldly imagined a Grand Gala that could bring families together in the Prep spirit to support other families in need. Along with the Gala, we also imagined the future by introducing community Masses and enjoying traditional Prep favorites such as the Mom Prom, alumni reunions, and beating Don Bosco. It was in these moments of community that I forged friendships and memories that I will hold for a lifetime.
In the fall of 2012, Superstorm Sandy raged up the East Coast and slammed into the New YorkNew Jersey metropolitan area. Sandy wreaked havoc on our Jersey City neighborhood, including the main sections of the Prep campus. It left seven feet of water in the basements of our West Campus buildings, buckled the turf and destroyed the team locker room at the field, carried cars and vans from the parking lot, and rendered a portion of the East Campus unusable. Yet, in the first hours after the waters of the Hudson River began to subside, the Prep community jumped into action, attacking what was in front of them with the type of commitment and professionalism I had come to know every single day.
As I was leaving the school in 2013, there were so many pieces in place for “Prep’s moment,” and I was satisfied in departing. After all, the shadow of the Statue of Liberty was still looming over us at Grand & Warren—as it had for what is now 136 years, and what it will be for generations of Pride and Glory to come.
CONTEXT & PERSPECTIVE A Unique Support System
Beginning in the 1990s, following a national trend, Prep was becoming increasingly aware that some students, including some top academic performers, were struggling with “learning differences.”
From their grammar school transcripts and recommendations, plus their performance on Prep’s admissions exam, it was clear that “on paper” they could handle the school’s challenging academic environment. However, it also was clear that they could benefit from assistance that was beyond the scope of the Guidance Department.
In response, in 2007, Prep created The Browning Center, named in honor of Fr. John E, Browning, S.J., ’46, acknowledging the support he provided to generations of students as a teacher, counselor, and principal. Its mission from the beginning has been clear: to provide ancillary support to meet the needs of enrolled Prep students who met the admission requirements despite their diagnosed learning disabilities and neurodiverse profiles.
Participating students visit this unique learning center (currently located on the third floor of Mulry Hall) throughout each week, sometimes before or after school, as well as during their free periods. During each visit they receive guidance from learning specialists regarding managing their own individual learning differences and advocating for the assistance they need.
Notably, virtually all of the students who utilize the Browning Center’s resources succeed at Prep and go on to enjoy successful collegiate careers.
Fr. John Mullin, S.J. • Faculty Member: 1972-present (2023)*
Also: former trustee, superior of Prep’s Jesuit community
*Includes some periods of non-Prep assignments
The following has been edited and condensed from Fr. Mullin’s broader reflection on his years at Prep. His complete essay can be found at spprep.org/ViewFromAbove.
If you take a look at the 1972 Petrean, you will probably see a number of familiar faces (or at least names) among the faculty, administrators and staff: the Jesuits, including Fr. Frank Shalloe and Fr. John Browning; the outstanding lay teachers, including Charlie Rooney and Jack Casey; and the longtime librarian, Catherine Collins. The president of Prep was Fr. John Scully, and the principal was Fr. Earle Markey.
In addition to these two Jesuits at the helm, there were two other Jesuits in administration, plus the director of guidance, Fr. Frank McNamara, and 27 Jesuit teachers in the classroom, including one Jesuit Brother and six scholastics.
In those days, the Faculty Dining Room was the Jesuit Dining Room; the current Shalloe Hall Faculty Lounge was the Jesuit Recreation Room; the Hammer Heritage Room was the Prep Chapel and the Jesuit Community Chapel; Shalloe Hall was the Jesuit Residence. We occupied the entire building, from the basement (which had a library and a laundry room) to the fifth floor (where the scholastics lived in the eaved rooms of the building).
The remarkable fact is that those 32 Jesuits worked alongside 33 lay colleagues. Five decades later, in the 2022 Petrean, you will see only three full-time Jesuits on staff: Fr. Bob O’Hare, who teaches math; Mr. Paul Phillipino, a scholastic who taught history during that year; and myself, a freshman guidance counselor. Fr. Tony Azzarto lives in the Bronx and works as alumni chaplain in a part-time role. This year, there are only two of us, since our scholastic moved on to other pastoral work. As Prep’s lay faculty has grown in number over the years, the Jesuit numbers have dropped, but our situation is not unique. Most Jesuit high schools have one or two Jesuits on staff. The challenge, of course, is how to maintain the Jesuit identity of Prep.
Fortunately, the New York Province foresaw this day and put in place many programs that would ensure that the Jesuit foundation of education would remain strong. The Jesuit Secondary Education Association (JSEA) was formed early on to foster this identity among all the U.S. Jesuit high schools. Recently, the JSEA was replaced by the JSN (Jesuit Schools Network), which includes our Cristo Rey and Nativity Schools. Significantly, a national colloquium is held every three years, during which Jesuits and lay colleagues meet for three days in June to share ideas, to network, and to celebrate the Jesuit spirit. In addition, there are retreats and seminars of varying lengths.
Every new faculty member completes a full year’s program of after-school meetings, once a week, to learn about Ignatius and Ignatian pedagogy. These programs were organized by Jane Bleasdale, Prep’s first director of faculty and Ignatian formation, and then by Boreta Singleton in that same role. The Board of Trustees has an initial formation session every year and includes “Ignatian moments” at Board meetings.
The list of initiatives and programs is extensive and ever-evolving. This is reason for great hope because Prep has supported these programs, and also because so many of our lay colleagues have invested their time and energy into pursuing Jesuit prayer and the Jesuit way of proceeding in our school, thus ensuring the strong and continued Jesuit identity at Grand & Warren.
Mr. Jim DeAngelo, ’85 • Principal: 2007-2022 Also: former faculty member
The following has been edited and condensed from Mr. DeAngelo’s broader reflection on his years at Prep. His complete essay can be found at spprep.org/ViewFromAbove.
Looking back over my time serving as principal since 2007, it’s hard not to reach back to other pivotal moments in my own history: to 1989, when I began my time as German teacher, or to 1985, when I graduated, or further still to 1982, when I sat for an interview to transfer in as a sophomore. Throughout my childhood, Prep loomed as large and as distant as the twin towers of the World Trade Center I could glimpse for a couple of seconds as my father maneuvered the jughandle turn of Route 440 (or “back highway”) when returning home to our apartment building at the bottom of Danforth Avenue. Indeed, most of the boys in my 8th grade class from P.S. #20, as well as the other guys from my neighborhood, set their sights on schools other than Prep. Nonetheless, about halfway through my freshman year at St. Aloysius High School, I decided I wanted something else, something more from school.
My interview with the principal at the time, Fr. John Browning, S.J., ’46, had its comic elements, but what I most remember is his gentle manner as he posed some pretty deep questions about why I wanted to come to Prep. All I knew was that I was looking for something that I couldn’t quite put words to as a freshman. Eventually, what I found here at Grand & Warren would come to define my life and worldview to this day.
In my time as teacher, I continued the good work of Mr. Bill Donahue, who in 1985 founded Prep’s German Exchange program with Clara-Fey-Gymnasium in Schleiden, Germany, that endures to this day. As department chair through the late 1990s and early 2000s, I worked with colleagues to expand exchange offerings to other schools. Today, Prep’s Global Initiatives ranks among the leading programs of the Jesuit Schools Network of the United States.
In addition to global education, so many aspects of Prep’s daily workings have changed and evolved to reflect the best trends in educational research, pastoral care, character development, and faith formation. So, too, has Prep’s external context changed: the neighborhood, the waterfront, the Warren Street Plaza, and many renovation projects that have defined the last decade of our physical plant upgrades.
For me, transferring to Prep quite literally broadened my horizon and affected my worldview, setting off a series of decisions that has rippled through my life, and grounding in me a faith and search for God in all things that has sustained me through good times and bad. The colleagues I have been privileged to work with at Prep have been nothing short of loving, courageous and supportive.
In my classroom visits to history classes, I often heard discussions about continuity and change. What remains for me? A sense of marvel as I take in Prep’s neighborhood: the Statue of Liberty, the Hudson River, the English Building, Shalloe Hall. But what also remains is a sense of pride, tempered with a bit of challenge to live up to the glory of those who have preceded me in the pantheon of Prep’s history, and what I learned, and how I grew up, sub umbra Petri.
Ms. Ana Garcia
Faculty Member: 1972-2013
The following has been edited and condensed from Ms. Garcia’s broader reflection on her years at Prep. Her complete essay can be found at spprep.org/ViewFromAbove.
It was an early morning in the summer of 1972 when I received a call from Dr. Patrick Caulfield, chair of the Education Department at Saint Peter’s College, letting me know that Saint Peter’s Prep needed a fulltime Spanish teacher. In fact, he had made an appointment for the next morning for me to meet with Mr. Mike Calderaro, chairman of the Modern Language Department at Prep.
Of course, I said yes.
Mr. Calderaro was welcoming, and so was Father Earle Markey, the principal at the time. I felt at home…no thought of male or female. I knew I was an instructor, a mentor, and I would be evaluated as such. I went home, and the next day I was offered the position at the Prep. I rejoiced with the news since I always wanted to teach in a Jesuit school. The Jesuits have always been considered Renaissance Men. They challenged their students to have a greater vision of themselves for the betterment of their communities and society at large. Without a doubt it was exactly as I had wished.
In my first year—as in all the other years—my classes always included life-lessons. The students were asked to create skits with cultural elements to ensure they communicated clearly, and that the body language and vocal variety were correct. As years went by, we welcomed many Hispanic students, and I created a Heritage Speakers Program, composed of students from Spanish 1 Honors, Advanced Placement Language, and Advanced Placement Literature classes. The American students with excellent Spanish skills also were welcomed.
In 2000, I became founder and director of Prep’s Study Abroad Program in Salamanca, Spain. This program was offered to the students of the different levels of Spanish who wanted to grow and expand their knowledge of Spanish culture.
Often, when I mention that I taught in an all-boys’ school, people ask, “How did you survive?” My answer has always been, “I taught in a private school where students are asked to respect and honor their elders, their teachers; that every time they attend a school function they must be disciplined because they are representing the school.”
When asked if I felt intimidated the first time I walked into an all-boys’ classroom, my response was the same: “My students were very respectful, and the parents supported the teachers.”
One of the most memorable events of each year was the senior prom. I served as its coordinator for many years, and the students were prepared to not only take care of themselves but also their dates.
Also, looking back, I still remember the family dinners at Sabor, as well as the trips to El Repertorio Español, the museums, and the concerts.
I will always remember the colleagues who helped with my classes when my father died, as well as the administrators who allowed me to create new programs for my students. And I will always remember the joy of hearing my students say, “Thank you for encouraging me to work harder and give you the best of who I am.”
Prep is for life, and I would hope that through my legacy, The Alba Scholarship, I can continue to help students break their limitations and reach for the sky.
Fr. Earle Markey, S.J., ’49 • Principal: 1971-76 Also: former trustee, prefect of discipline, faculty member
The following has been edited and condensed from the broader third-person profile of Fr. Markey regarding his years as a Prep administrator. The complete profile can be found at spprep.org/ViewFromAbove.
In the eyes of many Prep graduates, news of Fr. Earle Markey, S.J., ’49’s return to the campus as prefect of discipline and then principal was the natural progression of a Jesuit career that began as a signature student-athlete just over two decades earlier. But his route back to his alma mater coincided with the school confronting one of the more challenging periods in its history.
In 1970, seven years following his ordination, Fr. Markey had recently completed a teaching assignment in Manila and was beginning theology classes in Berkeley, California, as part of a Ph.D. program in Comparative Religions. Then came the call from the Provincial of the New York Province: Fr. Markey would be joining the Prep administration.
“My reaction to that call was one of fear,” he said with a laugh. “In a very short period of time I was going from teaching college religion in the Philippines to running a high school. That was quite an abrupt change.”
Immediately upon his return to Grand & Warren, he became acutely aware of the difficult atmosphere facing Jesuit high schools such as Saint Peter’s Prep. “In the early 1970s, Prep was no longer the only college preparatory school in the area, and that was a challenge,” he said. “Enrollment was dropping, and the broader New York metropolitan area was suffering
economically, as was the country at large.”
The Vietnam War and Watergate were playing a role in creating this sense of instability...and Prep was feeling the pain. For context, about that same time, Prep’s longtime rival, St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark, closed in 1972 (with Prep picking up some of its students as transfers), as did Brooklyn’s Jesuit high school, Brooklyn Prep.
Concurrent with the increased academic competition from newer high schools in northern and central New Jersey was the competition for athletic talent, providing new options for accomplished young athletes when choosing their high schools. “Prep no longer had the monopoly on those very bright athletes, and the talent was being dispersed more than ever,” he noted.
“We were adapting...the mission had changed a little,” he explained. “The academic profile suffered a little bit, but we quickly made a few adjustments to ensure that the students continued to receive a competitive college preparatory program.”
Father Markey also mentioned the great support provided by the Jesuit scholastics who were on the faculty at that time: “Young guys like Jim Joyce and John Mullin were tremendous assets both in and out of the classroom. They were a crucial link to their students, maintaining that special spirit of what it means to be a Jesuit college preparatory school. They and others were an important counterpoint to the negative pressures the school was facing.
“As prefect and then as principal, I had to adjust to the times. This was not the same social or cultural climate as the Prep of my own student years in the late 1940s. All of the Jesuit schools had to adapt, especially in areas such as the dress code and hair styles. The key goal was to be as flexible as possible, while also maintaining a sense of discipline, academic and otherwise. These challenges were new to all of us and we had to work through them.”
