Feature Story: Our Mission Keeps Growing

OUR MISSION KEEPS GROWING

The Hive is back and firing on all cylinders thanks to the generosity of the St. Benedict’s Prep community.

All kids can thrive at The Hive.

Enrollment Jumps 28% in Five Years

Mario Gallo and Analisa Branco have been fielding non-stop inquiries for admission to St. Benedict’s Prep throughout the fall. With enrollment reaching 962 students during Fall Term, a 28% increase over the 750 enrolled in 2017, Mr. Gallo, Director of Admissions, and Ms. Branco, Associate Director of Admissions, are managing wait lists in multiple grades.

The new Girls Prep Division, which began with 85 young women last year and grew to 125 in 2021-22, certainly accounts for a big chunk of growth. Yet demand has also escalated in the Elementary and Middle Divisions with growing awareness that St. Benedict’s is a K-12 Catholic school. “People are seeing us as a ‘one-stop shop’ where all of their kids can thrive,” said Mr. Gallo. “We’re also seeing a phenomenon of families wanting to ensure a place in the Prep Division by entering Benedict’s in either the Middle Division, which now starts at sixth grade, or even earlier in the Elementary Division.” This contradicts the general trend among urban Catholic schools experiencing stagnant or declining enrollment. According to Mr. Gallo, alumni and friends are a big part of The Hive’s exploding growth. “Their support is priceless because their word-of-mouth marketing helps us reach pockets of communities that we have no access to,” he explained. “Alums create a sense of legacy, too. Kids who come here learn a fundamental thing from Day One. St. Benedict’s doesn’t start and end with who is on the Property. It’s much bigger than us.”

To accommodate the growth, offices were relocated and four new classrooms were constructed on the first floor of Bishop Joseph Francis Hall and two classrooms were added to Cawley Hall. Bishop Francis is the academic home base for the majority of freshmen in the Boys Prep Division. “It’s new and fresh,” said Grace Lenahan, who teaches religion to freshmen boys in Bishop Francis. Faculty are adjusting to the new classrooms and the School created a tent on the Lower Court that can be reserved for outdoor classes. The influx of students, “is palpable,” said Ms. Lenahan. St. Benedict’s is actively planning to enhance space and capacity to accommodate more students on the Property.

“Stay and Build” artwork created by one Gray Bee for this year’s Interdisciplinary Project.

With ‘Stay and Build,’ Past and Present Converge

Interdisciplinary Projects are an academic hallmark at St. Benedict’s Prep because the artwork, performances and research produced all stem from a timely theme relevant to kids’ lives. In 2018, the

OUR MISSION KEEPS GROWING

Sesquicentennial inspired an original musical production and poster presentations on scientific discoveries dating back to 1868, the year St. Benedict’s was founded. In 2020, students explored the 50-year Hispanic and Latino legacy of The Hive in a range of academic disciplines.

This year’s theme, “Stay and Build: Remember the Past, Invent the Future,” is rooted in St. Benedict’s history while viewing the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic as an occasion for the institution to innovate and improve. Chair of the Fine Arts Department Pamela Wye-Hunsinger H’18 said the theme came together after Headmaster Fr. Edwin Leahy, O.S.B. ’63 described the return to the Property post quarantine as, “the biggest opportunity to re-envision St. Benedict’s since 1972 when the School closed.”

In a serendipitous email, Fr. Augustine Curley, O.S.B ’74 shared archival material that cemented the idea. In the mid-1950s Newark was losing residents to the suburbs. During this challenging time, the Benedictine monks of Newark Abbey doubled down. The “Benedict’s Builds with Newark” campaign created Cawley Hall in 1959 and signified the School’s commitment to Newark and to elevating its own arts programs.

“’Stay and Build’ honors the vows of the monks in this entire endeavor,” Ms. Wye-Hunsinger explained. “It reflects the commitment to stability. There are lot of parallels to now. It will be an opportunity to work with students to reclaim important values and traditions, as well as dream up ways we can be better.”

Visual arts students have been exploring the theme since Summer Phase. The projects are ingenious, as well as practical. One recent assignment tasked students with identifying a St. Benedict’s phrase (a motto, line of prayer or affirmation, or song lyric), which they paired with a self-portrait and a personal interpretation of the phrase. In addition to artistic skill building, the finished pieces will be hung in the cafeteria, visually representing important tenets of a St. Benedict’s education. That is needed now. “After a year of virtual learning, a lot of kids came into Benedict’s unaware of traditions,” said Ms. Wye-Hunsinger. “These pieces will actually be talking to kids in the cafeteria.”

The culminating event for the Interdisciplinary Project, which showcases the work produced by students across multiple disciplines, will be held in March 2022. It will be the first schoolwide celebration since 2019. The showcase was canceled in 2020 when The Hive pivoted to remote learning on March 13.

Troi Slade ’22, Marie-Rosa Jeudy ’22, Joseph Jumbo ’22, Geovanni Lopez ’22 and Jaden Oates ’22

Congratulate These Senior Gray Bees

Five Gray Bees were named QuestBridge National College Match Finalists, the first time St. Benedict’s Prep has had this many seniors achieve the prestigious feat. Troi Slade ’22, Marie-Rosa Jeudy ’22, Geovanni Lopez ’22, Jaden Oates ’22 and Joseph Jumbo ’22 were among the 6,312 seniors selected from more than 16,500 applicants nationwide on October 19. “It’s unprecedented for us,” said Dean of College Placement and Seniors Didier Jean-Baptiste ’86, noting that this is the sixth year St. Benedict’s has participated in the program that offers high-achieving students from low-income backgrounds an entrée to some of the most competitive colleges in the country. “The fact that five finalists came from a school of our size, with 160 seniors, is pretty impressive.”

As QuestBridge National College Match Finalists, the students can apply early decision to up to 12 of their top ranked schools. If admitted to a QuestBridge partner school, which includes Yale University, MIT, University of Notre Dame and others, they will receive a full four-year scholarship that covers tuition, room and board, books and other college-related expenses.

Over the summer, four of the seniors, Troi, Marie-Rosa, Geovanni and Jaden, participated in the QuestBridge College Prep Scholars Program, which accepted only 26% of applicants this year. Mr. Jean-Baptiste believes the initiative demonstrated by St. Benedict’s students in online networking events, coupled with excellent faculty recommendations and outstanding academic performance, “set them up to do a good job with the National College Match application process.” Finalists learn if they match with a top choice school in December.

Since Summer Phase, the College Guidance team has worked with 161 seniors and post-graduates on all aspects of the application process, from essay writing to campus visits and financial aid. The process is still firmly focused on long-term success, which according to Mr. Jean-Baptiste is, “Matching our students with a best-fit college where they can thrive academically and receive enough financial support to persist and earn their degree.”