News from 16th Street

Traversing the globe during school breaks has become something of a Xavier tradition. Over the past several months, students have toured Europe and Costa Rica, skied in Colorado, played rugby in Ireland, and served communities in need in Camden, New Jersey, Pine Ridge, South Dakota, and the Dominican Republic. Above, students on the Europe trip pose near the

News and Notes

Ron Robinson, who began his tenure as Xavier’s director of music last summer, has been commissioned to write an opera for the Opera Theatre of St. Louis (OTSL) New Works Collective. Every production at OTSL is sung in English and accompanied by the Grammy Award-winning St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. “Opera Theatre of St. Louis has a tradition of commissioning new works from underrepresented composers and librettists,” said Robinson, who also serves as an adjunct faculty member at New York University. “Being part of this legacy is a great honor and an opportunity to create something beautiful for both opera enthusiasts and those new to the art form.”

While on sabbatical last year, history teacher and former headmaster Mike LiVigni P’21 finished a novel, The Lurium Wars: The Soul of Seta. “This is the first in a series of books I will write, at minimum a trilogy. The novel is in the fantasy genre, and I focus on descriptive detail, world-building, and the exploration of cultures. I compare my work to authors such as Raymond R. Feist, Stephen Donaldson, and Patrick Rothfuss,” LiVigni said. He is in the final editing stages and hopes to find an agent to pitch the book to publishers.

Former Xavier basketball coach Koby Altman, now president of basketball operations for the Cleveland Cavaliers, spoke to juniors and seniors on December 5.

Assistant Dean of Students Alex Simeone earned his Master of Science in Teaching degree from Fordham University’s Graduate School of Education in December.

Varsity basketball coach Joe McGrane P’20 celebrated his 400th career victory with a win over Cardinal Spellman on January 18. A 2015 inductee into the Catholic High School Athletic Association (CHSAA) Hall of Fame, McGrane now ranks among the top 10 winningest basketball coaches in the history of the CHSAA.

Xavier dedicated “Friends in the Lord: Ignatius, Francis, and Peter,” an oil on canvas by Michael Tunney, S.J., on January 19. The painting, which resides on the fifth floor of Fernandez-Duminuco Hall, was commissioned in honor of Xavier’s 175th anniversary. “In his Spiritual Exercises St. Ignatius Loyola invites us to imagine scenes from Scripture, apply our senses to them, and place ourselves into the narratives,” Fr. Tunney shared in a description of the canvas. “Now extend this creative contemplation to our own day and time: What if Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556), Francis Xavier (1506-1552), and Peter Faber (1506-1546), the original three Jesuit companions, were all together in high school? And what might they look like as contemporary Xavier High School students? These questions provided the point of departure for this work.”

Xavier swept Regis in the schools’ annual basketball tripleheader on January 27. Close to 1,000 people filled the Xavier gym throughout the evening as the Knights emerged victorious in the freshman, junior varsity, and varsity games.

On January 30, Vice President for Communications and Marketing Shawna Gallagher Vega and Assistant Director of Communications Nick Barone ’16 gave a presentation about branding campaigns at the CASE-NAIS Independent Schools Conference.

The varsity swim team took home the CHSAA B division title on February 12.

Campus minister and religion teacher Jim Hederman, S.J. offered two popular events during Lent—three nights of learning about Ignatian spirituality at Brooklyn’s Holy Name of Jesus Church on March 13, 14, and 15, and an evening reflection for parents on March 30.

Paris is in Harlem, a movie starring fine arts department chair Nicole DiMarco and featuring multiple Xavier alumni and staff members, was screened at the Dolby Theater in Midtown on March 10.

Led by Senior Army Instructor Lieutenant Colonel Jacob Kelly, USA (Ret.) and Cadet Colonel Matthew Lane ’23, members of the Xavier Regiment marched up Fifth Avenue during the 262nd New York City St. Patrick’s Day Parade on March 17. The parade marked the public debut of a new Regimental Drum Corps, the brainchild of Frank Dorritie ’64. “Performing in the Xavier Regimental Drums connects current cadets to a tradition that harkens back over 100 years at 16th Street. The mission remains the same: to supply a solid marching pulse for the Regiment’s appearances,” Dorritie said. “In the eyes of the public, the Regiment will always be the face of Xavier, and the drums its heartbeat.”

On March 30, Vice President for Advancement Shane Lavin ’03 served as a speaker at the 2023 Advancement Academy Webinar for Futures in Education, a program of the Catholic Foundation for Brooklyn and Queens.

The Ignatian Solidarity Network honored President Jack Raslowsky with the 2023 Robert M. Holstein Faith Doing Justice

Award at its annual award event, Ignite: A Celebration of Justice, on May 10. The Holstein Award recognizes individuals who have demonstrated a significant commitment to leadership for social justice grounded in the spirituality of St. Ignatius of Loyola.

The CHSAA inducted longtime baseball and basketball coach Rich Duffell P’93 ’99 into its Hall of Fame on May 18. “Coach Duffell is not only a Hall of Fame coach, but most importantly, he is a Hall of Fame person,” said Athletic Director Andrew Gheraldi. “For over 30 years, he has had a profound impact on hundreds of Sons of Xavier on the diamond, in the classroom, and on the court. This honor is long overdue.”