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Loyola Blakefield

Coordinates: 39°24′13″N 76°37′36″W / 39.40361°N 76.62667°W / 39.40361; -76.62667
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Loyola Blakefield
Address
Map
500 Chestnut Avenue

, ,
21204-3704

United States
Coordinates39°24′13″N 76°37′36″W / 39.40361°N 76.62667°W / 39.40361; -76.62667
Information
TypePrivate
MottoAd Majorem Dei Gloriam[1]
(For the Greater Glory of God)
Religious affiliation(s)Roman Catholic
(Jesuit)
Established1852
CEEB code211030
PresidentMr. Anthony Day
PrincipalMr. John Marinacci
ChaplainRev. Joseph Michini, S.J.
Grades612
GenderBoys
Enrollment1,000
Color(s)Blue and Gold   
Slogan"men for other men"
SongLoyola Alma Mater
Fight song"Come On You Dons to the Fight"
Athletics conferenceMIAA
SportsLacrosse, Soccer, Football, Wrestling, Water Polo, Swimming, Squash, Tennis, Ice-Hockey, Basketball, Volleyball, Cross-Country, Indoor Track, Track & Field, Golf, Rugby
MascotThe Loyola Don
NicknameDons
RivalCalvert Hall
AccreditationAIMS
PublicationThe Blakefield Magazine
NewspaperThe Loyolan
YearbookThe Loyola
Tuition$18500000
AffiliationArchdiocese of Baltimore
JSEA
Dean of StudentsMr. Bob Schlichtig
Athletic DirectorMichael Keeney
Websiteloyolablakefield.org

Loyola Blakefield, formerly Loyola High School, is a Catholic, college preparatory school established by the Society of Jesus, to educate boys. Loyola Blakefield is located in Towson, Maryland. Students from Baltimore County, Baltimore, Harford County, Carroll County, Howard County, Anne Arundel County and Southern Pennsylvania attend the school. There are over nine hundred students today at Loyola Blakefield in grades six through twelve.

History

In 1843, Archbishop Francis Kenrick asked the Jesuits to oversee the formation of a school for laymen that would incorporate the Jesuit standards of excellence and build new men conscious of a religious purpose. His request was prompted by the 1852 closure of nearby St. Mary's College. Construction of Loyola High School began on Charles Street in Baltimore, Maryland in early 1852, and on September 15, 1852, the school enrolled its first students.

In the early 1930s the growing and cramped high school began to look toward moving north of the city. In 1933, with the support of the Blake family, Loyola purchased the land known today as Blakefield in Towson, Maryland. In 1941, the students moved to the new campus. Between 1981 and 1988, a Middle School was gradually introduced, and in recognition of the two levels of education, Loyola High School officially became known as Loyola Blakefield.

Physical improvements in recent years have included the construction of Knott Hall which houses the student commons and dining hall, athletic center, and alumni areas, the Burk Hall academic wing, the renovations to the 60-year-old science laboratories, and the construction of an additional section to Wheeler Hall.

In 2001 the Rev. Kenneth J. Martin, who was a lay teacher at Loyola Blakefield in the 1970s, pleaded guilty to having sexually abused a Loyola Blakefield student during 1977-1980.[2][3]

In 2010 anti-Semitic graffiti was scrawled on the locker of a Loyola Blakefield ninth grader.[4]

Loyola Blakefield has a tradition of honoring alumni from 50 years earlier at its graduation ceremony. "Bring back the men from 50 years before to see a new generation graduate," writes James Maliszewski, whose grandfather died a year before they could have attended together as 1937 and 1987 graduates.[5]

Academics

Among Catholic schools in Baltimore, Loyola Blakefield is highest-ranked in terms of its average graduating SAT scores, number of National Merit Finalists, AP exams taken, and other metrics of success. Loyola students frequently attend leading universities in the United States. Some alumni have gone on to earn additional academic honors such as the Rhodes Scholarship.[citation needed]

While the curriculum, emphasizing liberal arts and holistic development, is standard for all students, there is increasing flexibility in course selection as one moves from the sixth through the twelfth grades. Some extremely popular electives include Visual Arts, Classical Languages, History of Music, and a wide variety of AP courses.[citation needed]

The Loyola Forensics team, which was led by English instructor Tom Durkin and is currently led by Science teacher Charles Donovan, was the champion of the National Catholic Forensic League in 2005 and 2010. The team has also garnered great success on the state and district levels- having captured the state title for the majority of the past two decades and the Chesapeake District title in 2011.[citation needed]

Athletics

The sports teams at Loyola Blakefield have been average over the years, most notably in swimming, rugby and cross-country.[citation needed] Loyola Blakefield competes in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) for all interscholastic sports; in addition to the MIAA, the basketball team is also a member of the Baltimore Catholic League.

The Loyola Blakefield football team also plays every Thanksgiving Day in one of the oldest continual national Catholic high school football rivalries against cross-town rival Calvert Hall College. The game, known as the Turkey Bowl, is held at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. Loyola won the most recent match-up, despite losses in 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012. The game is broadcast on television and radio by WMAR-TV.

The Loyola lacrosse program is among the school's most recognized.[citation needed] The lacrosse team won eight championships in the 1980s and recently won championships in 2001, 2007, 2008 and 2013. In 2007, they defeated Boys' Latin 10-6 in the MIAA championship game. In 2008, they defeated previously undefeated Gilman 12-11 in the championship game at Towson University's Johnny Unitas Stadium in front of over 8,000 spectators.[citation needed] Loyola has produced numerous players who have continued on to play collegiate lacrosse[citation needed], including National Lacrosse Hall of Famer John Stewart, and Peter Kimmel. Current teaching staff include recent alumni Matt Pinto and Tim Sullivan.

The soccer program won the Maryland Championship in 2001 and has produced Division I talent. Loyola soccer is currently coached by Lee Tschantret, a former longtime player in the Major Indoor Soccer League who won several championships with the Baltimore Blast.[citation needed]

The Loyola basketball program[6] reached regional prominence in the 1970s when it was led by head coach Jerry Savage, who won over 600 games from 1969 to 2003. He produced several Division I players. Savage also coached the 1997 MIAA Championship team, the last championship of any sort for the Dons basketball program. Loyola has been in the most Baltimore Catholic League finals with 13 total and 6 championships. More recently, the program had several disappointing seasons and experienced a four-year period with four different head coaches. Currently, Josh Davalli, a former All-Metro player at Cardinal Gibbons in the mid-90's, serves as varsity head coach while also teaching in the Middle School.

Loyola were MIAA champions in rugby for three consecutive years from 2008 to 2010.[7]

Cross country running and Track and field have recently gotten a turn in the spotlight, with some of the best athletes in the United States for high school.[citation needed]

Notable alumni

References

  1. ^ President's message - Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam
  2. ^ http://catholiccitizens.org/platform/platformview.asp?c=4515
  3. ^ http://snap-national.blogspot.com/2008_11_09_archive.html
  4. ^ http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2010-11-15/news/bs-md-loyola-blakefield-20101115_1_anti-semitic-graffiti-loyola-blakefield-boys-locker
  5. ^ James Maliszewski (May 11, 2002). "May. 11th, 2002 journal entry". Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  6. ^ http://www.loyolahoops.com
  7. ^ MIAA, Past MIAA Varsity Rugby Champions, http://www.miaasports.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=102&Itemid=55
  8. ^ http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2009-03-08/entertainment/0903060077_1_mentalist-cop-drama-new-american/2
  9. ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=u5sKmJItUF4C&pg=PA252&lpg=PA252&dq=John+Moag+loyola&source=bl&ots=fTBbRbgcyu&sig=lECA7FMnSTjRiHjmLQ8J9UjjubI&hl=en&ei=QIciTdv7MIG78gbPn63yDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CDEQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=John%20Moag%20loyola&f=false
  10. ^ http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/music/2011/09/30/void-discusses-emptying-the-vaults-being-punk-rock-in-columbia/