Austin Preparatory School

Austin Preparatory School Schola Praeparatoria Austin
Address
101 Willow Street Reading , (Middlesex County) , Massachusetts 01867 United States
Coordinates	42°31′47″N 71°7′37″W
Information
Type	Private, Coeducational
Religious affiliation(s)	Roman Catholic Order of Saint Augustine
Patron saint(s)	Saint Augustine
Established	1961
Headmaster	James Hickey
Faculty	60
Grades	6–12
Enrollment	700 (2012)
Campus	Suburban
Color(s)	Green, White and Black
Athletics conference	Catholic Central
Team name	Cougars
Accreditation	New England Association of Schools and Colleges
Publication	Austin Magazine (literary/art magazine)
Newspaper	The Legend
Tuition	$14,300
Information	(781) 944-4900
Assistant Headmasters	Celia Barletta Deborah Gray
Athletic Director	Patricia R. Gonzalez
Website	www.austinprepschool.org

Austin Preparatory School is a co-educational Catholic school located in Reading, Massachusetts. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine in 1961. The institution is colloquially referred to as Austin Prep and serves students in grades 6-12.

History

Though founded in 1961, Austin Prep enrolled its first students in September 1963.

The School was founded by members of the Order of Saint Augustine, Province of Saint Thomas of Villanova. Since 1973 the School has been operated by a lay Board of Trustees, and is a fully incorporated, not for profit, 501-C3 organization. The Augustinians continued to serve formally at Austin Prep until 1992. While there are no Augustinian friars currently on the faculty, the present staff does include two priests and one Affiliate member of the Order of Saint Augustine.

In 1987 Austin opened a Middle School Program, and further expanded in 1992 by admitting young women to become fully co-educational. The current enrollment (2010–2011) of 700 students is almost equally divided between young men and women. The Middle School enrolls roughly 200 students and the Upper School enrolls approximately 500 students.

Demographics

Students commute to Austin from over 50 towns from the northern suburban communities of Boston reaching north through the Merrimack Valley Region and North Shore communities and also southern New Hampshire.

Patron saint

St. Augustine of Hippo as pictured during the Renaissance

The original motto of the school is "In lumine tuo videbimus lumen" ("In your light we see light"), from Psalm 36, however in 2001 the School adopted a new motto, "God, Self, Neighbor" based upon the Great Commandment. The School's patron is Saint Augustine. The "Austin" in Austin Prep is a shortened form of Augustine. Augustine was a key figure in the doctrinal development of Western Christianity and is often referred to as a "Doctor of the Church" by Roman Catholics. Two of his many surviving works, namely "The Confessions" (his autobiography) and "The City of God" are Western Classics, and are read and studied by Christians of many denominations around the world. Augustine is also considered to be one of the theological fountainheads of Protestant Reformation, because of his teaching on salvation and grace; Martin Luther himself also having been an Augustinian friar. Augustine was not a Biblical fundamentalist.

Other American Augustinian Schools with the same patron include Malvern prep in Malvern PA, Monsignor Bonner High School in Drexel Hill, PA, Villanova Prep in Ojia, CA along with Richland, New Jersey; San Diego, California - as well as Villanova University in Villanova PA (The Augustinian flagship college.) and Merrimack College in North Andover, MA - just 15 minutes from Austin Prep.

Languages

• Latin
• Spanish
• French
• Russian
• Klingon

Athletics

As an all-boys school in the 1970s and early 1980s Austin competed in the Merrimack Valley Conference and then the Catholic Conference. With the addition of the Middle School program, a built in feeder system was established for the school. The coming of co-education at Austin brought the addition of young women athletes and co-ed athletic teams were introduced at Austin.

Austin Prep is a member of the Catholic Central League, in the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association. Their rivals include Bishop Fenwick, Arlington Catholic, Archbishop Williams and St. Mary’s as well as some much larger schools in the area including St. John’s Prep and Central Catholic High School.

Clubs and organizations

• Academic Decathlon
• Anime Club
• Arts Club
• Austin Magazine
• Austin Service Club
• Badminton Club
• Band
• Business Club
• Chorus
• Classics Club & Certamen Team
• Dance
• Event Production Services
• French Club
• Guitar Club
• Human Rights Squad
• Intramural Sports
  • Basketball
  • Volleyball
  • Tennis
  • Softball
  • Whiffleball
• Italian Club
• Middle School Arts & Crafts
• Middle School Chess & Scrabble
• Middle School Classics And Certamen
• Middle School Drama Festival
• Middle School Math Team
• Middle School Puzzle Club
• Middle School Quiz Bowl
• Knitting Club
• The Legend
• Liturgical Music
• Magic: The Gathering Club
• Math Team
• Math Peer Tutors
• Multicultural Club
• National Honor Society
• New England Club
• The Omega
• Peer Leaders
• Ping Pong Club
• Russian Club
• Science Fiction/Fantasy Club!
• Senior Retreat Leaders
• Sign Language Club
• Snowboarding/Ski Club
• Spanish Club
• Student Council/Government
• Theatre, Drama Club
• Web Design Club
• Weight Training - Boys
• Weight Training - Girls
• Yoga

Notable alumni

• Ross Alameddine '05 - victim of the Virginia Tech shootings on April 16, 2007
• Thomas Birmingham - former Massachusetts Senate President
• Tom Fitzgerald (hockey) '86 - NHL Player
• Blaise MacDonald '81 - current Head Hockey Coach at Colby College
• Brian Shannon '86 - author and technical analyst
• Paul Sullivan '75 - Radio Talk show host at WBZ until his death in 2007.

External links

• Official site