- This article discusses the school in Richland, New Jersey. For other institution of the same name, see St. Augustine's (disambiguation)
St. Augustine Preparatory School is a private all-male Roman Catholic four-year college preparatory school located in the Richland section of Buena Vista Township, in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. Located on 118 acres (0.48 km2) of wooded property, it serves students in ninth through twelfth grade from across South Jersey under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Secondary Schools since 1983 and the New Jersey Association of Independent Schools. St. Augustine was founded in 1959 by the Order of Saint Augustine as a minor seminary to help young men prepare for studies in the priesthood and religious life; the first class was a mixture of seminarians and day students. The school is a member of the Augustinian Secondary Education Association.
As of the 2015-16 school year, the school had an enrollment of 711 students and 57.6 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student-teacher ratio of 12.3:1. The school's student body was 84.1% White, 4.8% Black, 4.2% Asian, 3.7% Hispanic and 3.2% two or more races.
The school's graduating Class of 2014 was offered over $42 million in scholarships.
Video St. Augustine Preparatory School
History
Established in September 1959, the school's first senior class of 12 students graduated in 1963. The school's first Headmaster was Fr. Peter Toscani, OSA. Classes were first held in the Monastery, which was previously an estate named "Red Oaks". The first school building, Augustinian Hall, consisted of four classrooms and a gymnasium, which opened in 1960. The first expansion included the western wing of Augustinian Hall in 1967-68. The Spina Gymnasium was constructed in 1979-80 and the former gym was converted into classrooms and a chapel. The enrollment ranged between 150 and 210 students for many years.
The third expansion of facilities was the construction of the Edith Favretto Scarpa Arts and Sciences Building in 1998. The building houses most of the campus' computer labs, the media center, the library, and additional classrooms. Following that expansion, enrollment grew from 235 to 550. A minor renovation replaced the chapel with additional classrooms in 2000. The most recent addition to the school is The Louis and Josephine Buondonno Forum, or simply, "The Forum". Following the construction of the new building, enrollment increased to 650 students. In the Forum are the Rodio Gymnasium, the Consalo Dining hall, The Navone Swimming Pool, weight room, wrestling room, and additional classrooms.
On October 8, 2014 the Prep held a dedication ceremony for the new Navone Athletic Training Facility. The 5,000 square foot facility includes cross fit equipment, a batting cage, and a weight room. It is named in honor of its benefactor Paul Navone.
In June 2011, longtime school President Fr. Paul Galetto, OSA, was replaced by Fr. Donald Reilly, OSA, previously Prior Provincial of the Villanova province of the Augustinian Order, and previous Chairman of the school's Board of Directors. The school announced in November 2016 that Fr. Robert Murray was designated to become the school's new President at the end of the 2016-2017 school year.
Maps St. Augustine Preparatory School
Campus
The school's campus consists of seven buildings set over 118 acres (0.48 km2) of wooded property. The principal educational facilities are:
- Augustinian Hall
45 General Classrooms; Latin/Arabic/Spanish curriculums; Spina Memorial Gymnasium; Academics Office; Information Technology; Facilities; Wireless Internet Access
- The Louis & Josephine Buondonno Forum
Consalo Dining Hall; 15 General Classrooms; Greenhouse; Campus Store; Student Lounge/Recreational Room; Student Infirmary; Administrative/; Chapel; Rodio Gymnasium; Navone Pool; Weight-lifting area; Wrestling arena; Ergometer Room; College Guidance; Office of Transportation; Wireless Internet Access
- Edith Favretto Scarpa Arts & Sciences Building
35,000+ Volumes; Computer Workspaces; 3 General Classrooms; Office of Attendance; Campus Ministry; Student Leadership; Wireless Internet Access
- Vincent L. Buondonno Center
Office of the President; Office of Enrollment; Office of Advancement; Office of Finance; Office of Communication; Office of Business; Office of Bursar; Office of Human resources; 2 General Classrooms
- Allegrini Monastery
Residence of the Order of Saint Augustine; Residence of Rev. Donald F. Reilly OSA: President; Monastery Gardens
- Greek Amphitheater
Teaching space for the school's language arts curriculum.
- LaRosa Field
Turf Field; Provides playing space for the school's football, lacrosse & soccer teams
- Navone Athletic Training Facility
Cross Fit Equipment; Batting Cage; Weight Room
Athletic Fields
5 tennis courts; 1 lacrosse field; 2 practice football/mixed use fields; 2 baseball fields
Patron saint
The school is named in honor of the 4th century saint, St. Augustine of Hippo, one of a few Augustinian friar schools in the United States and others throughout the world with this same patron saint. The North American foundation of the order dates back to 1796.
Athletics
The Saint Augustine Prep Hermits compete in the National Division of the Cape-Atlantic League, an athletic conference consisting of both parochial and private and public high schools located in Atlantic County, Cape May County, Cumberland County, and Gloucester County, New Jersey. However, The Hermits are set to start competing in the American Conference in each sport, as soon as the scheduling year comes around. The Cape-Atlantic League operates under the aegis of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA). The football team competes in the Continental Division of the 95-team West Jersey Football League superconference and was classified by the NJSIAA as Non-Public IV for football for 2017-18.
School colors are blue and white. The school offers 18 inter-scholastic sports programs, including: football, soccer, cross country, basketball, swimming, ice hockey, wrestling, track and field, chess, baseball, golf, tennis, crew, lacrosse, volleyball, fencing, bowling, sailing, ultimate frisbee, rugby, and a new sport for the 2008-09 year, water polo. St. Augustine teams have recently competed in state championships in hockey, tennis, basketball, golf, swimming, soccer, wrestling, and crew.
The swimming team won the Non-Public B title in 2004 and the Non-Public A championship in 2005, 2007-2009 and 2017. The swim team was the 4th-ranked swim team in the nation in 2005. They won the 06-07 Non-Public A state title with a 105-65 win against St. Joseph High School and the 07-08 Non-Public A state title with a 109-61 victory over Seton Hall Preparatory School The team won the 2017 Non-Public A championship, the program's sixth state title, with a 89-81 victory over a Christian Brothers Academy team that had won the Non-Public A title the seven previous years.
The crew team's Lightweight 8+ won both the Stotesbury Cup Regatta and the Scholastic Rowing Association of America Regatta (commonly referred to as the "Scholastic Nationals") in the 2006 spring season, marking the first national title achieved by St. Augustine Prep. In the 2012 spring season, the Junior Varsity 8+ won the Scholastic Nationals.
The ice hockey team claimed the 2006-07 Non-Public state championship, defeating St. Peter's Preparatory School by a score of 3-1 on March 23, 2007, as the first South Jersey school to win the state title in hockey finishing the season with a 23-0-0 record and becoming the first ice hockey team in New Jersey history to go undefeated and untied.
The soccer team was declared state champion in the 2003 NJSIAA Parochial A Boys' Soccer State Tournament jointly with Delbarton School. The team was the Non-Public A Champion in the 2005 Boys Soccer Non-Public Finals, defeating Seton Hall Preparatory School 4-1. The soccer team finished the season with a record and 25-1 and won the Non-Public A championship in 2010 with a 2-0 win over Pingry School, marking the program's fifth state title and their first since their 2005 win.
The basketball team won the 2001 Parochial South B state championship, defeating McCorristin Catholic High School by 65-49 in the tournament final. The basketball team won the 2002 Parochial South A, defeating Camden Catholic High School 50-45. The team won again in 2004 with a 56-48 win over Camden Catholic High School. In 2010-11, the basketball team won their fourth Non-Public A championship by defeating Seton Hall Prep 71-60. In the 2015-2016 season, the team won their fifth Non-Public A championship by defeating Don Bosco Preparatory High School by a score of 83-50 in the tournament final. Paul Rodio, a member of the Class of 1970, earned his 776th victory in February 2013 as St. Augustine Prep's head basketball coach, making him the winningest coach in South Jersey history.
The tennis team won the Non-Public, South A title in 2003 over Monsignor Donovan High School 4-1. The team won the Non-Public, South A title again in 2005 and 2006, defeating Christian Brothers Academy 5-0 and 4-1, respectively. In 2007, the tennis team finished the year 10th on The Star-Ledger's top 20 list having won the Non-Public A State title in a come-from-behind 3-2 victory over Delbarton School, winning their first state title after having been swept 5-0 by Delbarton in both of their previous state title games.
The wrestling team won Non-Public B state titles in 2001 and 2003 over Gloucester Catholic High School and St. Mary's High School of East Rutherford respectively. The 2001 title was the team's first since 1985. In 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017, the Hermits won the South Jersey Non-Public A sectional title.
The football team won the NJSIAA Non-Public Group I state sectional championships in 1995.
Notable alumni
- Olu Babalola (born 1981), professional basketball player for Sheffield Sharks in Britain.
- Mike Catalana (born c. 1963, class of 1981), sports director of WHAM-TV in Rochester, New York.
- Jack Crawford (born 1988), professional football player for the Atlanta Falcons.
- Sam Fiocchi (born 1952), member of the New Jersey General Assembly who represents the 1st Legislative District.
- Chris Gheysens (born 1971, class of 1989), Chief Executive Officer of Wawa Inc.
- William Gormley (born 1946, class of 1964), former member of the New Jersey General Assembly (1978-1982) and New Jersey Senate (1982-2007), who represented the 2nd Legislative District.
- Daniel J. Hilferty (born 1956, class of 1974), President and Chief Executive Officer of Independence Blue Cross.
- Austin Johnson (born 1994), defensive lineman who plays for the Tennessee Titans.
- Brendan McHugh (born 1990), swimmer who specializes in breaststroke events.
- Neil McPeak, member of the US Rowing team for the 2012 Summer Olympics who was part of the US Junior National Team which won the world championships.
- Pops Mensah-Bonsu (born 1983, class of 2002), played for the Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets, and the Benetton Treviso and the Toronto Raptors; represented Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
- Andrew Sullivan (born 1980), professional basketball player for Dexia Mons-Hainaut in Belgium; represented Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
References
External links
- St Augustine Preparatory Official site
- Data for St. Augustine College Preparatory School, National Center for Education Statistics
Source of article : Wikipedia
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