Saint John Paul the Great Catholic High School (Virginia)

Saint John Paul the Great Catholic High School
Address
17700 Dominican Drive
Dumfries, Virginia, (Prince William County) 22026
United States
Coordinates 38°34′0″N 77°17′15″W / 38.56667°N 77.28750°W / 38.56667; -77.28750Coordinates: 38°34′0″N 77°17′15″W / 38.56667°N 77.28750°W / 38.56667; -77.28750
Information
Type Private, Coeducational
Motto Veritas
(Truth)
Religious affiliation(s) Roman Catholic
Established 2008
Authority Diocese of Arlington
Oversight Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia
Principal Sr. Mary Jordan Hoover, O.P.
Chaplain Rev. Bjorn Lundberg
Grades 9–12
Enrollment 610 (2013)
Average class size 20:1
Classes offered College Prep; Advanced, Honors, and AP
Campus size 40 acres (160,000 m2)
Color(s) Green, Black and White             
Mascot Wolf
Team name Wolfpack
Accreditation SACS[1]
Website http://www.jpthegreat.org/

Saint John Paul the Great Catholic High School is a private, coeducational Catholic high school in Dumfries, Virginia led by the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia. As a diocesan school of the Diocese of Arlington, it is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

In 2012 it was included in the Cardinal Newman Society's Top 50 Catholic High Schools list.[2] It was placed on the list again in 2014.[3]

In 2013 it was chosen by the editors of Virginia Living magazine as a 2013 Top Virginia School.

History

The school broke ground in September 2006 as the newest high school in the Diocese of Arlington with a construction cost of a state of the art facility at $60 million, funded by bonds, donations, and a capital campaign.[4] The school was built on 40 acres of land, valued at $14.5 million, that was given to the diocese.[4]

In October 2007, the Diocese announced it would be named after Pope John Paul II.[5] The school says that it has the only Catholic bioethics curriculum in the US.[6]

The school is led and taught by the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia,[7] commonly known as the Nashville Dominicans, an order of Catholic nuns who are much younger on average than other orders, and whose stated mission is teaching.[4]

The newly constructed school opened to incoming 9th and 10th graders in August 2008.[8] The school's first graduating class graduated in 2011.[9] Graduates from the Class of 2012 and 2013 were accepted into universities, including Ivy League schools, military appointments, Catholic institutions, and other Virginia schools. Combined, these students earned more than $12 million in academic scholarships to the universities of their choice.

In August 2013 the school opened with more than 600 students. The school intends to have an eventual capacity of 1,000 students.[6]

In May 2014 it was announced that, following John Paul II's canonization the previous month, the name of the school would be changed to Saint John Paul the Great.

The school is the only high school in the U.S. to offer a 4-year Catholic Bioethics Curriculum, and has a House system, with eight Houses named after Roman Catholic Saints. Houses compete against each other throughout the month to earn the title "House of the Month" and eventually, "House of the Year".

Sports

The school offers 17 sports. In 2009, the varsity football team completed their second season with a record of 9-1 and was the first team to represent the school in a state playoff tournament.[10] The junior varsity boys basketball posted the first winning record for a basketball team with nine wins and three losses.

In the 2010-2011 school year, both JV soccer and JV basketball went undefeated with soccer having an 11-0 season and basketball a 14-0 season.

In 2012, John Paul the Great's boys track and field team won the Catholic State Championship, the first state championship won in the school's history. The boys' track and field team won the Catholic State Championship again in 2014 and 2015.

In 2015, The Varsity boys football team produced a good record at 7-3 and once more clinched the State Playoffs. They lost in the first round to Bishop Ireton, who went on to lose to the State Champions, the Benedictine School.

Notes and references

  1. ↑ Accreditation
  2. ↑ 2012 Catholic High School Honor Roll Top 50
  3. ↑ http://www.cardinalnewmansociety.org/CatholicEducationDaily/DetailsPage/tabid/102/ArticleID/3534/Catholic-Education-Honor-Roll-Announced.aspx
  4. 1 2 3 Buzzworthy Sisters in Habits Headed to Va. School
  5. ↑ Dumfries high school named
  6. 1 2 Commute gets shorter for Catholic students
  7. ↑ School Web site: Dominican leadership
  8. ↑ Kipp Hanley. "John Paul The Great Kicks Off to a Great Start". Inside Nova News. Retrieved 2010-05-22.
  9. ↑ 'Pioneers' receive first diplomas
  10. ↑ Katy and Alan Metzler. "A Second Season of Firsts". Arlington Catholic Herald. Retrieved 2010-05-22.
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