Saint John XXIII High School

Saint John XXIII College Preparatory
Parare Mente et Corde To Prepare in Mind and Heart
Address
1800 West Grand Parkway Katy, Texas, (Harris County) 77449  United States
Coordinates	29°47′55″N 95°46′31″W / 29.79861°N 95.77528°WCoordinates: 29°47′55″N 95°46′31″W / 29.79861°N 95.77528°W
Information
Type	Private, Coeducational
Religious affiliation(s)	Roman Catholic
Patron saint(s)	Saint John XXIII
Established	2004
Principal	Tim Jaureguito
Chaplain	Fr. Steve Sellers
Grades	9–12
Gender	Co-Ed
Enrollment	385 (2013-2014)
Average class size	16
Student to teacher ratio	11:1
Campus size	35-acre (140,000 m^2)
Color(s)	Crimson and Gold
Mascot	Lion
Accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools [1]
Dean of Students	Matt Oelkers
Dean of Academics	Christopher Stuck
Athletic Director	Billy Jackson
Website	http://www.sj23lions.org

Saint John XXIII College Preparatory, formerly Pope John XXIII High School, is a Catholic independent, non-profit, coeducational, private day school which educates students in grades 9-12. The academic year consists of two semesters extending from approximately August to December and January to May in unincorporated Harris County, Texas, United States, near Katy. Student leadership development through the Works of Ministries program is a distinct characteristic of each young person's college preparatory experience, and leadership principles are integrated into every course at Saint John XXIII. 'SJ' is accredited by/a member of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston (RCAGH), led by Archbishop Daniel DiNardo. SJ is also the newest private day school in the Katy area for over fifty years, effective 2004. It is located at 1800 West Grand Parkway N.

Description

Saint John XXIII serves the west side of the Houston area in the Greater Katy Area. Students from the Katy, Spring, Cypress, Memorial, and Sugar Land areas attend the school. The current principal is Tim Jaureguito. In 2012, the school was honored by the Cardinal Newman Society for Excellence in Catholic Identity as a part of the Catholic High Schools Honor Roll; it was one of only seven schools in the nation to receive such a distinction.^[2] Graduates of Pope John attend but are not limited to Duke University located in Durham, North Carolina, American University in the nation's capital, University of California at Berkeley, Rice University in Houston, Texas and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston, Massachusetts.

Pope John XXIII High School is located on a 35-acre (140,000 m²) parcel of land. Twelve million dollars was raised to construct the campus buildings. The school was opened in 2004 with an inaugural freshman class of 40 students. Since then, each year has seen more students enrolling as the school added new classes and expanded into larger facilities. The current enrollment is 394 students and the school is preparing to continue expansion after the newly constructed Crosthwait Student Center and a Competition Gymnasium nicknamed by the students the 'New Gym.'

The school's mascot, nicknamed PJ, is the lion. The school offers 14 different athletic teams, including football, volleyball, boys and girls basketball, baseball, softball, swimming, tennis, boys and girls soccer, cross country, track and field, golf, lacrosse (offered by an offcampus club) and cheerleading. The women's swim team won the state title in TAPPS 4A in February 2012 and 2013. The girl's soccer team won the state title championship in TAPPS 3A in 2010. The TAPPS 4A Men's Cross Country champion has been from Pope John XXIII High School in the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 school years. In 2013, the football team went to the TAPPS 4A State title game, and in 2014 the Boys Golf team won their first state title.

Upon admission, students are sorted into one of five houses, much like the Oxford colleges system. These houses are Aquinas, Borromeo, Lisieux, Loreto, and Neri, each named after an important saint of the Catholic church. Each house has its own form of internal student government, senior house captains, and has faculty and staff associates who work with the members of their house. This house system is the first to be implemented in Catholic high schools in the state of Texas.

See also

• Christianity in Houston

Notes and references

1. SACS-CASI. "SACS-Council on Accreditation and School Improvement". Retrieved 2011-12-02.
2. "Cardinal Newman Society".

External links

• Pope John XXIII School home page
• Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston–Houston