St. Joseph's Preparatory School

Jesuit high school in Philadelphia, US From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

St. Joseph's Preparatory School, known as "St. Joe's Prep" or simply "The Prep", is an urban, private, Catholic, college preparatory school run by the Society of Jesus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The school was founded in 1851 from the Old St. Joseph's Church in the city's Society Hill neighborhood.[3] The school moved to its current campus on Girard Avenue in the 1870s with the construction of the Church of the Gesu.

Coordinates39°58′21″N 75°9′53″W
TypePrivate, All-boys college-preparatory educational institution
Motto(Latin): Ad Maiorem Dei Gloriam
(For the greater glory of God)
Religious affiliationCatholic Church (Jesuit)
Quick facts Location, Coordinates ...
St. Joseph's Preparatory School
Location
1733 West Girard Avenue

Philadelphia
,
Pennsylvania
19130

United States
Coordinates39°58′21″N 75°9′53″W
Information
TypePrivate, All-boys college-preparatory educational institution
Motto(Latin): Ad Maiorem Dei Gloriam
(For the greater glory of God)
Religious affiliationCatholic Church (Jesuit)
Patron saintSaint Joseph
Established1851; 175 years ago (1851)
OversightSociety of Jesus
PresidentJohn F. Marinacci
PrincipalJohn McCaul
Grades9–12
GenderBoys
Enrollment937
Campus size6.5 acres (2.6 ha)
Campus typeUrban
ColorsCrimson and Gray   
SloganEducating Men of Competence, Conscience & Compassion since 1851
SongSwing on Along With the Crimson
Athletics conferencePhiladelphia Catholic League
PIAA USRowing
NicknameHawks
RivalLa Salle College High School
AccreditationMiddle States Association of Colleges and Schools[1]
PublicationChronicle (literary magazine)
NewspaperThe Hawkeye
YearbookThe Chronicle
Tuition$28,300 (2025-2026)
Websitewww.sjprep.org
Girard Avenue Historic District
St. Joseph's Preparatory School is located in Philadelphia
St. Joseph's Preparatory School
St. Joseph's Preparatory School is located in Pennsylvania
St. Joseph's Preparatory School
St. Joseph's Preparatory School is located in the United States
St. Joseph's Preparatory School
BuiltMid-late 19th century
ArchitectEdwin Forrest Durang, et al.
Architectural styleBaroque Revival
NRHP reference No.85003427[2]
Added to NRHPOctober 31, 1985

Main Entrance
Close

Curriculum

The credits must satisfy the minimums in religious studies (4), English (4), mathematics / computer science (4), history (3), science (3), classics & modern language (5), fine arts (1), electives (2). A minimum of two of the language credits must be in classics.[4]

Extracurricular activities

Athletics

St. Joseph's Prep's athletic teams compete as one of the 16 schools in the Philadelphia Catholic League. The Prep joined the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association in the 2007–2008 school year. The Prep offers the following athletic programs:

Fall: cross country, football (varsity, junior varsity, and freshmen), crew (varsity and junior varsity), rugby, soccer (varsity, junior varsity, and freshmen), squash (varsity and junior varsity), Ultimate Frisbee (club), and golf.

Winter: basketball (varsity, junior varsity, and freshmen), bowling (varsity and junior varsity), indoor track and field, swimming, wrestling (varsity and junior varsity), and ice hockey (varsity, junior varsity, and freshmen).

Spring: baseball (varsity, junior varsity, and freshmen), crew (varsity, junior varsity, and freshmen), volleyball, lacrosse, outdoor track and field, tennis, mountain biking, Ultimate Frisbee (club), and rugby (varsity, junior varsity, freshmen/sophomore).

The boys senior eight crew team has won the Stotesbury Cup in national competition 16 times; in 1955, 1987, 1992, 1995, 1997, 1999–2001, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024, and 2025.[5] Additionally, the Prep is the only team to ever sweep all the boys' eights events at the Stotesbury Cup Regatta, having done it in 1997, 2008, 2023, 2024 and 2025.

In 2000, the Prep Varsity 8 won the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup at the Henley Royal Regatta.[6] In 2021, St. Joseph's Prep won the USRowing Youth National Championship in the Men's 8+ for the first time.[7] This was the first time a scholastic team won the national championship in over a decade. Subsequently, the Prep varsity 8 earned a silver medal at Youth Nationals in 2024. Additionally, in 2025, St. Joseph's Prep won the Under-17 8+ at the USRowing Youth National Championship.[8]

The Prep football team won back-to-back state championships, winning the Class 4A state championship in 2014 with a 49–41 win against Pine-Richland High School in the finals.[9] Despite losing to La Salle College High School early in the 2015 playoffs, the St. Joseph's Prep football team won the first-ever Class 6A PIAA state championship, defeating Pittsburgh Central Catholic by a score of 42–7 at HersheyPark Stadium in Hershey, Pennsylvania.[10] The team won the program's fourth state title in 2018 with a 40–20 win against Harrisburg High School in the Class 6A tournament final.[11]

Notable alumni

Academia and education

Authors and writers

Business

  • John McShain, building contractor; known as "The Man Who Built Washington"
  • Frank Quattrone, investment banker; founder/CEO of Qatalyst Group

Catholic Church

Entertainment

Engineering

Government and politics

Military

Sports

See also

References

External links

Related Articles

Wikiwand AI