Catholic Memorial
Address
235 Baker Street

West Roxbury
,
(Suffolk County)
,
MA
02132

United States
Coordinates42°16′39″N 71°9′58″W / 42.27750°N 71.16611°W / 42.27750; -71.16611
Information
TypePrivate, all-boys
MottoVince in Bono Malum
(Conquer evil by doing good)
Religious affiliation(s)Roman Catholic,
Congregation of Christian Brothers
EstablishedSeptember 9, 1957 (1957-09-09)
FounderJoseph G. McKenna
PresidentDr. Peter F. Folan
PrincipalAndrew O'Brien
Grades7-12
Enrollment597[1] (2023–2024)
Student to teacher ratio12:1
Campus size12 acres (49,000 m2)
Color(s)Red & silver   
AthleticsMIAA - Division 1
Athletics conferenceCatholic Conference - District B
NicknameCM
Team nameKnights
RivalBoston College High, Malden Catholic, Xaverian, St. Johns Prep
AccreditationNew England Association of Schools and Colleges[2]
PublicationCM Magazine[3]
NewspaperKnight Insight
YearbookTalisman
Tuition$26,725 (2023–2024)[4]
Alumni10,000+
Websitewww.catholicmemorial.org

Catholic Memorial (CM) is an all-boys college preparatory school (grades 7–12) located in West Roxbury, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston and is administered by the Congregation of Christian Brothers.

History

Catholic Memorial High School, as it was called at the time, opened its doors on September 9, 1957, with 225 students and five Christian Brothers of Ireland in the former St. Theresa of Avila Parish School building. The building, now known as Donahue Hall, was donated to the Christian Brothers by Monsignor Charles A. Donahue, V.F., LL.D. who was the pastor of St. Theresa's.

The school was named "Catholic Memorial" at the suggestion of Richard Cardinal Cushing, to commemorate the sesquicentennial of the Archdiocese of Boston and as a memorial to Catholic donors.

Brother Joseph G. McKenna, C.F.C., was the first headmaster of Catholic Memorial; he opened a new school building which was dedicated by Cardinal Cushing on November 10, 1959. Three years later the classroom wing was opened and the enrollment increased to 1110 students.

In 1971 there were 22 Christian Brothers, but in 2016, only three.

The middle school opened in September 1993 with 185 students in grades 7 and 8.[5]

Academics

The tuition charge for the 2023-24 school year was US$26,725. Scholarships are awarded upon admission to students in Catholic Memorial's middle school and high school programs. The admissions committee selects students for scholarship eligibility based upon their past academic performance and the results of the entrance exams. No applications are available for scholarships; instead, every application for admission is reviewed for scholarship potential. Financial aid is available for qualifying families. Over $1 million is given annually in financial aid.

Catholic Memorial offers 18 Advanced Placement courses in 2023.

College placement

Catholic Memorial is a college-preparatory institution. Students come from over 90 different towns and communities.[6]

Community service

CM's mission includes the mandate to teach young men to "lead through service".[7] CM students participate in numerous BERSI trips each year. These domestic and international travel experiences, build community among the students and immerse students in service experiences. Trips include the Dominican Republic and Jamaica, as well as Brownsville, Texas, and Wyoming. Additionally, a required 60-hour senior service program begins at the start of each year, with seniors serving at inner-city grammar schools, hospitals, non-profit agencies, clothing distribution centers, food pantries, and soup kitchens. Volunteers from all grades also participate in service experiences. Each year, CM students send large delegations - The Sea of Red - to the Walk for Breast Cancer.

In the past, the Annual Blessed Edmund Rice Solidarity Initiative (BERSI) has organized school trips to El Salvador, Europe, Peru, Dominican Republic, South Korea and Canada.[8]

Controversies

Anti-Semitism

Catholic Memorial made headlines in 2016 when students chanted anti-semitic expressions at a basketball game against Newton North High School. Catholic Memorial students at the game chanted "You killed Jesus. "[9] In response to the incident, Newton superintendent David Fleishman contacted the Anti-Defamation League, feeling that "they have a lot of work to do at Catholic Memorial."[9] The Archdiocese of Boston called the situation "unacceptable."[10] In a subsequent statement, Catholic Memorial indicated that they were "deeply disturbed by the behavior of a group of student spectators who made an unacceptable chant."[10] Catholic Memorial ultimately made long-term revisions to their curriculum that would mitigate any recurrence of such an incident of antisemitism.[11]

Athletics

Ice hockey

Catholic Memorial has consistently been ranked #1 in Massachusetts boys' ice hockey by the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, and United States High School Hockey Online (USHSHO) polls. Catholic Memorial has also been nationally ranked as the #1 team in the United States a number of times, most recently in 2008.

In 2022, Catholic Memorial won the Catholic Conference.[12]

Extracurriculars

Athletic clubs

Journalism

Catholic Memorial students produce a number of publications each year. Errant is CM's literary magazine, publishing original poems, stories, and artwork by students.[13] Knight Insight is published by the in-school Journalism class, and includes school news and updates as well as submissions from students.[13] The CM Latin Club publishes Equites, a seasonal newspaper.[14] Yearbook Club meets year-round starting in September and produces the school's annual yearbook, moderated by Craig Spaner.

CMTV

Catholic Memorial Television is Catholic Memorial's broadcast journalist program. Using an online live-streaming program, CMTV broadcasts a short program every morning to each homeroom, reporting news, notices, and upcoming events and sports games.[13] In addition to broadcasting the pledge of allegiance and morning prayer, CMTV also arranges humorous skits and facilitates special announcements from school leadership.[13] As of 2022, the club no longer does daily broadcasts.

Latin Club

Catholic Memorial's Junior Classical League, or Latin Club, is always represented at the Massachusetts State Convention, where many CM students win prizes.[13] It publishes Equites, a seasonal newspaper detailing the club's events and achievements.[13][14]

Theater

The Catholic Memorial Theater Program, known in the 1960s as the Genesians and later as the Catholic Memorial Players and Drama Club, puts on two shows a year. In the past, one play in autumn was performed annually, but later, the Drama Club added a spring musical. The following is a list of some past performances:

Year Fall play Year Spring musical
1960 Arsenic and Old Lace
1964 You Can't Take It with You
1965 When Men Reduce as Women Do
1966 Julius Caesar
1968 The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial
1970 The Mouse That Roared
1984 Grease
1993 Inherit the Wind 1993 Count Dracula
1999 Peter Pan
2006 Chess
2006 On Borrowed Time 2007 Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
2007 Twelve Angry Men[15] 2008 Guys and Dolls[15]
2008 A Man for All Seasons[16] 2009 How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying[15]
2009 2010 Les Misérables
2010 The Guys[17] 2011 Grease[18]
2011 2012 Damn Yankees[19]
2012 2013 Me and My Girl[20]
2013 It's a Wonderful Life[20] 2014 Shrek The Musical[20]
2014 Sherlock Holmes[20] 2015 Catch Me If You Can[21]
2015 Twentieth Century[22] 2016 Bye Bye Birdie[23]
2016 Hamlet 2017 The Addams Family
2017 Cyrano de Bergerac 2018 Phantom
2018 You Can't Take It with You 2019 Oliver (musical)
2019 And Then There Were None 2020 Little Shop of Horrors (musical)
2020 45 Plays for 45 Presidents 2021 Camelot (musical)
2021 Witness for the Prosecution 2022 Guys and Dolls (musical)
2022 The Odd Couple 2023 The Pirates of Penzance (musical)
2023 Macbeth 2024

Honor societies

Catholic Memorial offers multiple honor societies, ranging from individual subjects to the National Honor Society.[13] The following is a list of active honor societies:

Honor society Requirements
Latin Honor Society
  • Studied Latin for two years
  • High GPA in a language class
National Honor Society
Rho Kappa Social Studies Honor Society
  • High GPA in history class
World Language Honor Society
  • High GPA in Latin class

Speech and debate

At Catholic Memorial, nearly every student participates in "forensics", or speech and debate, at one point in his academic career.[24] CM faculty teach students public speaking skills through various classroom activities. In the Speech and Debate club students perform and compete inter-scholastically as they recite speeches, dramatic acts and original oratory. Since 1961 the school's Speech and Debate program have produced over 25 state and three national champions. The 2010 team won the "Founder's Award" at Nationals. The team joined the NSDA 100 Club in October, 2018 in recognition for accumulating over 100 degrees over the course of the 2017–2018 school year. The Forensics program has won two straight Massachusetts Speech and Debate league championships in 2017 and 2018. After a second-place finish in 2019, Catholic Memorial returned as champions of Massachusetts Speech and Debate League in both 2020, 2021, and 2022.

Notable alumni

Notable faculty

References

  1. ↑ Official website, retrieved Sept 12, 2023
  2. ↑ NEASC-CIS. "NEASC-Commission on Independent Schools". Archived from the original on 2009-06-16. Retrieved 2009-07-28.
  3. ↑ CM Magazine
  4. ↑ Official website, Tuition page, retrieved Sept 12, 2023
  5. ↑ "History of CM". Archived from the original on 2015-11-06. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
  6. ↑ "Catholic Memorial School guidance fact sheet" (PDF).
  7. ↑ "Catholic Memorial students perform week of service in Bosnia". Archived from the original on 2013-01-31.
  8. ↑ "Catholic Memorial School website". Archived from the original on 2012-11-29.
  9. 1 2 "Catholic Memorial students chant anti-Jewish taunt at game - the Boston Globe". The Boston Globe.
  10. 1 2 "Mass. Catholic school apologizes for anti-Semitic chant". CBS News.
  11. ↑ "Catholic Memorial Bans Students from Monday's Semifinal Basketball Game After Anti-Semitic Chant". 14 March 2016.
  12. ↑ Official website, News page, article dated 2/10/2022
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Clubs & Activities". www.catholicmemorial.org. Archived from the original on 2016-04-16. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  14. 1 2 "Newspaper". Latin club. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  15. 1 2 3 McGonegal, Joe. "How to succeed in drama at Catholic Memorial - really try". Wicked Local. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  16. ↑ "Catholic Memorial School Blog: CM Drama brings "A Man for All Seasons" to the stage November 21". catholicmemorial.blogspot.com. 19 November 2008. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  17. ↑ McGonegal, Joe. "For Catholic Memorial director, 'The Guys' takes on added meaning". Wicked Local Roslindale. Archived from the original on 2016-04-25. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  18. ↑ "Catholic Memorial on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  19. ↑ "Students perform 'Damn Yankees' at Catholic Memorial School". Boston.com. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  20. 1 2 3 4 "Arts - Mount Alvernia High School". Mount Alvernia High School. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  21. ↑ "Catholic Memorial on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  22. ↑ "Twentieth Century: Where oversized personalities are welcomed". Catholic Memorial School. 2015-12-04. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  23. ↑ "Spring Musical 2016". www.catholicmemorial.org. Archived from the original on 2016-10-16. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  24. ↑ "Meet CM students". Archived from the original on 2013-01-22.
  25. ↑ Crowley, P. J. (April 7, 1972). "Perry, Blaney accept top HC positions". The Boston Globe.
  26. ↑ "Dismissed from CM, Bill Hanson still has his supporters - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved 2017-05-24.
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