Wednesday, February 22, Ash Wednesday, begins the holy season of Lent.  Students in grades 9-12 will attend mass and receive ashes to begin this holy season. 

Become a Bengal! Schedule your Entrance Exam

St. Benedict Prep is hosting a make-up test for incoming 8th graders this Saturday, January 21st at 10 a.m.  Students will need two #2 pencils and a the $25 test fee, payable by cash or check made out to St. Benedict.

For more information, please call High School Admissions Director Kevin Walsh at (773) 509-3831 or email him at kwalsh@stbenedict.com.

We look forward to meeting you!

Purchase a Birthday Balloon

The Pep Cub is coordinating its first line of business for the year, a Birthday Balloon Sale! This sale will run throughout the school year. If any middle school or high school student would like to purchase a birthday balloon for a friend, he or she can pre-order it through the pep club! What a fantastic way to show your friends you remembered their birthdays - buy a Mylar/foil or latex balloon. The pep club has pre-order forms in the Athletic Office. Please pre-order all balloons a day before you need them. There are order forms and balloon sale boxes in the MS and HS Cafeteria. Parents can also order balloons by filling out the order form available online on the MS and HS sites or by emailing Julie Fox at jfox@stbenedict.com. All balloons will be delivered during lunch.

Help support Pep Club by buying balloons for your friends or children! Balloon prices: Mylar (foil) birthday balloon - $5; Latex birthday balloon (maroon or gold) - $2, and Latex plain balloon (maroon or gold): $1.  Happy Birthday Bengals!

Naviance

Naviance is a new web-based software that allows students and parents to explore careers, colleges, set goals for the future, do course planning, and much more.  Questions may be directed to Guidance Counselor Tresa Mueller, tmueller@stbenedict.com or (773)539-0066, ext. 305.

Congratulations Class of 2011

Our best wishes and congratulations to the class of 2011!

Allen, Joshua – Triton College

Bryant, Donna – University of Illinois at Chicago

Cockerham, Lana – University of Illinois

at Urbana-Champaign

Collins, Terrion – Columbia College

Cortes, Arman – University of Illinois at Chicago

Custodio, Jessica - undecided

Dinh, Daniel – Loyola University Chicago

Dominguez, Jennifer – University of Illinois at Chicago

Eckhardt, Stephen – University of Illinois at Chicago

Gacharna, Amanda – Dominican University

Gago, Krysztof – Lewis University

Genge, Amanda – Carthage College

Gerhardt, Dustin – Columbia College

Greco, Natalia – Northeastern Illinois University

Grosvenor, Erin – University of Illinois at Chicago

Hernandez, Matthew – Northeastern Illinois University

Herrerra, Yolanda – University of Illinois at Chicago

Hinostroza, Bill – Northeastern Illinois University 

Irigoyen, Cecilia - undecided                                                            

Sr. Fran Wohn BVM and this year's student council VP Gertrude Kasole pose at the 2011 graduation

                                                                                 

Kasim, Omodolapo – University of Wisconsin-Parkside

Kasole, Gertrude – Illinois Institute of Technology

Kattner, Kristin – Columbia College

King, Mariah  – Harold Washington 

Martinez, Jonathan – Triton College

McConville, Connor – Triton College

Nieves, Elizabeth – Concordia University Chicago

Nota, Adam – Triton College 

Nota, Amanda - University of Illinois at Chicago

Nungaray, Pedro – Northeastern Illinois University

Obmann, Heather – Northeastern Illinois University

Olowo, Habeeb – Northern Illinois University

Orlowski, Victoria – University of Iowa

O’Shea, Jake – Saint Louis University

Park, Jeong Eun - Northeastern Illinois University

Parrilla, Mireya – Harold Washington College

Perez, Kyle – Northeastern Illinois University

Segovia, Edgar – University of Illinois at Chicago

Silva, Adrian – Columbia College

Situ, Stanley – University of Illinois at Chicago

Smerko, Christina – Carthage College

Soto, Adam – Western Illinois University

Stiglic, Jennifer – Wright College

Sukhu, Brad – University of Washington

Thalhammer, Brian - undecided

Thomas, Dimitri – Eastern Illinois University

Ulrich, Preston – Harper College

Wagner, Zane – Oakton Community College

Weichert, Jacob – DePaul University

Young, Alex – Northern Illinois University

Zagora, Edin – Northeastern Illinois University

Zarate, Daisy – DeVry University

Valedictorian Brad Sukhu and Salutatorian Daniel Dinh (right) were also recognized as Illinois State Scholars; both boys including 2 of another 3 St. Benedict Elementary School alums were ranked at the top of the High School senior class.

2011 St. Benedict Trip to the Orient a Success

Nine St. Benedict Prep High School students and two chaperones enjoyed an extraordinary Spring Break experience during a visit to China, touring Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai. We had the opportunity to tour some of China's most historical and culturally significant landmarks.

In Beijing, we enjoyed walking tours of the Summer Palace, the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, where they were able to view Chairman Mao Zedong's tomb. We also visited pearl and jade factories to learn about two of China's specialized jewelry exports. Additionally, we had the opportunity to tour a middle and high school which had 3,200 students and received a taiji lesson.

The highlight of Beijing was the chance to visit the Great Wall. The group had over two hours to explore and climb the Wall, a task that was quite a workout due to the steep inclines and uneven steps. After the Wall, we visited the Hutong, a historic Beijing neighborhood, where we toured in rickshaws before enjoying an authentic homemade Chinese dinner in a family's home.

After flying from Beijing to Xi'an, we were whisked to an art gallery to view beautiful works of art created by student artists and were taught how to paint letters from the Chinese alphabet, an experience that our students thoroughly enjoyed.

 

The next day held the jewel of Xi'an as we spent over three hours visiting and learning about the famed TerraCotta Warriors, a collection of over 8,000 manmade clay statues arranged to guard Emperor Qin's tomb. The statues were individually carved over 2,000 years ago and are being excavated and rebuilt by a team of archeologists.

Our final stop on the journey was Shanghai, China's most modern city, which has nearly 20 million residents. While in Shanghai, we visited the Jade Buddha Temple, Yuyuan Garden, The Bund, the Shanghai World Financial Center-China's tallest building and Nanjing Road, China's biggest shopping road.

The trip was tremendous and allowed our group to experience the nuances of Chinese culture, customs and cuisine in an educational and enjoyable environment.



Visit Our School for a Day

Paired up with one of our freshmen, you have an opportunity to see exactly all aspects of what it means to be part of the St. Benedict Preparatory High School family. Experience the new trimester schedule, see first hand the integrated technology in teachers' instruction, get to know teachers and students, take part in the new one-to-one laptop program, have lunch and get a feel for the friendly and welcoming atmosphere that we enjoy at SBPHS.

Call Mr. Kevin Walsh, HS admissions director, today to schedule a Shadow Day soon!  (773) 539-0066 ext. 325.