Fordham Preparatory School - Ramview Ramview Spring 2019 | Page 14

Message
lead to establishing Professional Learning Communities,
as we evaluate our master schedule and consider the
most effective use of time and space at the Prep.
Joseph A. Petriello, PhD ‘98
Principal
In October 2017, Jesuit education delegates from around
the world gathered in Rio de Janeiro for an International
Congress on Jesuit Education. Fr. Arturo Sosa, SJ, Superior
General of the Society of Jesus, joined them for prayer,
discernment and dialogue. His keynote address proposed
nothing less than a series of challenges and opportunities
that all Jesuit schools face in the early 21st century:
Renewal is an ongoing task in educational work. We need
to go a step ahead of what we know and imagine today.
Our educational models need to prepare young people
for the future. We cannot lie stuck in educational models
in which we as adults do not feel comfortable, and
therefore we need to take a step forward. We need to
be alert to the danger of the institutional inertia that
prevents discernment and needed renewal.
Fordham Prep is living in a moment of renewal. Our
NYSAIS accreditation, Strategic Plan and Province
Sponsorship Review have led to a moment of action,
change and re-imagination. In our strategic area of
Excellence in Teaching and Learning, we are exploring
new opportunities for 21st century learning through our
efforts in curriculum review, seeking to revise our courses
with greater attention to critical thinking, creativity,
collaboration and communication. Our STEAM Task
Force brings together passionate teachers of science,
technology, engineering, arts and mathematics to
explore more intentional ways to craft student-centered
interdisciplinary projects that aim to better society. We
continue to invite our faculty to deeper reflection on what
it means to be Ignatian educators through formation
programs attentive to pedagogical practice and values
rooted in our Catholic, Jesuit tradition. In time, this will
14 | RA MVIE W
In this issue of Ramview, you will encounter wonderful
reflections about the impact of the East Wing Project. Our
ambitious project is more than brick and mortar. It is part
of a bold vision of renovation and expansion that allows
our physical space to be renewed in ways that will
transform our commitment to excellence in teaching,
learning and counseling. Our new classrooms will allow
our Religious Studies and Social Studies teachers to
reimagine how to engage our young men in dialogue on
ethical values, civic virtue, political engagement and a
creative understanding of the impact of culture, history,
philosophy, religion and spirituality. Our new Counseling
Center will provide space for professional collaboration
among our school counselors and college counselors, as
well as support our students with clinical care and resources
for academic, social and emotional wellbeing. Our new
Admissions Center will be an inviting space for prospective
families as we welcome them to consider the Prep as their
home not just for the next four years, but truly for life within
our community of faith, scholarship and service.
Moments of renewal are moments of great hope.
Fordham Prep is one of 845 Jesuit schools sponsored by
the Society of Jesus throughout the world. There are also
over one thousand more schools and educational
projects through Jesuit Refugee Service and Fe y Alegría.
The magnitude of our global network and the impact
upon millions of students is a source of hope and
encouragement for the transformation of the world
through the education of young people. In recent weeks,
the Society of Jesus announced its Universal Apostolic
Preferences for the direction of the Jesuits and their
works for the next ten years. One of them is “to accompany
young people in the creation of a hope-filled future.” I very
much believe that this moment of renewal at Fordham Prep
will allow us to reflect and engage in this accompaniment in
new and exciting ways. Through all of the construction,
evaluation and creation, we need to always ask ourselves:
How can we better serve the mission of Fordham Prep?
How can we better serve our students? How can we
accompany them to create a hope-filled future?
May the words of the Jesuits in this moment of renewal
inspire us to bold change:
The apostolic works of the Society of Jesus can make an
important contribution to creating and maintaining
spaces that are open to young people in society and the
Church. Our works seek to be spaces open to youthful
creativity, spaces that both foster an encounter with the
God of life revealed by Jesus and deepen the Christian
faith of the young.