Learning from America’s “Most Historic City”
It is hard to imagine St. Joseph’s Prep without its location in North Philadelphia. Just as Catholic, Jesuit, and all-male, the Prep’s 17th & Girard address is part of its DNA, a vital part of the school’s unique and successful educational process. It is one of the major things that separates it from other outstanding secondary schools.
History Teacher Bill Conners ’80 is one who frequently utilizes the Prep’s proximity to historic landmarks in his work. Neighborhood walks, museums/libraries, speakers, and more help to bring the work in American History, US Government, and American Studies courses to life.
“Walking the streets of colonial Philadelphia or the campus of Girard College to experience the sites we learned about through primary source documents adds a dimension to student learning that a video or AI can’t provide,” Conners states. “The opportunity to ask a question of a speaker at Penn Law or the Constitution Center challenges our students to think on their feet and assert themselves confidently in a very public setting. Being in the most historic city in America with so many fine universities provides our students with many such opportunities.”
“Walking the streets of colonial Philadelphia or the campus of Girard College to experience the sites we learned about through primary source documents adds a dimension to student learning that a video or AI can't provide”
Last year, Religious Studies Teacher Caroline Becker P ’27, ’29 was inspired to use the city as the basis for a new senior elective course: Religion in Philadelphia. Using the city’s rich religious culture and spaces, she has developed a course that helps students learn to see faith all around them.
“We talk about how cura urbi (Latin: care for the city) and how Philly is our campus, so I want students to be in it,” says Becker.
This year, the group has taken neighborhood tours, trips to the Art Museum to see how the culture of sports can be related to religion, visited local churches in many different denominations, learned about the first Jesuits in the city as well as other churches of our Founding Fathers, and even brought the chaplain of the Philadelphia Phillies in for a discussion about his work with the players.
“There is so much religious history that I want us to tap into,” Becker says. “Old St. Joseph’s Church, where the Prep was founded, was the only place in the English colonies where Catholics could publicly worship. It is a pretty profound history, it’s here in our city, and it is part of our (Prep) history.”
On the walks, Becker encourages students to observe what’s around them, to look for lived religion in buildings, bumper stickers, window art, clothing, signs, etc. “Lived religion is a very tactile experience and I want our students to taste, touch, feel, and smell it.”
"It is a pretty profound history, it’s here in our city, and it is part of (Prep) history.”
Becker is also co-moderator of the Asian Culture Club with Chinese teacher Joann Chen. During the year, the group takes trips to the Chinatown section of Philadelphia to give students a more in-depth cultural experience.
“Having Chinatown so close gives us a wonderful opportunity to experience Chinese culture and food,” says Chen. “The trips there with the Asian Culture Club are some of our most fun activities of the year and it is a short subway ride away.”
In her Computer Science classes, Teresa Hoffman has utilized personal and Prep connections to give her students access to the many technological opportunities available. Classes visited Comcast’s Technology Center to learn about careers. Students visited Nerd Street, a gaming facility, and Netrality data center to see how they handle large internet flows and other web hosting. Robotics students toured the facility at the University of Pennsylvania and visited a maker space named NextFab.
“Our relationship with NextFab has been amazing,” says Hoffman. “They are helping the students make their designs come to life.”
She says that they have also connected with A.I. (Loman A.I.) and software development firms (Proscia) in the city that talked to the students about the tech industry. “Last year, the head of technology for Top Golf Philly met us and we learned about their software called Top Tracer that is used on the PGA,” she says. “These real-world applications are important for our students to see beyond the academic component.”
The above examples are far from the only ones. Ms. Kathleen Quinter and Ms. Meredith Morgan bring students to lectures at the Union League, Mr. Leo Vaccaro ’05 offers opportunities at local historic centers and libraries. That doesn’t even include the many ways that students utilize the city for service opportunities and other activities.
