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About Us » Core Values

Core Values

 

Grounded in Faith (Spiritual)
Prepared through Reason (Intellectual)
Serving in Virtue (Societal)

 

The mission of St. John Paul II HS speaks of a transformational Catholic education.  Our core values of being grounded in faith, prepared through reason, and serving in virtue answers the question “What is an transformational Catholic education?”

 

Grounded in Faith

Students during Mass

To be grounded in faith is a gift to be cultivated that does not speak so much as to what we do, or what we know, but who we are in relationship to God.

  • We enable our students, faculty and staff to encounter Jesus Christ through personal and liturgical prayer, in the chapel, the classroom and through co-curricular activities, for we believe that in Christ we become the best version of ourselves.
  • We provide opportunities for students, faculty and staff to fully share in the Church as a sign of communion to each other and Jesus Christ, fostering a family spirit on campus.  “The family has as its mission to guard, reveal and communicate love…” (Familiaris Consortio, 17).
  • We believe that the Eucharist is the source and summit of the Christian life, whereby mass is celebrated daily on campus and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is made available.
  • We believe that all that is good, true and beautiful in this world is a gift that comes with responsibilities from God, who is the fullness of all that is good, true and beautiful.
  • We believe in the healing mercy of Jesus Christ extended to us through the sacrament of reconciliation and offer the sacrament once a week at mass and on retreats.
  • We respect and promote the inherent equal dignity of every person, especially the poor, unborn and elderly.
  • We foster a desire for holiness and continuous conversion to Jesus Christ, despite our imperfections, so that we may discern our God given vocation to be single, married, a priest or religious.
  • We believe that “the human body includes right from the beginning…the capacity of expressing love, that love in which the person becomes a gift—and by means of this gift—fulfills the meaning of his being and existence” (Theology of the Body, Jan. 16, 1980)
  • We seek excellence through our theological formation in the classroom, and powerful and tangible Christ-centered relevance during our class retreats.
  • We believe that Catholic education should be available to students regardless of their family’s financial status.
 

Prepared through ReasonStudents working in the library on a collaborative assignment

In seeking to be prepared through reason, we understand that God is the source of our intellect, and that it is a gift whereby we have a moral responsibility for its application and formation.
 
  • We believe that faith is not contrary to reason, but that “Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of the truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth—in a word, to know himself” (Fides et Ratio, 1, St. John Paul II)
  • We provide a well-rounded college preparatory education, with opportunities to earn college credit in high school, so that our students will have the academic skills required for college or some other form of advanced education.
  • We blend classroom collaboration, problem solving and project-based learning, so our students are challenged with STREAM (Science, Technology, Religion, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) projects coupled with Robotics and Coding. 
  • We become able to evaluate the reliability and validity of digital information and are able to work efficiently and effectively in a technological world.
  • We become a life-long learner, able to apply logic, critical thinking and problem-solving skills to new situations. 
  • We develop competence in oral and written expression that evidences sound analytical thinking and persuasive rhetoric.
  • We understand that students learn in different ways and should be provided a variety of instructional methods.
  • We believe that well defined goals with high expectations for individual student achievement should be the cornerstone of the curriculum.
  • We believe that the responsibility for providing a supportive and safe learning environment should be shared among teachers, staff, administrators, parents, students and the community.
 

Serving in Virtue 

Rotary Club help building a ramp for local family

Serving in virtue is the application of the formed gifts of faith
 and reason, whereby we engage in life’s epic adventure to be servant leaders, accepting God’s invitation to participate in His plan for the salvation of the world.
  • We promote opportunities for our students, faculty and staff to live out the Gospel of Jesus Christ in solidarity with their brothers and sisters in the community through acts of charity and works of mercy. 
  • We are called to be servant leaders with humility and integrity through sharing our gifts and talents with others.
  • We continue to seek knowledge and to evolve in the Catholic Christian faith so at to evaluate moral choices based on an understanding of Catholic teaching and values.
  • We believe that new faculty, staff, and students need caring mentorship in transitioning into the community at St. JPIIHS.
  • We respect cultural, socio-economic and intellectual differences, and accept constructive and non-constructive criticism with emotional maturity and charity.
  • We promote local church engagement, so as to nurture our faith and communal life, while giving glory to God.
  • We believe in the importance of co-curricular activities outside the classroom in the formation of a student’s intellectual, physical, social, emotional and spiritual needs.