Bishop Hendricken High School

Bishop Hendricken High School (or Hendricken) is a Catholic, all-male, college preparatory high school located in Warwick, Rhode Island, in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence.

Bishop Hendricken High School
Bishop Hendricken High School seal
Address
2615 Warwick Avenue

Warwick
,
Rhode Island
02889

United States
Information
TypePrivate, all-male, college preparatory
Motto"Catholic Values Fostering a Tradition of Excellence"
Religious affiliation(s)Roman Catholic
EstablishedSeptember, 1959
School districtRoman Catholic Diocese of Providence
PresidentFr. Robert L. Marciano
PrincipalMark R. DeCiccio
Faculty86 full-time
Grades8–12
Enrollment944
Average class size22
Student to teacher ratio14:1
Color(s)Green and Gold         
MascotHawk
AccreditationNew England Association of Schools and Colleges[1]
AffiliationRoman Catholic
Websitewww.hendricken.com

Founded by the Brothers of the Holy Cross in 1959, and named in honor of the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Providence, Thomas Francis Hendricken, the school's faculty was long composed of both lay and religious individuals. The Congregation of Christian Brothers provided staff for the school after the Holy Cross Brothers' departure in 1971 until 2011.[2]

The school currently enrolls a student body of around 900 students. At the beginning of the 2015–2016 school year, Hendricken launched an 8th grade program, the SELECT Honors Institute. The school offers college preparatory courses at four academic levels.

The school sits on a suburban 34-acre campus in the Warwick Neck area of Warwick.

Academics

Hendricken offers instruction in the humanities, arts, and sciences. The school's academic curriculum includes 4 levels of college preparatory instruction, including accelerated and honors tracks. Hendricken's academic departments include: English, Fine Arts, Health/Physical Education, Mathematics, Modern Language, Science, Social Studies, and Theology.[3] The school also offers elective courses in Business, Fine Arts, Writing, Psychology, Criminology, and more.

The school offers Advanced Placement courses in English Literature, English Language & Composition, Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Statistics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, European History, United States History, United States Government, Music Theory, French, Italian, and Spanish.

In 2008-2009, Hendricken launched the Brother Thomas R. Leto Options Program aimed at providing a Catholic high school education for students with mild to moderate developmental disabilities.[4]

In 2015-2016, the school opened its SELECT Honors Institute for qualified 8th grade boys in Rhode Island, and the neighboring communities of Massachusetts and Connecticut.[5]

Arts

Hendricken offers a comprehensive honors program for arts students, the Arts Academy, and features instruction in Drama (acting & technical theater), Music (band & chorus), Media Arts, Visual Arts. The Arts program also offers several electives.

Hendricken's Drama program showcased the U.S. premiere of Shay Healy's musical, The Wiremen.[6] The program offers the opportunity for students to write, develop, direct, design, and produce their own one-act productions for an annual play festival. In 2011 and 2015, the Drama program represented the state of Rhode Island at the New England Drama Festival for their original plays. In 2012, Hendricken performed as one of 35 schools at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland. The program is in residence at the Dr. Daniel S. Harrop Theater, built in 2006. The theater features 350 seats, a thrust stage, full catwalk grid, lighting, sound and projection systems.[7]

The school also fields the only competitive high school show choir in the state of Rhode Island.[8]

Hendricken's Music programs include concert band, wind ensemble, jazz band, string ensemble, percussion ensemble, pep band, and two choirs. Bands have performed at the St. Patrick's Day Parade in New York City, Meyerhoff Hall in Baltimore, and Walt Disney World. The chorus has performed in Italy where they sang for Pope Benedict at the Vatican and performed at the Chair of St. Peter in the Basilica; Ireland, Spain, Portugal, Hawaii, New York City, Universal Studios, and Walt Disney World.[9]

Hendricken also offers programs in Media Arts, including: digital photography, digital media, film editing, screenwriting, and filmmaking. Each Spring, student work is featured at the SENE Film Festival in Providence. In 2006, the school built a state-of-the-art digital production suite, NI-RO-PE Digital Media Studio. The school also offers programs in Visual Arts, including: ceramics, paint, pen and ink, and printmaking. Students have been awarded Silver and Gold Keys at the Scholastic Art Competition.

Athletics

Bishop Hendricken is a member of the Rhode Island Interscholastic League (RIIL). The school offers 14 sports in RIIL competition, including: Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Hockey, Indoor Track & Field, Lacrosse, Outdoor Track & Field, Soccer, Swimming, Tennis, Volleyball, and Wrestling. To date, the school touts 206 Rhode Island state championships.[10] Hendricken has a long-standing rivalry with fellow Catholic school, La Salle Academy.

Hendricken's Football program has more Rhode Island Super Bowl appearances (23) than any other school in the state, and boasts 14 championships since 1968.[11] The school was the first in Rhode Island history to win seven consecutive state titles from 2010-2016, during which the team accrued a 76-6 record.[12][13] The team is coached by Keith Croft.

The school also offers two club teams. Hendricken's Rugby team was the first offered by a high school in Rhode Island. In 2019, Pilgrim High School and La Salle Academy have also created teams and formed the Rhode Island Rugby League (RIRL) and hope to expand as a league.[14] The team travels to tournaments around New England for competition, and plays a full Spring season against schools from Massachusetts. In 2010, Hendricken won the New England Rugby Championship, and has earned 3 Massachusetts Youth Rugby Organization Championships.[15] In addition, the school also offers a Sailing team that competes out of the East Greenwich Yacht Club.

Hendricken also offers 2 Unified Sports, Volleyball and Basketball, through the RIIL and Special Olympics of Rhode Island. The programs are intended for members of the school's Options Program to compete alongside partner athletes from the general school community against other Rhode Island Unified Sports teams.[16] In 2018, Bishop Hendricken was recognized as a National Banner Unified Champion School by Special Olympics.[17]

Facilities

Bishop Hendricken is located on a 34-acre campus located in the suburban Warwick Neck area of Warwick, Rhode Island.

Academic Facilities

  • 4 science labs, 1 with sympodium projection area
  • 185 computers and wireless Internet access throughout campus
  • 2 computer labs with 4 servers
  • Library with 18 computers, 1 OPAC stand-up computer, and sympodium projection area
  • 20 classrooms with Smartboard Technology
  • 2 Options Program classrooms

Arts Facilities

  • Dr. Daniel S. Harrop Theater - 350-seat air-conditioned theater with full catwalk grid, thrust stage, and state-of-the-art lighting, sound and projection systems, tech booth and control room, and full scene shop
  • NI-RO-PE Digital Media Studio - state-of-the-art sound and video editing suite, full television production studio, Apple workstations, and projection system
  • Visual art studio
  • Band suite
  • Chorus room
  • Individual practice rooms

Athletics Facilities

  • McNally Gym & Pepin Gym - two full gymnasiums including locker facilities for 300 athletes, a training room, weight room, and coaches' room
  • Feerick Field at Hayden Stadium - artificial turf playing field marked for football, soccer, lacrosse and rugby with a 1,500 seat grandstand, and state-of-the-art HD video scoreboard
  • Track at Hayden Stadium - a six lane polyurethane all-weather track with facilities for jumping and throwing events
  • Ray Pepin Field - fenced natural grass baseball stadium with dugouts, press box, scoreboard, and concession stand
  • Five tennis courts
  • Practice fields - 200,000 square feet of multi-purpose natural grass athletic practice space
  • Street hockey & outdoor basketball courts - 5,000 square foot space for street hockey and 2 basketball courts

Miscellaneous

  • Bookstore
  • Campus Ministry suite
  • Blessed Edmund Rice Chapel
  • Guidance suite
  • Outdoor Prayer Garden
  • Vietnam Veteran's Memorial Wall
  • War Memorial Prayer Garden

Controversies

Joseph T. Brennan, Jr., former principal

Former principal Joseph "Jay" Brennan resigned from his position on January 17, 2018, after a video depicting him using racial profanity to refer to African Americans and followers of Judaism was anonymously sent to WPRI. The six-second video was secretly recorded in the office of the principal, which was then emailed to WPRI. WPRI reporter Walt Buteau published an article detailing the incident.[18]

The video in question was also shown to the president of the Providence division of the NAACP, who called the language used "unacceptable." The public video has been edited to remove profanity. Two official statements have been made, one statement[19] by Bishop Thomas Tobin, the other statement[20] by then-school president John A. Jackson.

John A. Jackson, former president

Jackson attracted criticism after writing a letter to the editor of The Providence Journal titled "Obama's immoral position on gay marriage".[21][22][23] A Facebook group was created to protest Jackson's comments, attracting hundreds of students and alumni.[24]

Timothy A. Sheldon, former vice principal

Former vice principal Timothy A. Sheldon pleaded no contest to one count of solicitation of sex to a child on Thursday, February 10, 2005. Sheldon, who had worked at the school for over 10 years, was charged with two counts of indecent solicitation of a minor, according to TurnTo10.[25] He allegedly had a sexually explicit discussion in an online chat room with who Sheldon believed to be a 14-year-old boy. Sheldon was arrested on the 17th of December, 2004. At age 39, Sheldon was sentenced to five years probation and was forced to surrender his state teaching certificate and was ordered to complete sex offender counseling. He is also not to be employed in any job involving contact with minors in the future and to not use the Internet.[26]

John Walderman, former principal

In 1986, Principal John Walderman was arrested for soliciting sex from an underage boy.[27][28][29] The case was dismissed a year later. When it was discovered that Walderman had then been reassigned to another all-boys' high school in Harlem, New York, he became a notable figure in the sexual abuse scandal in the Congregation of Christian Brothers.[28][29]

Wrongful termination suit

On June 13, 2018, David Marsocci, a former educator at the school, filed suit for wrongful termination. Marsocci alleged that another teacher used a school computer to seek sexual encounters, and when school administrators decided not to take action against that teacher, Marsocci started a website to blow the whistle on the teacher and administrators. School president John Jackson has said their investigation found the allegations were meritless, and claims that Marsocci fabricated evidence. The litigation remains pending in Kent County Superior Court, in Warwick, RI.[30] Prior to the lawsuit, in 2017, the Department of Labor and Training ruled that the school did not have a policy covering the reason for termination, qualifying Marsocci to receive unemployment benefits.[31][32]

Notable alumni
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References
  1. "CIS Directory of Schools". NEASC-Commission on Independent Schools. Archived from the original on 2009-06-16.
  2. "History". Bishop Hendricken High School. Retrieved December 5, 2017.
  3. "Academic Departments | Bishop Hendricken High School". Bishop Hendricken High School. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  4. "Options Program | Bishop Hendricken High School". Bishop Hendricken High School. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  5. "8th Grade SELECT Honors Institute | Bishop Hendricken High School". Bishop Hendricken High School. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  6. "Theatre Mirror Reviews - "The Wire Men"". www.theatermirror.com. Retrieved 2018-09-27.
  7. "Drama | Bishop Hendricken High School". Bishop Hendricken High School. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  8. "SCC: Schools in Rhode Island". www.showchoir.com. Retrieved 2018-09-27.
  9. "Instruments & Voice | Bishop Hendricken High School". Bishop Hendricken High School. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  10. "Championship History | Bishop Hendricken High School". Bishop Hendricken High School. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  11. "Football | Bishop Hendricken High School". Bishop Hendricken High School. Retrieved 2018-09-27.
  12. Gillooly, John. "Hendricken 48, La Salle 28: Hawks roll to seventh straight state title". providencejournal.com. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  13. "Bishop Hendricken wins seventh straight Rhode Island Super Bowl title - High School Football America". High School Football America. 2016-12-03. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  14. Gillooly, John. "Hendricken's low-profile rugby team among the nation's best". providencejournal.com. Retrieved 2018-09-27.
  15. "Rugby | Bishop Hendricken High School". Bishop Hendricken High School. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  16. "Unified Sports | Bishop Hendricken High School". Bishop Hendricken High School. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  17. "National School Recognition Program". Dot Org. 2018-08-03. Retrieved 2018-09-09.
  18. Buteau, Walt. (January 17th, 2018) “Bishop Hendricken Principal Retires over Racially Charged, ‘Inflammatory’ Video.” WPRI 12 Eyewitness News, WPRI, 17 Jan. 2018, 4:35PM. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  19. Tobin, Thomas J. (January 17, 2018). official statement Archived 2018-01-18 at the Wayback Machine
  20. Jackson, John A. (January 17, 2018). John Jackson's statement Archived 2018-01-18 at the Wayback Machine
  21. Jackson, John A. (May 11, 2012). Letters to the editor - Obama's immoral position on gay marriage. Providence Journal. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  22. Williams, Loren. (May 21, 2012). Teaching children to belittle gay people. FutureWorld. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  23. Almeida, Zachary. (May 18, 2012). Letters to the editor - Zachary Almeida: Hendricken official, Obama and gays. Providence Journal. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  24. Rowley, Travis. (May 19, 2012). Travis Rowley: Hendricken, Progressives, and Homosexuality. GoLocalProv. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  25. (December 17, 2004). “Vice Principal Charged With Indecent Solicitation Of Minor.”, TurnTo10, 17 Dec. 2004, 10:58AM
  26. (February 10, 2005). “Former Principal Sentenced For Soliciting Minor On Internet.”, TurnTo10, 10 Feb. 2005, 6:53AM
  27. (March 20, 1986). Catholic school principal pleads innocent. The Lewiston Journal. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  28. Mangan, Dan. (November 19, 2007). Haunted By Past. New York Post. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  29. White, Tim (March 16, 2012). "Hendricken Alums Receive Ominous Letter". WPRI. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013.
  30. Buteau, Walt (2018-06-13). "Fired teacher claims colleague sought sexual encounters on school computer". WPRI. Retrieved 2018-10-14.
  31. Buteau, Walt (2017-08-22). "Bishop Hendricken, former teacher square off in termination dispute". WPRI. Retrieved 2018-10-14.
  32. Buteau, Walt (2017-08-29). "Board decides in teacher's favor in bitter Bishop Hendricken termination case". WPRI. Retrieved 2018-10-14.
  33. "Will Blackmon on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2018-09-27.
  34. "Nolan North on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
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