St. Laurence High School
St. Laurence High School is a coeducational, STEM-based high school, founded in 1961. Located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, the school is conducted by the Congregation of Christian Brothers and is named for the Irish Saint Laurence O'Toole. It is located in the southwest Chicago suburb of Burbank, Illinois, adjacent to Queen of Peace High School, a private, all-female Catholic high school.
St. Laurence High School | |
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Address | |
5556 West 77th Street , 60459 United States | |
Coordinates | 41°45′14″N 87°45′36″W |
Information | |
Type | private |
Motto | Where Leadership Begins |
Religious affiliation(s) | Roman Catholic |
Established | 1961 |
Sister school | Queen of Peace |
Oversight | Archdiocese of Chicago |
President | Joseph A. Martinez |
Principal | Jim Muting |
Faculty | 60 |
Grades | 9-12 |
Gender | Coed |
Average class size | 24 |
Campus size | 23 acres (93,000 m2) |
Campus type | suburban |
Color(s) | Black and Gold |
Fight song | Viking Fight Song |
Athletics conference | Chicago Catholic League |
Mascot | Igor the Viking |
Team name | Vikings |
Accreditation | North Central Association of Colleges and Schools[1] |
Publication | Gladsheim (literary magazine) |
Newspaper | The Helm |
Yearbook | Valhallan |
Tuition | 10,000 (2017-2018) |
Affiliation | Congregation of Christian Brothers |
Website | www |
History
St. Laurence was founded by the Congregation of Christian Brothers as a boys' school. With the closure of its neighboring sister school Queen of Peace High School, a girls' school run by the Dominican Sisters, it was announced that St. Laurence would become coeducational from the 2018-19 academic year onwards and accommodate transferring female students.[2]
Due to construction delays on the Queen of Peace High School building, Queen of Peace High School classes were held in the D and E-Wings of the St. Laurence building for one school year while construction on Queen of Peace High School was completed.
Classes
At the start of the 2013 school year, St. Laurence became a STEM school. For STL, STEM is inclusive of spirituality and leadership along with science, technology, English, and math. STL intends that the STEM format will become a new learning development for 21st century learners. STL is also pioneering "Career Explorer" courses.
Athletics
St. Laurence is a member of the Chicago Catholic League (CCL) and the Illinois High School Association (IHSA).
St. Laurence sponsors interscholastic teams in baseball, basketball, bowling, cross country, football, golf, soccer, tennis, lacrosse, track and field, volleyball, and wrestling, which compete in IHSA sponsored state championship tournaments. The school also sponsors an ice hockey team.[3]
The following teams have finished in the top four at the IHSA state tournament in their respective class.[4]
- Baseball: 2nd place (2019), 3rd place (1993 , 2017), Semifinalist (1987)
- Basketball: 4th place (1976–77)
- Football: Champions (1976–77); Runner-Up (1979–80)
- Wrestling: Champions (1989–90)
The ice hockey team finished second in state in 1981, and reached the state Elite 8 in 1999. The now-defunct water polo team finished third in state in 1986 and won a state championship in 1987.
In 2004 the Varsity Hockey team won the AHAI White Division State Championship.
Notable alumni
- Brent Bowers: Major League Baseball outfielder with the Baltimore Orioles
- Kevin Bracken United States team member in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 2000 Summer Olympics.[5]
- Jim Dwyer: Major League Baseball outfielder with the 1983 World Series champion Baltimore Orioles
- Tim Grunhard: NFL All-Pro center with the Kansas City Chiefs
- James Hickey: retired United States Army colonel who was involved in the capture of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in December, 2003
- Daniel Robert Jenky: Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Peoria; rector of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Indiana, at Notre Dame University; chaplain of Notre Dame's last football team to win a national championship
- Tom Kavanagh: head football coach with the 1976 Illinois Class 5A state and 1972-74 Chicago Prep Bowl championship teams.
- Paul Ladewski: sports columnist-editor with the Daily Southtown (Chicago) and San Francisco Examiner, contributing editor with Inside Sports magazine, weekend co-host with WSCR 670 The Score (Chicago), member of the Baseball Writers' Association of America and National Baseball Hall of Fame election voter
- Kevin J. O'Connor: film and TV actor (The Mummy, Van Helsing, Steel Magnolias, Color of Night, There Will Be Blood)
- Steve Puidokas: professional basketball player in Europe and Pac-12 Conference Men's Basketball Hall of Honor member
- Stan Smagala: NFL safety with the Dallas Cowboys
- Jim Stack: NBA executive with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Chicago Bulls
- Jeff Vintar: motion picture screenwriter (I, Robot)
- John Tumpane: Major League Baseball umpire
References
- NCA-CASI. "AdvanceEd-NCA Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement". Archived from the original on 2009-05-24. Retrieved 2009-05-23.
- "All-Boys' St. Laurence High School Announces Plans to Go Co-Ed". patch.com. 14 February 2017. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
- "St. Laurence HS Athletics; accessed 7 March 2009". stlaurence.com. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
- "Page Not Found". www.ihsa.org. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
- "Coaches". Top Gun Wrestling Club. 2007-03-28. Retrieved 2007-11-03.
External links
- St. Laurence High School | Official Website
- SouthtownStar: "A happy state of mind in Burbank" - article on 2007 football resurgence of St. Laurence and Reavis
- IHSA: annual athletic records