THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GRADUATE AT GRADUATION

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1 A Jesuit, Catholic School of Excellence THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GRADUATE AT GRADUATION Students live in many worlds the worlds of faith, of reason, of self, of family and of community. They live in the traditions of the past, in the culture of the present, in the envisioned world of the future. It is from our perception and consideration of these worlds that we at Fairfield Prep have developed our concept of the graduate at graduation. To be meaningful, this necessarily ideal concept must be based on the actual and real, on our understanding of our students as they come before us daily and the worlds they represent. Only then can the world of Fairfield Prep a world distinctively and uniquely one of Jesuit education, of Catholic faith and of the Ignatian vision effectively educate and nurture our students in the transformation process from childhood to adulthood. We must preserve, first of all, our Catholic and Jesuit world, creating an environment in which our students will develop their moral perceptions, encounter the reality and experience of God, find strength in His grace, and discover the truth and make it their own. We seek to develop within our students a loving, positive, committed and involved awareness of the beauty of humanity and God's promise of redemption for all humankind. This is a world of ideals, of faith and hope and promised justice a world our students should strive continually to realize. Yet, we must also meet our students where they are; we must meet the worlds they represent. Culturally, our students represent an environment that is, indeed, "worldly". Essentially, it is an environment endangered by secularism, an environment whose goals are often those of materialistic achievement and success, of upward mobility. Clearly, it is an environment implicit with high expectations of its children. It is perhaps ironic that within this "American dream" society exists a subculture of the young, media influenced and sensuous, demanding both self gratification and a liberalizing individualism. Our students are witnesses, as well, to the growing disintegration of the American family structure. The products of this society, when first we meet them as incoming freshmen, are intelligent, questioning, eager to compete and more culturally sophisticated than they know. Newly aware of themselves emotionally, intellectually, socially and sexually, they have begun the search for a separate identity, the exploration of the possibilities of self. Yet, one questions whether these students feel sufficiently free to achieve particular self definition given the cultural criteria of high achievement and successoriented expectations.

2 Certainly our students need an academic environment that will develop them intellectually and morally, a supportive academic environment which will provide them with the needed freedom, opportunity and love to achieve a positive sense of self. We are their extended world, the bridging world of adolescence. Finally, our students, like adolescents universally, are very idealistic and in some way, very innocent, wanting order to stabilize their new freedoms, wanting faith in the future and belief in ultimate justice. In other words, they want and need the opportunity to explore the possibilities of the self and of faith, goodness and justice in the world. And what of the world to which they will ultimately go forth, this world of the future? It is the world of modernity technological, scientific, mechanistic, corporate. It is a world characterized by alienation, by political tension and uncertainty, by the threat of nuclear destruction, and by economic injustice. Conversely, it is also a world of enormous potential, of intellectual and scientific progress, of cultural and political revolution in the name of human freedom and human rights. It is a world moving towards cultural expansion and global concern a world that may provide the greater development of human dignity. While we must be acutely aware of the threats to western civilization, it is to this last and positive perception that we must direct ourselves and our students. Based on these concerns and our perceptions of man's many worlds, the ideal graduate at graduation will have realized the self within the nurturing climate of the Jesuit spiritual community. His intellectual abilities and moral perceptions will have been refined and developed so that with maturity and continuing growth he will be able to function wholly and positively within the complexities of the modern world, bringing to it moral insight, reasoned judgment and a willingness to act in the cause of human justice. The following represents a description of our graduates under five general categories: I. Open to Growth II. Intellectually Competent III. Religious IV. Loving V. Committed to Doing Justice

3 I. Open to Growth The Fairfield College Preparatory School graduate has begun to assume the responsibility for his own growth and existence. He has begun to take an active role in his own development. Still in the formative stage, the graduate already 1. is beginning to engage actively in academic, social and religious growth. 2. is beginning to pursue in depth creative growth in and appreciation of the fine arts. 3. is beginning to place greater value on integrity and excellence. 4. is beginning to accept talents, to deal with limitations, to be more conscious of feelings and to be more open to other points of view and to participate in the school community. 5. is beginning to learn from peers and significant others. 6. is beginning to explore career choices and life styles within a value framework. 7. is beginning to grow intellectually, socially, and religiously through participation in athletics and extracurricular activities. 8. is beginning to appreciate the integration of intellectual, emotional, and spiritual selves with the physical self particularly through athletics and extracurricular activities. II. Intellectually Competent A. Skills and Attitudes Through the course of study at Fairfield College Preparatory School, the graduate will begin to demonstrate and use those intellectual skills he has acquired. These will serve as the foundation for more advanced learning and through them he will begin to see the need for intellectual integrity in the areas of religious truth and social justice. By graduation the student already: 1. is developing a mastery of logical and critical thinking skills seeing relationships, making correspondences, assimilating, evaluating, applying, synthesizing. 2. is engaging in a creative development of his musical, artistic, dramatic, or linguistic potentials. 3. is developing a precision in oral and written expression. 4. is developing a curiosity to explore ideas and issues.

4 5. is developing a varied learning style and personalized approach to learning tasks. 6. can present convincing arguments in a research paper (and takes pride and ownership in his work). 7. is able to learn through or from experience. B. Basic Knowledge 1. knows the basic component material of each discipline, the relationship between the different components and the interrelationship of the components of one discipline with those of another. 2. understands the basics in the use of computers, their potential, and their effects on society. 3. is developing an appreciation of his cultural heritage in the arts and sciences. 4. is developing critical consciousness. 5. is developing an understanding of the global nature and scope of current social and ecological problems facing contemporary man such as human rights, prejudice, violence in society, economic development, energy, food, population and pollution. 6. is able to confront moral ambiguities promoted by culture. 7. is developing an understanding of his rights and responsibilities as a citizen of the United States and of the global community. III. Religious By graduation the student will have a sound foundation of the major doctrines and practices of the Roman Catholic Church. The student will also have examined his own religious feelings and beliefs with a view to choosing a fundamental orientation toward God and establishing a relationship with a religious tradition and/or community. (What is stated here relative to the conscience and religious background of the individual also applies to the non Catholic student.) The innate limitations in theological understanding will be commensurate with the student's level of religious and human development. Specifically the student at graduation 1. has a critical understanding of the Scriptures. 2. understands the Church's teaching about Jesus and His redeeming mission. 3. understands sacramental expression of this mission in the Church. 4. has been exposed to non Catholic religious traditions.

5 5. has been exposed to non Christian religious traditions. 6. is aware of the responsibility to explore his faith. 7. is forming a conscience. 8. can reason through moral issues and evaluate his moral choice in light of the Church's teachings. 9. wonders. 10. is beginning to understand the relationship between faith in Jesus and being "a man for others." 11. is familiar with the Church's teachings on Social Justice and has served others in need. 12. appreciates the need for respect, justice and love in all people. IV. Loving By graduation the student is well on his way to establishing his own mature identity. He is at the point of abandoning an egocentrism in favor of an interest in others. He is beginning to take the risk of self disclosure and to establish relationships with others which are more profound and which will require him to accept the mystery of the individuality and uniqueness of another person. Nevertheless, the student's capacity for loving is not fully developed. He has not yet arrived at the confidence and freedom of a mature person. At graduation the student already 1. has begun to trust friends. 2. has a positive understanding of the nature of family life. 3. trusts significant others in the school. 4. has made significant progress in establishing his own identity. 5. accepts himself. 6. loves himself. 7. confronts his own prejudices. 8. experiences personal support from adults in the school. 9. extends himself to build up the school community. This commitment will be fully realized in adulthood; however, certain indicators manifest themselves at the time of graduation.

6 At graduation the student 1. is aware of selfish attitudes in himself. 2. consciously seeks to be more understanding of others. 3. consciously seeks to be more generous and accepting of others. 4. understands that Christian faith implies a commitment to a justice in society. 5. is developing compassion for victims of injustice. 6. reflects on his own feelings and attitudes in service experiences. 7. understands the global scope of many social issues. 8. is beginning to appreciate the complexity of many social issues. 9. is beginning to realize that a society s values are sometimes in conflict with the demands of justice. 10. is beginning to recognize the sexist quality of much of today s advertising, television and radio and has made some effort to be critical (in the analytical sense) of this tendency. 11. is beginning to realize that Justice is a virtue which is required. Conclusion Students will always experience the conflict between the ideals of Fairfield College Preparatory School and the real world around them. They, as we, will be heavily influenced by others: parents, peers, media, culture, and society in general. Yet, the world of Fairfield College Preparatory School will wherever and whenever possible bring its influence to bear on the development of its students in accordance with this profile.