Holy Ghost Preparatory School

History

Holy Ghost Prep was founded by Father John Tuohill Murphy, C.S.Sp. in 1897 as Holy Ghost Apostolic College, a preparatory school and junior-college seminary for young men studying to become members of the religious order of the Holy Ghost Fathers and Brothers. In the 1950s, the school started to move its college-level program to Duquesne University and opened its doors to non-seminarians in 1959 for the first time. In 1967, the seminary program was discontinued, and a year later Holy Ghost Preparatory School was formed as a non-profit institution. In the 1990s, the school began a long-range planning process, which resulted in significant structural enhancements to the campus, and today its enrollment consists entirely of non-resident college-bound students.

Student body

Holy Ghost consists of slightly more than 450 students. Located adjacent to the busy I-95 corridor in metropolitan Philadelphia, the school attracts students from more than 100 elementary schools from Bucks County, other metropolitan Philadelphia counties, and New Jersey.

Recognized as a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence, Holy Ghost Prep is fully accredited by the Pennsylvania Department of Education and the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.

Graduation requires coursework in English, mathematics, social studies, science, foreign language, fine arts, and theology with many electives, including computer science, cinematography, and portfolio art. As a school for the college-bound, HGP offers an extensive honors and Advanced Placement program, preparing students to take AP tests for college credit in 23 areas of study prescribed by the College Board. A large number of students are designated as AP and National Merit Scholars, earn merit-based college scholarships, and perform well on the SAT. AP Calculus AB teacher Jerry Colapinto was awarded the 2007 Siemens AP Teacher of the Year award for Pennsylvania.

Each year, 100 percent of its graduates go on to attend four-year colleges, with acceptance rates consistently higher than national averages. Over the past few years, students have been accepted to the following reputable schools: Brown University, Cabrini University, Carnegie Mellon University, Cornell University, Columbia University, Dartmouth College, Drexel University, Duke University, Fordham University, Georgetown University, The George Washington University, Harvard University, Johns Hopkins University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, New York University, Northwestern University, Pennsylvania State University, Princeton University, Rice University, Swarthmore College, Temple University, University of Chicago, University of Notre Dame, University of Pennsylvania, University of Virginia, Vanderbilt University, Villanova University, Wake Forest University, Washington and Lee University, West Point Military Academy, Williams College, and Yale University.

Philadelphia Magazine ranking

In the September 2006 edition of Philadelphia magazine, Holy Ghost Prep was ranked eighth among top high schools in the Delaware Valley. Holy Ghost Prep was the top-ranked school with tuition less than $20,000, and ranked considerably higher than rivals St. Joseph's Preparatory School (24th) and La Salle College High School (23rd). Of all-boys schools, Holy Ghost Prep ranked 2nd.

Athletics

HGP has many interscholastic and intramural sports teams. Major sports include basketball, baseball, ultimate frisbee, bowling, soccer, swimming, lacrosse, hockey, tennis, cross country, golf, and track and field. Athletic facilities on campus include seven fields for various sports, a fieldhouse holding an auditorium and gymnasium, and an all-weather track. Holy Ghost Prep is a member of the Bicentennial Athletic League. The Firebirds have a tradition of excellence in all sports. There have been seven Pennsylvania state champions in school history: the 1972 and 1974 basketball teams, the 1992 soccer team, and, most recently, the 2011 tennis team. In 2013 and 2014 the soccer team won the PIAA state championship. In 2015, the hockey team won its first state championship. J.R. McIlwain ('93) won the 400m in 1992 PIAA state track championships and followed that with the 800m title in 1993.

Extracurricular programs

More than seventy-five percent of Holy Ghost students compete in interscholastic athletics and all HGP students are involved in extracurricular activities.

Christian service program

Freshmen and sophomores are required to participate in ten hours of service, annually, while juniors and seniors are required to participate in twenty hours of service. Students may participate in some of the following school sponsored service opportunities: Blood Drives, Habitat for Humanity, Hand-in-Hand, Operation Santa Claus, St. Francis Inn (a soup kitchen), Spring Fling, Taste of Mission trips to Harlem, New York and Appalachia, and West Virginia, and AARP.

Forensics

Forensics (public speaking) is consistently the strongest activity of the school. Longtime coach Tony Figliola was inducted into the National Forensics League Hall of Fame in 2007.

Journalism

HGP's newspaper, The Flame, is published four times yearly. It solicits writing, art, and photography from the entire student body, discussing news, opinions, sports, and features. In addition, outstanding writers produce literary works, essays, and poems that are showcased in the school's annual literary magazine, Embers.

National Honor Society

Members of the National Honor Society are students selected based on criteria focusing on academic achievement, character, leadership, and service. They assist the community through tutoring, concession and book sales, and fundraising activities for scholarships given to rising sophomores.

Student government

Student government at HGP consists of an executive board composed of the president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer, and spirit chair as well as of eight senators from each grade level. Elected student government members are directly responsible for the concerns of the student body and their appropriate presentation to administration to effect change. They work as a whole to promote healthy and spirited participation for attendance at sports and other school events and to conduct various dances throughout the year, including Junior-Senior prom.

Notable alumni