Type Jesuit, Catholic | Teaching staff 62 | |
Established 1928 (89 years ago) (1928) as Japanese Catholic College of St. Francis Xavier Founder Fr. Guido del Toro, S.J. Rector Eduardo Beltramini, S.J. Director Reinaldo Correa de Aquino Jr. | ||
St. Francis Xavier College (Colégio São Francisco Xavier) is a Brazilian co-educational school located in the Subprefecture of Ipiranga of the city of São Paulo. It was founded by the Jesuits in 1928 and covers kindergarten through high school.
Contents
History and operations
Fr. Guido del Toro, S.J., arrived in Brazil from Italy in 1914 and dedicated himself to the evangelization of Japanese immigrants. In 1928, he founded Japanese Catholic College of St. Francis Xavier in a rented house on Liberty Street. He received the present property in 1929 and by 1931 resituated the school there, still dedicated to serving the Japanese.
In 1950, it grew to being a primary and gymnasium. With the completion of a new building in 1966, it became a high school and took the name St. Francis Xavier College.
Girls were first admitted 1969.
The school participates in a program Young Apprentice College for career placement.
Rectors
The Jesuit rectors were:
Extracurricular activities
An activity open to high school students is the monthly viewing of a movie followed by discussion and debate over issues raised.
Extracurricular sports include basketball, football, judo, swimming and volleyball and swimming, along with ballet, robotics and theater.
Social service projects
From the fifth year of primary school through the third year of high school, students are brought in contact with the poor through service projects, which are followed by reflection sessions. The projects take various forms, including living with needy children, visiting an asylum, distribution of bread and chocolate milk for the homeless, and work in Art and Life (a home for street children). From the fifth year, a semester of training days appropriate to each age is offered at the school's camp, with group dynamics, games, and much sharing.
Activities are planned for parents, teachers, and staff including prayer mornings, coexistence and integration times, occasions for study and reflection, and celebrations. There is also catechesis of adults, youth, and children in preparation for the sacraments of the Eucharist and Confirmation.