Loyola School

Loyola School was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1900 to provide an educational program and environment which at that time were only available in private, non-Catholic, college preparatory schools. Loyola’s mission was, and is, to provide an independent school education in the Ignatian tradition for those who value and are prepared to support this type of educational environment. Today, Loyola School is a Catholic, Jesuit, independent, coeducational, college preparatory, secondary day school located in New York City. While this list of Loyola’s traits is lengthy, Loyola still views itself as an entity greater than the sum of its parts. We believe these several parts together develop a working model of a community of love. We hope this community would be inspired by a grateful love for God which draws its strength from the model instituted by Christ. We see our community as one of service. We hope that our students become aware of their personal worth and will grow in their ability to reach out to others sharing their values and joys. The model of the smaller community at Loyola empowers its members to perceive, appreciate, and carry out these activities.

Loyola values a coeducational and a diverse student body, fostering this through its scholarship and financial assistance programs and its nondiscriminatory policy: Loyola School admits students of any race, color, national or ethnic origin, or religion to the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, or religion in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship programs, and athletic and other school administered programs.

With a student enrollment of approximately 200, the average class size of 15 students promotes participation and individual attention as well as regular opportunities for group work and collaboration. Excellence is not only found in our classrooms, but also through our extracurricular activities; in fact, recent history shows that more than 95% of Loyola students participate in at least one extracurricular activity, while over 60% of our students participate in three or more extracurricular activities. Moreover, Loyola School’s Office of College Guidance offers a variety of opportunities and programs for students in freshman through senior years, which has resulted in a history of excellent college placements.

Loyola School exists as part of a 450-year-old tradition of Jesuit education across the world. Indeed a Jesuit education, which has Christ at its center, has never been more important than in the context of the 21st century. A Jesuit education at Loyola School is based on the cultivation of strong and respectful relationships and Cura Personalis, the care for each individual across all of their dimensions. It is an education of the heart, head and hands.

In a world that seems to become more individualistic by the day and where the whole concept of relationship has shifted seismically due to the ‘globalization of superficiality’, as Father Nicolas the former Superior General of the Society of Jesus describes it, we must challenge each other ‘to become academically excellent, open to growth, religious, loving, and committed to doing justice’. To seek for greater meaning and depth in relationship, experience and ourselves. To look outward at the same time as looking in.

A Loyola education requires courage to be counter-cultural, in order to educate, form and transform our students into self-aware and responsible global citizens who, at their core, have a sense of responsibility that transcends themselves and a deep commitment to serve others for the greater glory of God.

As a Catholic, independent, coeducational, college preparatory, urban, secondary day school, rooted in the Jesuit tradition, Loyola School challenges its young men and women to become intellectually fulfilled, open to growth, religious, loving, and committed to doing justice. Loyola School is committed to challenging its students religiously, intellectually, aesthetically, physically, and socially.

Opportunities for personal study, reflection, and leadership allow students to expand their knowledge, develop their skills, mature as individuals and community members, and realize the goodness inherent in themselves and all God’s creation.

In keeping with the Ignatian spirit of cura personalis (care for the whole person), Loyola School strives to develop the diverse and unique talents of each member of the Loyola community, and encourages the use of these talents to serve others for the greater glory of God.