Bellarmine College Preparatory

Bellarmine College Preparatory is an all-boys, Jesuit, private secondary school located in San Jose, California.[3] Founded in 1851, it is the oldest secondary school in California and the second-oldest west of the Mississippi River.

For the school in Tacoma, Washington, see Bellarmine Preparatory School.
Bellarmine College Preparatory
Location
960 West Hedding Street

San Jose
,
California
95126

United States
Coordinates37°20′32″N 121°55′07″W
Information
TypePrivate
MottoMen For and With Others[1]
Religious affiliation(s)Roman Catholic (Jesuit)
Patron saint(s)Saint Robert Bellarmine
Established1851 (1851)
FounderFr. John Nobili, SJ[2]
CEEB code053080
PresidentChris Meyercord
RectorFr. Mario Prietto, S.J.
PrincipalRod Jemison
Faculty145 lay, 20 Jesuits
Grades9-12
Enrollment1,655 (2021)
Campus size27 acres (110,000 m2)
Color(s)    Blue, light blue, white
Athletics conferenceWCAL (13 sports)
MascotBell
RivalSaint Francis High School
NewspaperThe Bell Online
YearbookThe Carillon
EndowmentUS$119 Million (2021)
TuitionUS$24,890 (2021-2022)
Websitewww.bcp.org

Overview
Interior of Leontyne Chapel
Sobrato Center for the Humanities and the Arts

A Roman Catholic school in the tradition of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Bellarmine is a member of the West Catholic Athletic League, the Jesuit Schools Network, and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

As of 2021, Bellarmine led the CIF Central Coast Section with 140 Division 1 titles. Bellarmine's Speech and Debate Team was ranked in the top 10 programs in the country with its policy debate team ranked #1 after winning the triple crown (NDCA Championship, Tournament of Champions (debate) and NDSA Nationals) in 2021. In addition, the school's FIRST Robotics Competition team, Team 254: The Cheesy Poofs, has been the World Champion (2011, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2022) for 4 of the past 10 years.[4] The school's publications include its student newspaper, The Bell Online, and its yearbook, The Carillon.

The school is reputed for its graduates’ contributions and powerful influence in the Bay Area.[5] Bellarmine's list of notable alumni includes 4 Olympians (six Gold Medals combined), 2 living Billionaires, 3 Mayors of San Jose, the former team owners of the San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics, 3 World Series Champions, 5 Super Bowl Champions, 1 Academy-Award Winner, 1 Pulitzer Prize Winner, 28 Professional MLB athletes, numerous award-winning authors and several state politicians. Previous Bellarmine alumni have won prestigious postgraduate scholarships including the Rhodes Scholarship, Marshall Scholarship, Schwarzman Scholarship, MacArthur Fellowship, and the Fulbright Awards.[6][7][8]

History
Bellarmine students in the Class of 1958
Tom McEnery '63 (61st Mayor of San Jose)

Bellarmine was founded in 1851 by Fr. John Nobili, S.J., and his companions, as Santa Clara College, a school for secondary and college-age students. In 1912, the college was separated into 2 schools - Santa Clara University and Santa Clara Prep. After sharing the same campus for thirteen years, the secondary school moved to its current College Park Campus after purchasing the land from the University of the Pacific (then known as the College of the Pacific) for $77,500. In 1926, the renovated school opened its doors to a student body of 200 registered students.

In 2011, the Lorry I. Lokey Academic Center was completed after a $15 million gift from the family of the philanthropist and founder of Business Wire. This was the single largest gift in the school's history. The new center houses over 27 classrooms, a faculty lounge and the Craft-Malcolm Family Academic Resource Center.[9]

The College Park Caltrain station is adjacent to the campus since its inception and has been a historic presence for Bellarmine's metropolitan community. Over 140 students take the train to school everyday from San Mateo county to Gilroy. The station is served by only 4 trains a day, timed to correspond with the school's hours. In recent years, amidst discussion of the station shutting down, the school has lobbied Caltrain to avoid cutting service to the station.[10]

Academics
Class of 2019 Commencement in the Quad

As of 2020, Bellarmine's current enrollment size is approximately 1,655 students. The average class size is 22.5 and the student-to-teacher ratio is 13:1. For the Class of 2019, 99.2% of students went to attend college. 94.7% of graduating seniors were attending a four-year institution.[11]

Football

The Bells Football team represents Bellarmine College Preparatory in the West Catholic Athletic League (WCAL) of the CIF Central Coast Section. The team has 20 WCAL Titles and 8 CCS Championships in program history. The Bell's Football team is currently headed by former San Diego Chargers coach and 2-time Super Bowl Champion with the Denver Broncos David Diaz-Infante. He took over from Bellarmine alum Jalal Beauchman who led the Bells to a NorCal Championship in 2022.[12] In 1965, the John Hanna-coached Bells outscored opponents 310-6 during a 31-game winning streak to earn the first of two state titles (the other was in 1981).[13]

Soccer

The Bellarmine Soccer team is noted for the league's longest winning streak of 17 consecutive titles under Coach Patrick Lowney. The Bellarmine's 2002 varsity soccer team had a perfect 25-0-0 season. As of 2021, the soccer team coached by Conor Salcido '07 has won 3 of the past 5 CCS Open Division titles, a NorCal CIF Division 1 Title, and finished the 2021 season ranked #4 in the nation by Top Drawer Soccer and CBS Sports.[14]

Co-Curricular Programs

Robotics

The Robotics Team has over 100 members. The high school competes in two different divisions: FTC and FRC. The team has won the World Chairman's Award (the highest award in FIRST), and the World Championships 5 times, the most of any FIRST team, in 2011, 2014, 2017, 2018, and 2022.[15] The team also holds the record for most regional events won, having 40 regional wins to their name.[16] In 2008, Bellarmine first entered VEX Robotics and in 2009–2010 won 16 regional competitions, 7 of them in international competition. In the 2010–2011 season, Bellarmine's VEX team 254A won the VEX World Excellence Award, the highest it confers. In 2014, the team won three regionals, the Curie Division, and World Championships. The school shares a partnership with NASA's Ames Research Center in Mountain View, California. In 2022, Bellarmine's Team 254F won the VEX World Championships in Dallas Texas.[17]

Members of Team 254 Shaking Hands after a FIRST tournament

Student media & publications

In 2008, Bellarmine began its own radio station, KBCP The Bell, as a legal, unlicensed station at 1650 AM which reaches a 1-mile radius of the school. Programs include 30-minute newscasts, sports shows, daily music shows, and political talk radio.[18]

Speech and debate

In 1994, Bellarmine won the team speech and debate National Forensic League Championship in Kansas City, Missouri. In 2003 and 2004, the team won the California State Championship, then came in second in the state in 2005 when it was ranked as one of the top two teams in the nation. In 2006, its policy debate team captured the National Championship. For nine years, 2006–2014, Bellarmine's Speech and Debate program won the California State Championship, as well as in 2022. The program trains students in 12 speech events and 6 debate categories. In 2021, Bellarmine won the Policy Debate Championship, 2nd place in Congressional Debate, Top 10 in International Extemp & National Extemp and received the Bruno E. Jacobs Award, which is given to the school who has the greatest number of cumulative rounds at the national tournament across the years. Its rival high school in speech and debate is Leland High School (San Jose, California).[19]

Notable alumni
Main article: List of Bellarmine College Prep alumni

References
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  2. "School administration". About Us. Bellarmine College Preparatory. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
  3. "Catholic Schools List | Diocese of San Jose". Archived from the original on 2010-03-22. Retrieved 2010-04-23.
  4. "Team 254 | The Cheesy Poofs". www.team254.com. Retrieved 2022-04-25.
  5. "Old School Ties". Metro Active Publishing. Boulevard Media Group. 22 April 1999. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
  6. Joy, Darrin; Nuccio, Nick (7 December 2020). "2 Trojans receive prestigious Schwarzman Scholarship to study in Beijing". Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  7. Bowdish, Erin. "Spotlight on: Sean Reilly ('08), Rhodes Scholar". Hillbrook Quarterly. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  8. "1991 Outstanding Senior Award". University of California-Los Angeles. Retrieved 28 May 2015.
  9. Gottschalk, Mary (13 October 2011). "Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose dedicates Lorry I. Lokey Academic Center". 13 October 2011. San Jose Mercury news.
  10. Gottshalk, Mary (March 24, 2011). "Bellarmine College Prep in San Jose campaigns to keep Caltrain station open". The Mercury News. Retrieved 2018-03-17.
  11. "Class of 2020 Senior Profile" (PDF). 2020 Academic Profile Report. Bellarmine College Prep.
  12. "Bellarmine hires its next football coach, promoting from within". The Mercury News. 2020-03-30. Retrieved 2022-06-12.
  13. "Bellarmine College Prep". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved 22 January 2008.
  14. Webeck, Evan (28 May 2021). "Prep soccer: Bellarmine beats Sacred Heart Cathedral for 3rd straight CCS Open Division title". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
  15. "The Cheesy Poofs - Team 254 ()". The Blue Alliance. Retrieved 2022-04-30.
  16. "The Blue Alliance". The Blue Alliance. Retrieved 2022-04-30.
  17. "2022 VEX World Champions | Team 254". www.team254.com. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  18. Waits, Jennifer (20 April 2015). "Visiting High School Radio Station KBCP at Bellarmine College Preparatory". Radio Survivor. Retrieved 16 Aug 2015.
  19. "Bell Speech". Bell Speech and Debate Tops the Country. Bellarmine College Prep. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  20. Dunn, Geoffrey (16 January 2013). "The Call of the Valley". Metro Silicon Valley. San Jose, California. p. 17. Retrieved 15 March 2014. When Buck was stolen from the 'Miller' ranch, London referenced 'the little flag railway station known as College Park,' a small train stop that, to this day, is located in the College Park neighborhood, just off the Alameda near Bellarmine Preparatory School.
  21. London, Jack (1903). "Chapter I. Into the Primitive" . The Call of the Wild. No one saw him and Buck go off through the orchard on what Buck imagined was merely a stroll. And with the exception of a solitary man, no one saw them arrive at the little flag station known as College Park.
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  28. Staff. "Summa Cummlaude for Madera Man". No. 7 June 1965. Center for Bibliographical Studies & Research. Madera Tribune. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
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