This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Central Catholic
School seal
Address
4720 Fifth Avenue Pittsburgh, (Allegheny County), Pennsylvania 15213 United States
Coordinates	40°26′48″N 79°56′44″W / 40.44667°N 79.94556°W / 40.44667; -79.94556Coordinates: 40°26′48″N 79°56′44″W / 40.44667°N 79.94556°W / 40.44667; -79.94556
Information
Type	Private
Motto	Pro Deo et Patria (For God and Country)
Religious affiliation(s)	Roman Catholic, Lasallian
Patron saint(s)	St. John Baptist de la Salle
Established	1927
Founder	Bishop Hugh Charles Boyle
Status	Operating
School district	Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh
Principal	Bro. Anthony T. Baginski, F.S.C.[1]
Chaplain	Fr. Mark Thomas
Teaching staff	Laity, Christian Brothers, Deacons
Grades	9-12
Gender	Male
Enrollment	849[2] (2017)
Average class size	21 [2]
Campus	Oakland
Campus type	Urban
Color(s)	Blue and gold
Slogan	Faith. Scholarship. Service.
Fight song	On to Victory
Athletics	6A
Athletics conference	WPIAL
Mascot	Viking
Team name	Vikings
Accreditation	Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools[3]
Average SAT scores	Evidence-Based Reading and Writing: 596; Math: 586 (2017)
Publication	Harlequin
Newspaper	The Viking
Yearbook	Towers
Endowment	$9 million (2014)[4]
Tuition	12,300 (2018-2019)
Dean of Students	Steve Bezila
Admissions Director	Brian Miller
Athletic Director	Richard Capretta
Website	centralcatholichs.com
Pittsburgh Landmark — PHLF
Designated	1976[5]
View from Fifth Ave

Central Catholic High School is a private, Roman Catholic, Lasallian, all-boys college preparatory school in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. It is a part of the Diocese of Pittsburgh and is administered and partially staffed by the Brothers of the Christian Schools.

History[edit]

This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Bishop Boyle

In the 1920s, Bishop Hugh Charles Boyle of the Diocese of Pittsburgh started a program to expand diocesan involvement in education beyond the existing parish schools founded by the predominantly Catholic immigrant population of the city. Boyle invited the Brothers of the Christian Schools (more commonly known as the Christian Brothers) to found an all-male secondary school in Oakland, the academic district of Pittsburgh. The first freshman class entered in 1927, and Central Catholic's success allowed Boyle to expand on the diocesan network of boys' schools with North Catholic, Serra Catholic, and South Hills Catholic High School.^[6]

Although the school originally took students only from the central neighborhoods of Pittsburgh, the decline of regional equivalents such as North Catholic and South Catholic, following both schools' gradual switch to coeducation, eventually attracted students from a wider geographic and socioeconomic range. Students attend from neighborhoods including Bloomfield and Squirrel Hill, to suburban communities such as Cranberry, Jefferson Hills, and Fox Chapel. The diocese also opened a sister school, Oakland Catholic, also in the Oakland area.

Academics[edit]

Central Catholic's academic courses are divided into five levels:

• Regular (Level 1; 4.0 scale),


• Intermediate (Level 2; 4.4 scale),


• Advanced (Level 3; 4.8 scale),


• Honors (Level 4; 5.4 scale),


• 
  Advanced Placement (Level 5; 6.0 scale).

Fatih, Scholarship, Service

Class rank is based upon GPA weighted for level. Because the different academic levels are weighted differently, the weighted GPA is based upon a 6.0 rather than 5.0 scale.^[7] Freshmen are placed into levels within the six departments of (English, mathematics, social studies, science, foreign language, catechetics) based on elementary school grades and a standardized test given by the school itself. The languages offered are French, Italian, Latin and Spanish. Freshman may choose to take an elective course in music or art departments. All freshman are required to take 1 semester of Gym (Level 1) and 21st Century Technology (Level 3).

Upperclassmen have more flexibility in course and department selection. The school offers 16 Advanced Placement courses and over 30 honors courses.^[7]

The Baginski Scholars Program is a progressive, interdisciplinary program, designed to let students at the school who excel academically to participate in activities and discussion meant to build their knowledge in social sciences, humanities, and the sciences. The program is directed by John Allen and Dr. Patrizia Costa Frezza.^[8]

In the 2013–2014 school year, two pilot engineering classes were introduced, and the school planned to construct a new building for STEM subjects.

Beginning in the 2013–2014 school year, a one to one computing program was initiated at the high school. Apple iPads were deployed to all freshman and sophomores.^[9]

Student life[edit]

This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

The school has an athletic history that includes championships for track and field, soccer, swimming, rowing, Bowling and football. Other varsity sports offered are basketball, baseball, rugby, tennis, lacrosse, bowling, ice hockey, in-line hockey, golf, cross country, wrestling, and volleyball. Fencing, table tennis, Ultimate frisbee, and disc golf are offered as club sports.^[10]

The school has forensics team, musical theater productions, referred to by the students as “Masque” (which have won 23 Gene Kelly Awards out of 95 nominations), PJAS participation, student publications, chess team, and robotics team.^[11]

The school's mascot is the Viking. It had a long-standing rivalry with North Catholic High School until enrollment declined at North Catholic, and competition grew increasingly one-sided in favor of Central Catholic. North Allegheny , Pine Richland High School and Woodland Hills have come to replace North Catholic as Central's major rivals in sports, and Shady Side Academy in academics.

Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood

Facilities[edit]

Built in the 1920s in the National Romantic style, the school building is designated a Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation Historic Landmark. The building has undergone renovations to the classrooms, the dining hall, the library, the theater, the writing center, and other areas. Renovation of the classrooms included adding flat screen televisions, Smart Boards, and other learning technology devices.^{[citation needed]}

On the same campus as the main building, there is a gymnasium building, an athletic field, a weight training room, and the STEM building. Next to the main building, on the Neville Street side, is located the Brothers' House, in which the Brothers of the Christian Schools who work at Central Catholic live.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held on December 3, 2014 for the new building for STEM subjects. Construction of this building accounted for $12 million out of a $27 million capital campaign that Central Catholic launched on the same day as the groundbreaking ceremony. The building opened in the fall of 2016 to students for academic use.^[4]

Notable alumni[edit]

Athletes[edit]

• 
  John Babinecz – football player drafted in 2nd round in 1972 by Dallas Cowboys
  


• 
  Marc Bulger – NFL quarterback for Baltimore Ravens and St. Louis Rams^[12][13]


• 
  Jeff Dugan – football player for Minnesota Vikings^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Tim Grgurich - basketball head coach, University of Pittsburgh and UNLV


• 
  Justin Kurpeikis- football player for four NFL teams^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Tony LaCava – baseball player and executive^[14]


• 
  Dan Marino – Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback, Miami Dolphins and television commentator^[15]


• 
  Sam McDowell – known as "Sudden Sam," Major League Baseball pitcher, primarily Cleveland Indians, six-time American League All-Star^{[citation needed]}


• 
  George Patterson – basketball player^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Sal Sunseri – former All-American linebacker for University of Pittsburgh Panthers, assistant coach for Florida State University Seminoles^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Jack Twyman – Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame guard/forward, Rochester/Cincinnati Royals^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Ed Vereb – former NFL football halfback for Washington Redskins^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Stefen Wisniewski – guard for Philadelphia Eagles^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Bob Slowikowski – Tight End, 2002 6th Round pick of the Dallas Cowboys.^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Michael Palmieri - Left Wing, 2017 3rd Round pick of the Calgary Flames.^{[citation needed]}

Business[edit]

• 
  John F. "Jack" Donahue – founder and Chairman of Federated Investors, Inc.^[16]


• 
  James Sinegal - co-founder and CEO of Costco
  

Entertainment[edit]

• 
  Regis Cordic – radio personality^[16]


• 
  Bill Deasy – singer/songwriter^[17]


• 
  Frank DiLeo – music executive and actor^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Tom Savini – special effect and makeup expert^[18]


• 
  Zachary Quinto – Emmy nominated actor and director^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Liam Bonner – baritone opera singer^{[citation needed]}

Journalism/publication[edit]

• 
  John Tierney – science columnist for The New York Times^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Robert Lee "Rob" Penny – playwright and poet^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Bill Hillgrove – sports journalist, radio personality, broadcaster.^[19]


• 
  Joseph Bathanti – Poet Laureate of North Carolina, author, professor ^[20]

Government/military[edit]

• 
  William Coyne – US congressman^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Eugene A. DePasquale – Pennsylvania Auditor General^[21]


• 
  Rich Fitzgerald – Allegheny County Executive^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Thomas E. Flaherty - Judge, Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas


• 
  Conor Lamb, former assistant U.S. attorney, Marine, and U.S. Representative for Pennsylvania's 18th district
  


• 
  Lewis C. Merletti – director of the United States Secret Service^[16]


• 
  Ralph Pampena – Pittsburgh Police Chief 1987–1990^{[citation needed]}


• 
  Stephen Zappala – Allegheny County District Attorney

Education[edit]

• 
  Henry J. McAnulty – President of Duquesne University (1959–1980)^{[citation needed]}


• 
  L. Timothy Ryan – President of The Culinary Institute of America^{[citation needed]}

Athletics achievements[edit]

In 2013, the Central Catholic Rowing Team won its first gold medal at SRAA nationals, defeating their rivals, St. Joseph's Prep.^[22] On July 23, 2013, a proclamation was made by the city of Pittsburgh declaring that day, July 23, 2013, Central Catholic Crew Day in honor of the win by the crew.^[23]

In 2013, Central Catholic's undefeated football team defeated Woodland Hills High School, defeating them 27-7 in the WPIAL Quad A championship.^[24]

In 2014, Central Catholic's second varsity (2V) crew won its first gold medal. In the last stretch of the race, Central Catholic's boat advanced a marginal length on Gonzaga College High School's 2V, leaving Winter Park High School in third place.^[25] Additionally, the first varsity (1V) and the first freshman (1F) boats received bronze and silver medals, respectively.^[26]

In 2015, Central Catholic's undefeated club Ultimate Frisbee team won the Division II PHUL championships, defeating their rivals from Bethel Park.^[27]

In 2015, Central Catholic's varsity baseball team won the 4A WPIAL Championship, defeating Norwin High School.

In 2016, Central Catholic's football team won the first ever 6A WPIAL Championship. They lost the first ever 6A PIAA Championship to St. Joseph's Prep. List of PIAA football state champions

Also in 2016, The Central Catholic Varsity golf team won its second 3A WPIAL Championship with a WPIAL record score of 378. the team continued onto the PIAA state championship where the team shot a PIAA record score of 297, winning Centrals first State Championship in golf.

The Golf Team Continued this success with a repeat win in the 2017 WPIAL Championship.

In 2018, Central Catholic's Varsity golf team won their third straight WPIAL title with another record-setting round of 372. They Carried this success into the PIAA 3A state championship and once again claimed 1st place.

Notes[edit]

External links[edit]

• Central Catholic High School homepage


• Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh homepage


• Student Body Page


• Arts Page


• Central Catholic Crew homepage