By Chase L. Manson ’16
THE ROUNDUP
Not so long a go, Brophy teachers sat in a desk ready to learn.
Like their students some attended Catholic schools.
Ms. Lauren Karp attended a Catholic school named Loretto High School in Sacramento,Calif. Ms. Karp also attended Santa Clara for college, a Jesuit university in the Bay Area.
“I adored Loretto as a school,” Ms. Karp said. “Santa Clara just built on it.”
Ms. Karp said her favorite part of high school was her teachers.
“My teachers were teachers who taught in more of an application manner,” Ms. Karp said. “They really connected with the material.”
Ms. Karp initially didn’t attend a Catholic school, but an Episcopal grade school.
“I attended a Episcopal grade school, it was very much a prep school,” Ms. Karp said. “I really learned my values at Loretto, it felt like home there.
Ms. Karp also said that her high school was very open in terms of religion.
“I had several friends from different faith groups,” Ms. Karp said. “One was Jewish, I believe another girl was Sikh.”
Ms. Karp also noted that her school was reliberal in terms of their religion class.
“One religion teacher taught Catholicism but had a different spin,” Ms. Karp said. “She talked about the similarities with Catholicism and other world religions.”
Ms. Karp’s education experience had little change in faith while she attended Santa Clara.
“Santa Clara was also religious liberal,” Ms. Karp said. “The classes they offered appealed fo everyone, even though it was mandatory to take a religion class.”
One of Ms. Karp’s favorite class at Santa Clara was Biblical History.
“The class I had taught about historical facts of the Bible, like the way it was written,” Ms. Karp said. “However, there was definitely a faith aspect.”
Mr. Mike Ward, an alumni of Santa Clara, had a very different experience.
“I went to St. Francis in Mountain View for high school,” Mr. Ward said. “When I went to apply had about five Catholic schools the size of Brophy to apply to.”
However, Mr. Ward’s experience was very different during his time at St. Francis.
“I picked St. Francis due to the great academics and the great athletics,” Mr. Ward said. “I don’t really remember a spiritual aspect, however it was probably me, I never once went on a retreat.”
Mr. Ward’s high school days consisted of baseball and this pattern continued in college.
“My life was all about baseball,” Mr. Ward said. “Luckily I had friends who were good students, that helped me learn how to study.”
Mr. Ward’s faith experience was different from Ms. Karp’s as it was through community.
“When I was a freshman, lived the in the dorms, the Jesuit who lived there would invite us to Mass,” Mr. Ward. “It was great time to connect.”
In addition to those times, Mr. Ward said he would attend Mass at night.
“When the time for Mass came, the whole campus went there,” Mr. Ward said. “You knew it was a good time when you had to calm everyone down during the sign of peace.”
During his senior year, Mr. Ward had a priest come to his house and present Mass.
“During senior when I lived off campus, Father Geno, SJ would come over and do Mass,” Mr. Ward said. “It was like a dinner party, which in essence is Mass.”
Mr. John Damaso ’97 attended St. Francis Xavier, Brophy, and later Georgetown
“Faith at Georgetown was faith in action,” Mr. Damaso said. “It wasn’t very forced but was an option for students.”
Mr. Damaso also reflected on his faith experience started in grade school.
“At St. Francis a good faith was introduced,” Mr. Damaso said. “Brophy really balanced forcefulness and voluntary.”
Mr. Damaso said faith based education has changed from his time at Brophy.
“During my time there were very few retreats, and no immersion trips,” Mr. Damaso said. “Now we have many Kairos and Magis retreats, as well as multiply immersion trips.”
Ms. Karp said on the impact of her Catholic education helped shape the person she is today.
“The awareness of social justice has really shaped who I am,” Ms. Karp said. “I believe it is very clearly evident in my teaching style.”
