St. John Bosco
by Lorine Parks
What do we think of when we hear the name St. John Bosco? Football, of course. But we also should know that St. John Bosco School elevates the glorification of education, not of football. The goal is to form human beings.
Paul Escala, President of the school, told us he grew up in nearby San Pedro, where even though he had little money, he never felt poor in faith or in family. He remembers, even as young as grade school, taking baskets to the needy, and knowing that he was extending love and faith, not pity.
In his talk, Paul said the cell phone is “the single greatest influence on this generation.” He warned of youthful skepticism, “if it has everything you need, why go to school.” Cell phones encourage narcissism, because they focus so much on the self. The City of Downey, for example, is countering this kind of thinking, Paul said, with its excellent program of “Character Counts.”
The ministry of St John Bosco is much like Rotary’s 4 -way test, which we now feature at the beginning of every meeting. We were encouraged to stay engaged with young people, with mentorship or internships. “Presence means more than a check.”
Pedagogical methods have changed over the decades, Paul, a graduate of Cornell University, told us. Teachers used to stand in front of the class and lecture. But now, teachers move around the class, and the class can move too. Students sit on moveable stools and desks have wheels. Teachers feel this facilitates problem solving and a higher level of thinking skills.
Education now concentrates on putting children into a pipeline, from kindergarten to a career. They need skills for tomorrow’s advanced technological jobs, which keeps educators constantly revising their classes. One new subject that will be taught at Bosco is sports medicine, for example. Another area is retail business needs, such as inventory, accounting, personnel management, and selling.
Bosco’s student body is 78% Catholic, but Paul looks at the school not as “a Catholic school for Catholic boys,” but as “a Catholic school for all boys.” When asked about co-ed opportunities at the high school level, he cited studies that show that young men excel when they are with their male peers. And the same approach might be said to work for all-women institutions as well.