Brooklyn Preparatory School, commonly referred to as Brooklyn Prep, was a highly selective

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

preparatory school founded by the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

in 1908 in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, New York. The school educated generations of young men from throughout New York City and Long Island until its closure in 1972. A new school of the same name now exists in the same borough.

History

The Prep was located on 1150 Carroll Street in the Crown Heights section of

, New York. The grounds and buildings are presently part of

Medgar Evers College Medgar Evers College is a public college in New York City, United States. It is a senior college of the City University of New York (CUNY), offering baccalaureate and associate degrees. It was established in 1970 in central Brooklyn. It is name ...

of the

City University of New York The City University of New York (CUNY, pronounced , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven ...

(CUNY). Located next to the Prep was the Church of

St. Ignatius Loyola Ignatius of Loyola ( ; ; ; ; born Íñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola; – 31 July 1556), venerated as Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a Basque Spaniard Catholic priest and theologian, who, with six companions, founded the religious order of the So ...

, which was also run by the Jesuits and which was closed in 2011. As a Jesuit institution, Brooklyn Prep was noted for its religious values, classical roots (e.g.,

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

and Greek), and dress code (ties and jackets) – all part of its goal of turning out well-rounded, educated men. Most of its graduates matriculated to four-year colleges. For many years, the school offered a full $1,800 four-year scholarship to the winner of its annual "Diocesan Spelling Bee", which was open to all eighth grade male students from the Diocese of Brooklyn as well as the Diocese of Rockville Center. The "Prep" was part of a group of eight Jesuit secondary schools in New York and New Jersey (

Regis Regis or Régis may refer to: People * Regis (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Regis (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Regis (musician), full name Karl O'Connor, an English ...

, Xavier, Loyola, Fordham Prep, St. Peter's Prep,

Canisius Canisius may refer to: People * Saint Peter Canisius (1521–1597), Dutch Jesuit Catholic priest * Theodorich Canisius (1532–1606), Jesuit academic, half-brother of St. Peter Canisius * Henricus Canisius (1562–1610), Dutch canonist and histor ...

and McQuaid). The school closed in 1972, but its 100th anniversary of the school was celebrated by alumni and former faculty in October 2008. In 2003, New York Nativity bega
Brooklyn Jesuit Prep
a co-educational middle school. BJP operated in the former St. Teresa's School at Sterling Place and Classon Avenue in Crown Heights until 2020. BJP then moved to the former St. Vincent Ferrer school building at 37th and Glenwood in East Flatbush. BJP continues to provide Jesuit education for 5th through 8th grades. All students receive a substantial scholarship to attend.

Notable alumni

Among Brooklyn Prep's notable alumni are: * Robert S. Bennett, 1957 – Washington, D.C., attorney* (official site) *

William Peter Blatty William Peter Blatty (January 7, 1928 – January 12, 2017) was an American writer, director and producer. He is best known for his 1971 novel ''The Exorcist (novel), The Exorcist'' and for his screenplay for The Exorcist, the 1973 film adaptat ...

, 1945 – author of ''

The Exorcist ''The Exorcist'' is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin from a screenplay by William Peter Blatty, based on The Exorcist (novel), his 1971 novel. The film stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller (play ...

'' * Joseph Califano, 1948 – former

Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare The United States secretary of health and human services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all health matters. The secretary is ...

* William P. Ford, 1953 – international civil rights attorney * Joseph A. Healey, 1947 – US Army major general *

Jack Hofsiss John Bernard Hofsiss (September 28, 1950 – September 13, 2016) was an American theatre, film, and television director. He received a Tony Award for his direction of ''The Elephant Man'' on Broadway, the youngest director to have ever receive ...

, 1967 – director of ''

The Elephant Man Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890) was an English man known for his severe physical deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "The Elephant Man", and then went to live at the London Hospital, ...

'' * Joseph M. McLaughlin, 1950 – Senior Appellate Judge, Second Circuit * John Musto, 1972 – composer, concert pianist; 1997

Pulitzer Prize in Music The Pulitzer Prize for Music is one of seven Pulitzer Prizes awarded annually in Letters, Drama, and Music. It was first given in 1943. Joseph Pulitzer arranged for a music scholarship to be awarded each year, and this was eventually converted i ...

finalist *

Joe Paterno Joseph Vincent Paterno (; December 21, 1926 – January 22, 2012), sometimes referred to as JoePa, was an American college football player, athletic director, and coach. He was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions football, Penn ...

, 1944 – football coach at

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with ca ...

for 45 years * Joseph Roccasalvo, 1940 – author, academic, and retired priest *

John Sexton John Edward Sexton (born September 29, 1942) is an American legal scholar. He is the Benjamin F. Butler Professor of Law at New York University where he teaches at the law school and NYU's undergraduate colleges. Sexton served as the fifteenth ...

, 1959 – President of

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

* George A. Sheehan, 1936 – best-selling running and fitness expert * Raymond Siller, 1956 – television writer, political consultant

Notable faculty

Noted faculty included: *Rev. Thomas V. Bermingham, SJ – classical scholar; professor at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

and

Fordham University Fordham University is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in New York City, United States. Established in 1841, it is named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the Bronx in which its origina ...

who worked on ''The Exorcist'' *Rev.

Daniel Berrigan Daniel Joseph Berrigan (May 9, 1921 – April 30, 2016) was an American Jesuit priest, anti-war activist, Christian pacifist, playwright, poet, and author. Berrigan's protests against the Vietnam War earned him both scorn and admiratio ...

, SJ – peace activist; author and poet *Rev. Edward B. Bunn, SJ – dean of Brooklyn Prep and later president of

Loyola University Maryland Loyola University Maryland is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit university in Baltimore, Maryland. Established as Loyola College in Maryland by John Early (educator), John Early and eight other members of the Society of Je ...

and Georgetown University *Rev. J. Charles Davey, SJ – first dean of Brooklyn Prep and president of

Saint Joseph's University Saint Joseph's University (SJU or St. Joe's) is a Private university, private Jesuits, Jesuit university in Philadelphia, Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, and Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The university was founded by the Jesuits, Society of J ...

* John C. Lawn – varsity basketball coach, who became

Drug Enforcement Administration The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating illicit Illegal drug trade, drug trafficking a ...

Administrator, COO of the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

, and CEO of The Century Council

References

{{Authority control 1908 establishments in New York City Defunct boys' schools in the United States Defunct high schools in Brooklyn Defunct Catholic secondary schools in New York City Educational institutions disestablished in 1972 Educational institutions established in 1908 Jesuit high schools in the United States Preparatory schools in New York City Catholic preparatory schools in the United States Boys' schools in New York City Roman Catholic high schools in Brooklyn Crown Heights, Brooklyn Society of Jesus in New York (state) 1972 disestablishments in New York City