Read Online Missing the Big Picture by Luke Donovan - Free Book Online
Authors: Luke Donovan
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probably wouldn’t have been a good employee.
After I left Saint John’s, I was curious to see what happened or what changes the school made. After the class of 2001 graduated, there was a sizeable increase from four hundred to over five hundred thirty students in 2005. Enrollment had decreased to approximately 381 students for 2011–12. 3
In 2005, the school made national news when an English teacher and mother of one of the students slept with several of her students. The teacher and a student, who was only sixteen, were found committing a sexual act in a parked car.
The teacher was separated but was still married to a successful businessman and had a history of abusing alcohol. 4
The school now has, according to its website, Advanced Placement courses in English, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Computer Science, etc and even offers college credit courses from the University at Albany and Hudson Valley Community College. All of the surrounding school districts by St. John’s (Albany, North Colonie, South Colonie), also offer these types of courses. According to the current Director of Admissions, teachers now have to be certified to work at the school. This means that up until 2011, some teachers were teaching multiple subjects that they were not certified to teach. In 2010, on a flier for an open house, the school continued to boast that it had 100-percent pass rates on five Regents exams. However, some of these Regents exams were required for graduation in New York State. On the school’s website, there is no mention about SAT scores, class sizes, or how much the tuition costs. There is only one Christian brother left at the school now, according to the school’s current website. All classes, including religion, are taught by lay faculty.
I thought by enrolling in Saint John’s, my biological father would accept me. In actuality, it didn’t change anything or help me develop any type of relationship with him. The way I see it, if somebody is going to be that big of a douchebag by having a child and never attempting to make any connection with him, that is one less asshole I have to deal with in my life.
I still touch base with some of my classmates from Saint John’s. The salutatorian, who was extremely bright and one of most arrogant students in the school, ended up graduating from Cornell University Law School. The valedictorian, who as a senior led the military brigade, ended up graduating from West Point and became a paratrooper in the army. When he returned from duty, he completely covered himself in tattoos. In January 2010, after the earthquake in Haiti killed two hundred thousand people, he wrote on his Facebook page, “Haiti finally got what they deserve; only now if a hurricane could strike Florida and kill all of the Cubans.” Some of my other classmates have become Albany police officers and have had the privilege of arresting Saint John’s class members. One became a professional blogger, and a few have remained unemployed or are “writers” or “musicians.” Many of my classmates are now married, have great jobs and have beautiful children.
There were also very nice students and teachers at Saint John’s. Overall, though, I felt that the prevailing attitude of Saint John’s was arrogant and unrealistic and that many Saint John’s community members lacked compassion for anybody different from them. I wanted to include these stories in my book so that these individuals could examine their lives. Hopefully Saint John’s can one day become a school operated by Christian brothers, not just lay faculty members. It is very sad that the De La Salle Christian Brothers are close to becoming extinct. There have been many men who have lived full lives that have impacted hundreds of individuals by living as a Christian brother. I hope it can become a place where compassion and the teachings of Jesus Christ and Saint John Baptist de La Salle are not just taught, but are put into practice.
CHAPTER
After I left Saint John’s, I was curious to see what happened or what changes the school made. After the class of 2001 graduated, there was a sizeable increase from four hundred to over five hundred thirty students in 2005. Enrollment had decreased to approximately 381 students for 2011–12. 3
In 2005, the school made national news when an English teacher and mother of one of the students slept with several of her students. The teacher and a student, who was only sixteen, were found committing a sexual act in a parked car.
The teacher was separated but was still married to a successful businessman and had a history of abusing alcohol. 4
The school now has, according to its website, Advanced Placement courses in English, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Computer Science, etc and even offers college credit courses from the University at Albany and Hudson Valley Community College. All of the surrounding school districts by St. John’s (Albany, North Colonie, South Colonie), also offer these types of courses. According to the current Director of Admissions, teachers now have to be certified to work at the school. This means that up until 2011, some teachers were teaching multiple subjects that they were not certified to teach. In 2010, on a flier for an open house, the school continued to boast that it had 100-percent pass rates on five Regents exams. However, some of these Regents exams were required for graduation in New York State. On the school’s website, there is no mention about SAT scores, class sizes, or how much the tuition costs. There is only one Christian brother left at the school now, according to the school’s current website. All classes, including religion, are taught by lay faculty.
I thought by enrolling in Saint John’s, my biological father would accept me. In actuality, it didn’t change anything or help me develop any type of relationship with him. The way I see it, if somebody is going to be that big of a douchebag by having a child and never attempting to make any connection with him, that is one less asshole I have to deal with in my life.
I still touch base with some of my classmates from Saint John’s. The salutatorian, who was extremely bright and one of most arrogant students in the school, ended up graduating from Cornell University Law School. The valedictorian, who as a senior led the military brigade, ended up graduating from West Point and became a paratrooper in the army. When he returned from duty, he completely covered himself in tattoos. In January 2010, after the earthquake in Haiti killed two hundred thousand people, he wrote on his Facebook page, “Haiti finally got what they deserve; only now if a hurricane could strike Florida and kill all of the Cubans.” Some of my other classmates have become Albany police officers and have had the privilege of arresting Saint John’s class members. One became a professional blogger, and a few have remained unemployed or are “writers” or “musicians.” Many of my classmates are now married, have great jobs and have beautiful children.
There were also very nice students and teachers at Saint John’s. Overall, though, I felt that the prevailing attitude of Saint John’s was arrogant and unrealistic and that many Saint John’s community members lacked compassion for anybody different from them. I wanted to include these stories in my book so that these individuals could examine their lives. Hopefully Saint John’s can one day become a school operated by Christian brothers, not just lay faculty members. It is very sad that the De La Salle Christian Brothers are close to becoming extinct. There have been many men who have lived full lives that have impacted hundreds of individuals by living as a Christian brother. I hope it can become a place where compassion and the teachings of Jesus Christ and Saint John Baptist de La Salle are not just taught, but are put into practice.
CHAPTER
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