Cristo Rey Jesuit High School

Great school with connections to some of Chicago major employers. If you can get take advantage of the opportunity.

When I was a student there the school provided no AP instruction, no ACT/​SAT prep, and, with the exception of math and English, no honors courses. The lack of honors courses made class very repetitive and unchallenging at times. There was also a great deal of favoritism. Certain students were given extreme privileges while others were denied titles, awards, or positions they had rightfully earned. The title of valedictorian for example, was not solely given to the person with the highest GPA, active involvement in school activities, college credits, and independent research. It was instead given to the rightful valedictorian as well as the boy who ranked second or third in the class because «it’s been a while since we’ve had a male valedictorian.» Yet, to my knowledge, the same course of action was not taken when men held valedictory titles for several years in a row. Not to mention, teachers and staff never addressed the blatant sexism expressed by a group of male students in the class. I had to sit there day after day and seethe quietly while these students spoke harshly about me and women in general. All of which is especially disappointing coming from a school that aims to produce graduates who are «open to growth» and «committed to justice.» That being said, some of the teachers were exceptional. They were warm, passionate, and truly dedicated to helping their students. They made my years there much more enjoyable. The Corporate Internship Program was also great in a lot of ways, but I always hated that we were falling behind so many schools due to the day a week we missed in class.

In retrospect, as an alumnus, not a bad place to go to High School. I learned many life lessons here, learned how to play guitar in their basement, met some great life long friends and got big push into college.
The Jesuits are powerful people and have expanded their unique high school model nation-​wide!