DON BOSCO PREP

Don Bosco Preparatory High School (Don Bosco Prep) is a private, Roman Catholic secondary school for young men, grades 9 through 12. Founded in 1915, by the Salesians of Don Bosco, a religious order of priests and brothers, Don Bosco Prep is attended by eight hundred seventy-five students from over 100 towns throughout the New York metropolitan area. The school is situated on a park-like, thirty-five acre campus in Ramsey, New Jersey, United States.

Accreditation

Accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, Don Bosco Prep is a member of The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, The National Catholic Education Association, The National Association of Secondary School Principals, The National Honor Society and The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association.

Location

Don Bosco Prep is located in the Borough of Ramsey, New Jersey. Don Bosco Prep currently enrolls approximately 905 students. The institution draws students from a wide geographical region, including Bergen, Passaic, Morris, Essex and Sussex counties in New Jersey as well as Rockland and Orange counties in New York. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark.

Course Offerings

Courses currently available include: Algebra I*, Geometry*, Algebra II/Trigonometry*, Pre-Calculus*, Statistics, AP Calculus AB and BC, Composition, American Literature*, British Literature*, AP English Language and Composition, AP English Literature and Composition, Creative Writing, AP Latin, Latin, French, Italian, German, Spanish*, World History*, AP United States History*, AP European History, AP United States Government and Politics, Biology*, Chemistry*, Physics*, Environmental Science, AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Environmental Science, AP Physics B, Astronomy, AP Psychology, Economics, Criminal Justice, Film Studies, Intro to Law, Sociology, Musical Arts, Theology, Anatomy and Physiology, Fine Arts, and Computer Science.

* an honors version of the class is available

Athletics

The athletic teams are nicknamed the Ironmen and the school colors are maroon and white.

Fall

The Prep fields football, soccer and cross country teams in the fall.

The cross country team has won the New Jersey State Championship for 2007, placed third at the Nike Northeast Regional Race, and placed 10th at Nike Team Nationals in Portland, Oregon. They also recently ended Christian Brothers Academy's 11-year winning streak at the state group championships, and in 2005 the freshman cross country team ended the 19 year streak of CBA in the NJCTCs.[1]

The soccer team is the State Championship Runner-up as is a perennial competitor for the state title. The team was county champs in 2007 and ranked 1st in state and 4th in country.[citation needed]

There is also a fall crew team, started in 2006, and they hope to expand upon the reputation and success that DBP has gained in spring rowing.

Don Bosco Prep's football program is a competitor for the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Non-Public Group IV championship almost every year, appearing in all state finals since 2002. Since Don Bosco first took to the gridiron in 1958, the Ironmen have won 10 state championships (1968, 1970, 1973, 1983, 1984, 1990, 2002, 2003, 2006, and 2007). Don Bosco Prep has been boosted by regular season competition with perennial powerhouses such as Bergen Catholic High School and Saint Joseph Regional High School. The football team ended the 2002 season ranked number 8 in the nation in USA Today’s “Super 25” ranking of the best high school football teams in the country[2], and was ranked 2nd in the nation in the 2003 season.[3] In 2006, the Ironmen finished the season ranked number 7 in the nation.[4] In 2002, 2003, and 2006, the football team won the Star Ledger Trophy as the best team in New Jersey[citation needed] and ended the season in each of those three years ranked number 1 in the East by USA Today.[5][6][7]

Winter

The Prep currently fields eight varsity athletic teams in the winter including the two-time defending Bergen County Champion basketball team, a hockey team, wrestling, and bowling programs. DBP also has swimming and fencing teams, a ski racing team and an indoor track & field program. Don Bosco's ski team has won the league championship five years in a row, and always has a strong showing in the state race.

The swimming program was only introduced three years ago but has climbed the ranks to place third this year in its league. This year the Don Bosco Swim Team is expected to take first among its rival teams. On January 5, 2008, Don Bosco swim team beat Bergen Catholic High School, in a 98-72 win for the Ironmen that was the first time Bergen Catholic has lost in 23 years at a duel meet.[8]

The Bosco hockey squad is expected to be a strong contender for state championships in the coming years under the direction of Greg Toskos (the program's all-time leading scorer) and Matt Nielson. Toskos played for the Ironmen hockey team in the early 1990's, when the team was recognized as a state-powerhouse. In 1994, the program experienced its best year, posting a 27-3 record and reaching the state finals where they lost to Christian Brothers Academy.

Don Bosco's fencing team is a perennial powerhouse, finishing the 2007 season second in the league and placing 8th in the state. Each of the team's squads also had an impressive showing at States, as the epee team placed 6th, the saber 10th, and the foil 15th.

The wrestling team won the 2007 Non-Public North A state sectional championship with a 32-28 win against rival Bergen Catholic High School.[9]

Spring

The school offers seven varsity sports in the spring season including baseball, crew, golf, lacrosse, outdoor track, tennis, and volleyball. The Ironmen are the defending State Champions in Spring Track after a commanding win in 2006. Baseball won the county title in 2006 and 2007. The lacrosse team is a perennial powerhouse, as are the golf and volleyball teams.

The Crew team, which was started in the spring of 2003, has grown into a regional powerhouse, winning several events and placing many boats in regattas in Philadelphia and Mercer Lake. Bosco's Junior double has been a force to be reckoned with nationally in the past two seasons going undefeated in the spring of 2006, with wins at Cities and Scholastic Nationals as well as winning the event at the Stotesbury Cup in 2005 and 2006. In 2007 the DBP team switched their focus over to the tougher quad event and was rewarded with the first ever New Jersey State Championships in the Junior and Senior Quad events. The Junior quad finished a successful season with Bronze at Philly City Championships and 5th place finishes at Stotesbury and SRAA Nationals, the highest ever finishes for a Bosco quad at these events and a great step for the program.

Clubs

Don Bosco Prep offers clubs and activities for student involvement. These include:

Concert Series

In order to raise awareness of arts at Don Bosco Prep, the music department and alumni have begun a series of concerts. Some of these concerts feature religious or classical music and are included in the "Mary, Help of Christians Chapel Concert Series." Other concerts, organized by the alumni association, present more contemporary music. Billed artists have included:

Notable alumni