Benet Academy

Benet Academy (commonly referred to as "Benet") is a fully accredited private co-educational college-preparatory Catholic high school based in Lisle, Illinois. The student body is roughly 1200, depending on year-to-year individual class sizes. Benet is known regionally for above average scores (SAT and ACT), focused students, proactive teachers, relaxed atmosphere, and involved student body.

Benet was originally two separate Benedictine schools: St. Procopius Academy for young men and Sacred Heart Academy for young women. In 1967 the two high schools merged to form a unified co-ed Benedictine school christened "Benet Academy". The old campus of St. Procopius Academy has served as the home of Benet Academy since the merger. The former Sacred Heart Academy presently serves as a base of operations for the sisters of Sacred Heart Monastery. It is currently undergoing an expansion to provide a retirement village for the elderly.

The high point of the school year is the annual Christmas Charity Drive, held during the two weeks prior to Christmas Break. The current record, as of the 2004-2005 school year, was approximately $44,700 raised for needy families. Benet is more infamously known among the local banking community for its annual "Penny Wars", a charitable contest that takes place during the Christmas Drive and pits class against class in a bid to win a Slop Day. Historically, the Senior Class wins the "Penny Wars", though there has been one notable exception to this rule.

Benet Academy hosts many sports (Soccer, Football, Volleyball, Baseball, etc.) and clubs (Art, Environmental, Improv, Newspaper, the Simpsons, etc.). However, in recent years, organizations that are not sponsored by Benet such as the Redwing Ski and Snowboard Association and the Redwing Hockey Club have taken root at Benet with much success. Most sports are traditionally divided along the lines of Fall, Winter, and Spring Sports.

Benet's student government is known as SG (which stands for "Student Government" imaginatively enough). Elections for SG President and Vice-President are held in late spring. Class Representatives are elected in the weeks following that election. SG is organized in various committees (Special Events, Social, Publicity, etc.) staffed by volunteers and co-chaired by various Class Reps. Freshmen class elections are held early the following year. SG is in charge of most social events at Benet Academy, in particular the Christmas Drive.

Until quite recently, Benet Academy was well known locally for its student dress code; in particular, its "sassy plaid mini-skirts" as termed by the Chicago Sun-Times. Due to a groundswell of criticism from both alumni and the local community, the Academy tightened its dress policy and adopted a standard uniform policy beginning in the 2003-2004 school year.

Timeline

In 1900 land is purchased to house St. Procopius College and a new Abbey. St. Procopius College's cornerstone is laid in this year. The subsequent year St. Procopius College moves to its new facilities.

The St. Joseph Bohemian Orphanage builds what will later become St. Joseph Hall in 1910. The orphanage uses the hall to house its wards and also to educate those wards in its grammar school.

1912: Benet Hall built. It originally serves as a dorm and then boarding facility for the orphanage. Later it is converted into classrooms.

1938: The "Old Gym" is built for St. Joseph Bohemian Orphanage. It will occasionally serve as a funeral hall for recently deceased wards, a fact that serves as more than a little fodder for modern Benet Academy urban legends. In modern times, the "Old Gym" serves as the main gym for Physical Education classes, a meeting hall for small assemblies, and sometimes as a dance hall (in particular for Soc-Hops).

1956: St. Joseph Bohemian Orphanage closes operations and subsequently becomes the new home of St. Procopius Academy. St. Procopius College is separated from St. Procopius Academy and the two schools occupy spaces opposite one another on Maple and College. St. Procopius College will eventually go on to be renamed Illinois Benedictine College (or "I.B.C." for short) and, in the 1990s, Benedictine University ("B.U."). St. Mary's and Petru halls are built and house upperclassmen.

1963: St. Martin's Hall is built. Originally an indoor track, the basement of St. Martin's Hall is used in modern times primarily by the Foreign Language Department. The first floor is used by the English Department. The second floor is used by the Math Department. On a funny historical side note, St. Martin's Hall is legend among its students, alumni, and faculty for the distinctly pungent smell that occasionally emanates from the stairwell nearest the Dean's Office. The source of the odor is, as of this posting, still unknown.

1967: St. Procopius Academy and Sacred Heart Academy merge to create the new, unified Benet Academy on the campus of St. Procopius Academy.

1975: St. Thomas Hall is built. In modern times, it houses the Science Department and the library.

1994: The "New Gym" is built. It is used as an auxiliary gym for Physical Education classes. Features air conditioning and many modern amenities. It serves as an assembly hall for school-wide gatherings, such as masses, the Christmas Drive Assembly, and the rare student funeral. Also used in the springtime to hold Benet's AP Tests. Occasionally houses dances but in recent times usually in a back-up capacity.

2000: St. Daniel Hall opens. Built on the grounds of Petru Hall, it is the fifth hall of Benet Academy and serves solely as the base of operations for the school's Music and Art/Theater Departments.

2001-2002: The old chapel, which had been converted to a school theater/assembly hall is renovated and remade into the Chapel of Saint Thérèse - The "Little Flower".

Outside links

http://www.benet.org - Benet Academy's official website