The Graduate at Graduation

The Graduate at Graduation, often referred to as the "Grad at Grad", are five characteristics (open to growth, intellectually competent, religious, loving, committed to doing justice) that all Jesuit schools hope their graduates will embody. 

One goal of a Jesuit education is aimed at graduating students who possess the desire and the personal resources to be women and men for others.  These five pillars are intended to serve as the foundation of resources that will fuel their desire to set the world on fire.

The Walsh Jesuit Graduate at Graduation is . . .

   

List of 5 items.

  • Open to Growth

    The Walsh Jesuit High School student at the time of graduation has matured as a person — emotionally, intellectually, physically, socially, religiously — to a level that reflects some intentional responsibility for one’s own growth.  The graduate is beginning to reach out in his or her development, seeking opportunities to stretch one’s mind, imagination, feelings, and religious consciousness.
  • Intellectually Competent

    By graduation, the Walsh Jesuit High School student will exhibit a mastery of those academic requirements for advanced forms of education. While these requirements are broken down into departmental subject matter areas, the student will have developed many intellectual skills and understandings that cut across and go beyond academic requirements for college entrance. The student is also developing habits of intellectual inquiry, as well as a disposition towards life-long learning. The student is beginning to see the need for intellectual integrity in his or her personal quest for religious truth and in his or her response to issues of social justice.
  • Religious

    By graduation, the Walsh Jesuit High School student will have a basic knowledge of the major doctrines and practices of the Catholic Church. Having been introduced to Ignatian spirituality, the graduate will also have examined his or her own religious feelings and beliefs with a view to choosing a fundamental orientation toward God and establishing a relationship with a religious tradition and/or community. What is said here, respectful of the conscience and religious background of the individual, also applies to the non-Catholic graduate of a Jesuit high school.  The level of theological understanding of the Jesuit high school graduate will naturally be limited by the student’s level of religious and human development.
  • Loving

    By graduation, the Walsh Jesuit High School student is continuing to form his or her own identity. He or she is moving beyond self-interest or self-centeredness in close relationships. The graduate is beginning to be able to risk some deeper levels of relationship in which one can disclose self and accept the mystery of another person and cherish that person. Nonetheless, the graduate’s attempt at loving, while clearly beyond childhood, may not yet reflect the confidence and freedom of an adult.
  • Committed to Doing Justice

    The Walsh Jesuit High School student at graduation has acquired considerable knowledge of the many needs of local, national, and global communities and is preparing for the day when he or she will take a place in these communities as a competent, concerned, and responsible member. The graduate has been inspired to develop the awareness and skills necessary to live in a global society as a person for and with others.  Although this commitment to doing justice will come to fruition in mature adulthood, some predispositions will have begun to manifest themselves earlier.
   

The Mid-Point Interview


As your child reaches the midpoint of his/her career at Walsh Jesuit High School, we believe it is important for him/her, along with at least one parent/guardian, to reflect on the past two years and plan for what remains. Conferences are conducted by the faculty and staff at Walsh Jesuit and last less than an hour.  The mid-point interview is a graduation requirement and must be completed prior to the start of their junior year.

The conference focuses on the five characteristics of the Graduate at Graduation: open to growth; intellectually competent; religious; loving; committed to doing justice.  These five pillars are the characteristics all Jesuit high schools hope their graduates will embody.
  
Summaries of the conferences are used by the counselors for goal setting for the next two years, as your student moves on towards the Senior Experience. 

Senior Experience



At Walsh Jesuit, we value personal development. To help accomplish this, we broaden the horizons of Seniors as they reach the end of their high school years. Walsh Jesuit provides Seniors an opportunity to experience a more active understanding of their role in society.

Senior Experience, a graduation requirement, is a three week program where two weeks are spent exploring a career interest and the third week is split – three days of service and one day for a retreat.  These three weeks bring full circle the Graduate at Graduation characteristics Walsh Jesuit hopes its graduates will have achieved in their four years: open to growth; loving; religious; intellectually competent, and committed to doing justice.  

To determine if the Senior Experience graduation requirement has been met, the student delivers a 5-7 minute oral defense on how they should be a Graduate at Graduation in the fourth week. Seniors can find more detailed information in their MyWJ account.
As a Christ-centered community, we strive to be Men and Women for Others.