South County Gets a
New Catholic High School
On a typical school day
in South County, more
than 400 teenagers rise
early, grab breakfast and pile into the family
car where they will spend more than three
hours travelling to and from school. It’s
a long haul that takes a big bite out of
schedules already stretched to the max to
include extra-curricular, homework and
family time, not to mention sleep. So why
do they do it?
These students and their parents are
willing to “go the distance,” literally, to
pursue their ideal of the best educational
experience. They want to attend high schools
like Bellarmine, Presentation and St. Francis
and obtain a Catholic college preparatory
education with the hope of positioning
themselves competitively for acceptance into
the top colleges and universities.
Parents like Chuck Berghoff who have
sent their children to Catholic schools say
it can help prepare students to achieve their
intellectual, spiritual and social potential
and that having a local campus can further
strengthen the local community. Berghoff
BY ROBIN
SHEPHERD
28
is a Morgan Hill resident and high tech
business owner who also volunteers his time
as a director of youth programs with the
Morgan Hill Rotary Club.
A long commute is one thing, but there’s
also the issue of supply and demand. South
County is one of the fastest-growing regions
in the Bay Area. As the youth population
continues to grow, demand for admission
into the existing Catholic high school
system could soon outpace capacity, and
it’s been more than 50 years since the last
Catholic high school was built in Santa
Clara County.
With this in mind, South County
community leaders began communicating
with the Diocese of San Jose to develop a
vision for a new high school. The South
County Catholic High School project was
created to transform that vision into a
reality. George Chiala and other community
leaders including Carl Reinhardt have been
instrumental in getting the project off the
ground. Along the way, the project has also
won the support of Morgan Hill Mayor
Steve Tate and Gilroy Mayor Don Gage.
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
JULY / AUGUST 2015
In May of 2015, the Diocese of San
Jose announced that the proposed school
has been named Saint John XXIII College
Preparatory.
Project plans describe a campus that
will be built from the ground up as a 21st
century educational center. The school
will be constructed by the Diocese of San
Jose on 40 acres of land it has set aside,
located East of Highway 101 at Tennant
and Murphy Avenues. Plans call for
LEED-certified “green building” design
and construction, with state-of-the-art
classrooms, a libr ary, chapel, performing
arts center and an athletic complex.
According to George Chiala, “This
school is a gift that’s going to give back
to the community for generations to
come.” Joining Chiala on the project are
Chuck Berghoff and Mary Beth Anderson,
Co-chairpersons for the fundraising
committee; and Campaign Coordinator
Susan Krajewski who works with the
project’s launch and steering committees.
“This school is an opportunity to
embrace our youth, providing a rigorous
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