Mission & History
Mission Statement
Founded in 1847, Xavier High School is an academically rigorous, Catholic, Jesuit college preparatory school in New York City that educates intelligent, motivated young men of diverse backgrounds and means. Xavier teaches students to take responsibility for their lives, to lead with integrity, to act justly in service of others, to pursue excellence in every endeavor, and to deepen their relationship with God. Ultimately, Xavier forms young men who will go forth to transform the world for God’s greater glory.
In the summer of 1847, Fr. John Larkin, S.J., a 46-year-old Jesuit priest, journeyed south from St. John's College in Fordham—a village then several miles north of city limits—to establish a Jesuit college and church in New York City.
What was then known as the School of the Holy Name of Jesus opened in a church basement in the fall of 1847, with students hailing from New York, Brooklyn, and Jersey City, but disaster soon struck. On January 22, 1848, the church was destroyed in a fire.
In the fire's aftermath, Larkin came to symbolize what would become permanent elements of Xavier's institutional character: courage and resilience. He refused to close the school, telling his Jesuit superior, “The professors will teach their classes tomorrow, and the Fathers attend to their confessionals as usual.” Classes resumed in temporary quarters in another church basement before moving to No. 77 Third Avenue, between 11th and 12th Streets, in 1849.
One year later, in 1850, the Jesuits purchased 10 lots of land on 15th and 16th Streets between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. A new school was built and, at the request of Archbishop John Hughes, took the name of St. Francis Xavier. Students and faculty moved in around Thanksgiving.
One year later, in 1850, the Jesuits purchased 10 lots of land on 15th and 16th Streets between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. A new school was built and, at the request of Archbishop John Hughes, took the name of St. Francis Xavier. Students and faculty moved in around Thanksgiving.
Now, nearly 180 years after our founding, Xavier is a member of the Jesuit Schools Network, the National Association of Independent Schools, the National Catholic Education Association, and the New York State Association of Independent Schools. It is part of the USA East Province of the Society of Jesus, which oversees schools from Maine to Georgia, and one of 87 secondary and pre-secondary schools in the United States and Canada.
One could say that the success of the school can be measured by the distinguished roster of honored graduates successful in every profession, the leaders in every field. Yet for a Catholic school, such is not the measure of success. The nourishing, strengthening, and deepening of faith, the sharing of the vision of Jesus Christ, the spread of the Kingdom of God, are the ultimate goals of Xavier. … We can but judge that through so many years, with patience and courage, Xavier has labored for these goals.
Pedro Arrupe, S.J., Superior General of the Society of Jesus, November 12, 1972, on the occasion of Xavier’s 125th anniversary