Xavier High School (Cedar Rapids, Iowa)
Xavier High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa is the sixth largest and only Catholic high school in the Cedar Rapids metropolitan area. It is affiliated with twelve area Catholic parishes and the Archdiocese of Dubuque. It opened in 1998 after two previous Catholic high schools, Regis High School and LaSalle High School, merged.
Xavier High School is a member of the National Catholic Education Association and is accredited by the State of Iowa. Fifty-eight percent of the faculty has a M.A. or Ph.D. in their area.
School Information
Xavier's campus encompasses a full 60 acres in northeastern Cedar Rapids. The 146,500 square foot facility is capable of managing up to 811 students under the current layout. Xavier enjoys several advantages in facilities over other Metro area high schools. The football, baseball, softball, and soccer fields are all located on-campus, as well as two full football and soccer practice fields. Newly remodeled tennis courts are on-campus as well. A disk golf course is in place throughout the campus grounds for students' use at their leisure. A pond on the eastern edge of campus is used for fishing by many students.
With the school being only 10 years old, all facilities are at a state-of-the-art level. All classrooms have at least one working computer with Internet access. Each student is provided with their own personal locker. All science students have access to the science laboratory, and all students are free to work in one of Xavier's three computer labs.
Xavier's mission is "to develop the total person in a Catholic environment".
Student Information
The 795 students at Xavier High school primarily come from the surrounding area's Catholic middle schools: Regis Middle School and LaSalle Middle School (the former high schools that merged to form Xavier) in Cedar Rapids, and Saint Joseph's School in Marion, Iowa.
Xavier boasts a well-rounded student body that maintains a focus on service and academic excellence. 100% of Xavier's students participate in community service. 96% of the class of 2008 went on to pursue post secondary education. 94% of students are involved in at least one co-curricular activity, with 78% of students involved in three or more. 65% of the student body plays at least one school-sponsored sport. Well over one-third of all Xavier students participate in the school's fine arts.
Academics
Xavier enjoys an excellent academic reputation, consistently ranking as the top academic high school in Eastern Iowa, and one of the best in the state. Xavier's ITED scores have ranked in the 99th percentile multiple times. Most recently, Xavier placed in the 98th percentile, the top high school mark in the state of Iowa. Xavier students' ACT scores are exceptional, on average scoring almost 3 points higher than the national average of 21.1.
Xavier operates on an eight period daily schedule. Fifth period is broken up into three subperiods (A, B, and C) for students to eat lunch during one of them. Xavier is a closed campus. Beginning with the class of 2011, Xavier has updated their graduation requirements for their students' course load.
Guidance classes and appointments are required each year for all students as well. Xavier offers a wide variety of AP courses, including Biology, Chemistry, US History, British Literature, Calculus, and Spanish, among others. Xavier also offers a Drivers Education program, requiring 30 hours of driving with an instructor and 30 classroom hours. A total of 40 Honors and AP courses are offered on campus.
Athletics
Xavier has one of the most successful athletic programs in Iowa and in the Midwest. On June 19, 2007, [http://www.sportsillustrated.com Sports Illustrated] named Xavier as the top athletic high school for the 2006-2007 school year in the state. In the past five years, Xavier has won state championships in men's & women's soccer, men's tennis, men's & women's cross country, women's basketball, men's track, baseball, softball, and football.
In the past academic year, Xavier was once again one of the most successful high schools in the state athletically, this time qualifying for the state tournament in women's basketball, women's diving, women's swimming, men's cross country, men's and women's track, & men's and women's soccer. The men's track 100 meter dash and 200 meter dash were state champions, as well as the women's soccer team. The Xavier football team qualified for the playoffs for the fifth time in the school's eleven year history, upsetting #1 seeded Iowa City High in the first round 27-3. The team finished 8-4 (6-3 MVC).
Fine Arts
Xavier's fine arts department is one of the fastest-growing high school departments in the state of Iowa. The school offers numerous choral, instrumental, and theatrical programs for students to participate in.
Xavier's choral program has grown to become 240 voices strong (31% of the student body). The school offers seven different vocal ensembles, four of which meet during school hours daily: Bel Canto (freshmen women's choir), Singing Saints (intermediate men's choir), Women's Chorale (intermediate women's choir), and Xavier Chorale (advanced mixed choir), as well as three that meet only outside of the school day: Xuberance (prep show choir), Xhilaration (varsity show choir), and Voce (Xavier's 40 member chamber choir). In 2009, Voce embarked on a three-day tour across two states, bringing them to Fort Dodge, Sioux City, South Sioux City, and Storm Lake.
Xavier's choral department has received numerous state and national accolades. Voce has received a Division I rating at the State Large Group Contest on multiple occasions. Voce was also invited to the exclusive Dorian Choral Invitational at Luther College in 2008. In 2009, Xavier Chorale was the featured high school choir at the Dorian Choral Festival. Xavier students excel in Iowa State Solo/Ensemble contest. In 2009, 36 entries earned Division I ratings vocally. In 2008, Xavier placed 16 vocalists into the Iowa All-State Chorus. It was the fourth highest total of any school in the state.
Xavier's show choir program is respected nationwide for its excellence. Xuberance is recognized as one of the top 10 prep show choirs in the state of Iowa, qualifying for finals at the Cedar Rapids Kennedy invitational. Xhilaration has won seven Grand Championships in the past five seasons, including their exceptional three Grand Championship 2009 season. Xhilaration is one of less than ten show choirs in the entire nation to have achieved this level of excellence in 2009.
Xavier's band department is also growing quickly. The band at Xavier consists of 47 instrumentalists, 2 drum majors, and 12 color guard members, totaling 8% of the student body. All Xavier band members are required to be members of the marching, pep, and concert bands. Xavier's marching band received a Division II rating at the 2007 State Marching Band Contest.
Xavier's drama program is now recognized as one of the best in Eastern Iowa. Past productions include Once on This Island, Rumors, Noises Off, She Loves Me, and Romeo and Juliet. The Xavier Players produce four shows each year - a fall show in September, a musical in November, a children's show in February, and a play in April. In 2009-2010, they will open their season with The Fantasticks in September, produce Les Misérables in November and Peter Pan in February, and close the season with Deathtrap in April. The Fantasticks runs September 17th and 19th.
Xavier's speech program is one of the largest in the state of Iowa. Xavier has consistently sent groups and individuals to All-State Speech over the past six years. In 2009, Xavier earned three All-State entries in large group speech. In addition, in 2008, Xavier sent five individual speech team members to State, and three of those members also advanced to All-State. Xavier's speech team is non-exclusive, and is one of the most popular co-curricular activities at Xavier.
Activities and Clubs
Xavier offers a multitude of activities and clubs for all students to participate in. There are over 88 co-curricular activities at Xavier. Some of these include intramural basketball (one of the most popular activities at Xavier), Key Club, National Honor Society, SADD, and Model UN, among others. Xavier's debate team, in its first-ever year of existence in 2008, reached the quarterfinal round of the state tournament. Xavier's Student Senate consists of six class representatives from each grade, along with four senior officers, for a total of 28 members.
Nearly all of Xavier's co-curricular activities have placed at the state, regional, or national level. Over the past ten years, Xavier has been one of the most recognized schools in the nation due to its award-winning teams and programs. Nearly any program or activity offered at the high school level is performed at the highest level at Xavier High School. For example, Xavier has won the Iowa state mock trial championship in the past and placed in the top ten nationally. Xavier's Knowledge Master Open team placed 6th in the state in the Fall 2008 competition. It was in only its second year of existence. The Economics Team won the state competition in 2009 and placed second at the regional level.
With the foundation of a Xavier education, graduates are free to lead tomorrow and serve forever.
Notable alumni
Ryan Sweeney - Oakland A's outfielder (Class of 2003)
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