Benet Academy
(often shortened to "Benet") is a co-educational,
college-preparatory
Benedictine
high school in
Lisle, Illinois
,
United States
, overseen by the
Diocese of Joliet
. Since its founding in 1888, notable alumni have included
Olympic
athletes, professional
American football
players, winners of
Grammy
and
Academy Awards
, singer David Bickler from Survivor, and a former
Illinois Attorney General
.
An alumni directory compiled in 1937 reveals that older alumni have included members of the
clergy
, businessmen, physicians, educators, attorneys, musicians, and journalists.
[1]
For the 2010?11 school year, 1,333 students were enrolled at Benet.
[2]
Most students come from
Lisle
,
Downers Grove
, and
Naperville
,
[3]
but students expected to graduate in 2013 came from 65 different schools and 34 different municipalities in
DuPage
and surrounding counties.
[4]
Admission is competitive and primarily based on the High School Placement Test, a standardized test by Scholastic Testing Service, taken in January of applicants' eighth grade year (around age 13).
[5]
The
Chicago Sun-Times
ranked Benet one of the top ten high schools in the
Chicago
area in 2003,
[3]
and in 1999 Benet was one of two high schools in DuPage County, and 100 high schools nationwide, featured as an "Outstanding American High School" by
U.S. News & World Report
.
[6]
Formerly known as the all-boys
St. Procopius College
and Academy, the school began to offer a remedial course, or a course designed to bring underprepared students to competency, to only two students on March 2, 1887. Enrollment grew to 30 high school students by 1947.
[7]
The academy began to operate independently from the college in 1957.
[8]
The
all-girls
Sacred Heart Academy, founded in 1926, operated nearby.
[9]
Due to dwindling enrollment and funding, St. Procopius Academy and Sacred Heart Academy merged in 1967 to form Benet Academy.
[10]
Alumni
[
edit
]
Former students with a ? in the "Graduated" column did not graduate from Benet Academy.
Name
|
Graduated
|
Known for
|
Ref.
|
Robert Barron
|
1978
|
Priest of the
Roman Catholic Church
, author, scholar, and professor of theology at the
University of Saint Mary of the Lake
, Auxiliary Bishop of
Los Angeles
|
[11]
|
Steve Baumgartner
|
1969
|
Former professional
American football
player who played
defensive end
for the
New Orleans Saints
and the
Houston Oilers
|
[12]
|
Dave Bickler
|
1971
|
Grammy
winning
rock
singer and former lead singer of the group
Survivor
, who also sang the rock star role in
Bud Light
's award-winning ad campaign
Real Men of Genius
|
[11]
[13]
|
Joan Biskupic
|
1974
|
USA Today
journalist who covers the
US Supreme Court
and wrote biographies of
Sandra Day O'Connor
and
Antonin Scalia
|
[14]
|
Steven M. Biskupic
|
1979
|
Former
US Attorney
for the
Eastern District of Wisconsin
|
[15]
|
Diablo Cody
|
1996
|
Author of
Candy Girl: A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper
and
Oscar
-winning screenwriter of
Juno
|
[16]
|
Robert J. Conrad
|
1976
|
Chief Judge of the
US District Court for the Western District of North Carolina
|
[15]
|
Mark DeCarlo
|
1980
|
Actor in
The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius
and
Sex Sells: The Making of Touche
also
hosted the game show
Studs
|
[14]
[17]
[18]
|
Kathleen Doyle
|
2016
|
Basketball player at the
University of Iowa
(2016?2020);
Big Ten
Player of the Year
in
2020
. Also a silver medalist with the US national team at the
2019 Pan American Games
. WNBA draftee as 14th overall pick by
Indiana Fever
.
|
[19]
[20]
|
Cameron Esposito
|
2000
|
Stand-up comic, and actor known for Take My Wife on
Seeso
|
[21]
|
Meagen Fay
|
1975
|
Actress and former
Second City
comedian who has appeared in various television programs, including
The Drew Carey Show
|
[22]
|
Marita Geraghty
|
1980
|
Television and film actress; appearances include
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
,
Seinfeld
, and
The Luck of the Irish
,
Groundhog Day
,
Don Juan DeMarco
and
Heidi Chronicles
|
[23]
[24]
|
Nancy Johnson
|
1992
|
Won the gold medal in the women's 10 metre
air rifle
at the
2000 Summer Olympics
|
[15]
[25]
|
Frank Kaminsky
|
2011
|
Current
center
for
KK Partizan
and consensus national player of the year in
NCAA Division I
men's basketball in
2014?15
|
[26]
[27]
|
Mike Lee
|
2005
|
Professional boxer 2010?present; record 21?0 (2018)
|
[28]
[29]
|
Dan LeFevour
|
2005
|
Quarterback
for
Central Michigan University
; he later played for his hometown
Chicago Bears
and in the
Canadian Football League
|
[30]
[31]
|
John Lynch
|
1960
|
President and CEO of the Broadcast Company of the Americas and a former
linebacker
for the
Pittsburgh Steelers
|
[15]
[32]
|
Justin McCareins
|
?
|
Studied at Benet as a freshman only during the 1993?1994 school year and later played as a
wide receiver
for the
Tennessee Titans
and
New York Jets
; graduated from
Naperville North High School
|
[12]
[33]
|
James McManus
|
1969
|
Professional poker player and author of
Positively Fifth Street
|
[14]
[34]
|
Porter Moser
|
1986
|
Head coach of men's
basketball
at
Loyola University Chicago
; former head coach at
Illinois State University
and
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
|
[35]
|
Ben Murphy
|
1960
|
Actor best known for his work on the television series
Alias Smith & Jones
|
[11]
|
Dan Proft
|
1990
|
Political commentator and candidate in the
2010 Illinois gubernatorial election
|
[36]
|
Jim Ryan
|
1964
|
Former
Illinois Attorney General
and candidate in the
2010 Illinois gubernatorial election
|
[11]
|
Greta Salpeter
|
2006
|
Lead singer and pianist for the band
The Hush Sound
|
[37]
|
Kerry Abello
|
2017
|
Professional soccer player for
Orlando Pride
|
[38]
|
Molly Schaus
|
?
|
Studied at Benet as a freshman only during the 2002?2003 school year and later went on to compete in the US women's ice hockey team in the
2010 Winter Olympics
; graduated from
Deerfield Academy
in
Massachusetts
|
[39]
[40]
|
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Mizera, Peter F. (1969).
Czech Benedictines in America: 1877?1961
.
Lisle, Illinois
: Center for Slav Culture,
St. Procopius College
. pp. 175?76.
OCLC
3379383
.
- ^
"School Information"
.
Benet Academy
. 2011.
Archived
from the original on May 4, 2011
. Retrieved
April 1,
2011
.
- ^
a
b
Grossman, Kate N.; Rossi, Rosalind (March 16, 2003). "At the head of the class: Top high schools' grads prepped for best colleges".
Chicago Sun-Times
. p. 16.
- ^
Peterson, Patricia (2009). "Benet Connections".
Benet Connections
(Fall 2009).
Benet Academy
.
- ^
Lenz, Linda (October 28, 1986). "Benet gets into the ACT, touts scores".
Chicago Sun-Times
. p. 40.
- ^
Amy Boerema (March 20, 2004). "Retiring principal puts students first".
Daily Herald
.
Arlington Heights, Illinois
. p. 1.
- ^
Writers' Program of the Work Projects Administration in the State of Illinois (1947).
Illinois: a descriptive and historical guide
. American guide series. Chicago, IL:
AC McClurg
. p. 544.
ISBN
1-60354-012-1
.
- ^
Illinois Benedictine College Communication Office (June 1975).
"Chronological Development of St. Procopius College/Illinois Benedictine College"
(PDF)
.
Illinois Benedictine College
Development Office. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on May 29, 2010
. Retrieved
April 3,
2011
.
- ^
?ada, Joseph (1964).
Czech-American Catholics, 1850?1920
. Chicago: Benedictine Abbey Press, under the auspices of the Center for Slav Culture, St. Procopius College, Lisle, Illinois. p. 64.
OCLC
1882096
.
- ^
Pyke, Marni (May 17, 2001). "An artful center Benet will honor supporter at hall dedication".
Daily Herald
. p. 1.
- ^
a
b
c
d
"More Notable Alumni...".
The Alumni Herald
(9).
Benet Academy
: 11?14. November 2007.
- ^
a
b
Engel, Brad (April 24, 2010).
"Q&A with LeFevour's coach at Benet"
.
The Heat Index
.
Sun-Times Media Group
. Archived from
the original
on August 26, 2010
. Retrieved
December 13,
2016
.
- ^
Howard, Theresa (January 11, 2004).
"Anheuser-Busch's silly 'Mr.' ads hit a high note with viewers"
.
USA Today
.
Archived
from the original on February 8, 2012
. Retrieved
December 13,
2016
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Former students fondly remember tough Mr. White".
Daily Herald
. September 22, 2008. p. 1.
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Benet (St. Procopius) Academy Notable Alumni".
The Alumni Herald
(8). Benet Academy: 7?21. November 2006.
- ^
Kmitch, Justin (February 24, 2008). "Living the life dreams are made of Lemont native makes it big with her first screenplay".
Daily Herald
. p. 1.
- ^
Allis, Tim; Micheli, Robin (April 13, 1992).
"TV's Sultan of Smirk"
.
People
.
37
(14). New York City.
Archived
from the original on September 21, 2016
. Retrieved
December 13,
2016
.
- ^
Liebert, Jonathan (2005-02-25),
Sex Sells: The Making of 'Touche'
, Priscilla Barnes, Mark DeCarlo, Jay Michael Ferguson,
archived
from the original on 2017-02-11
, retrieved
2017-10-30
- ^
"Kathleen Doyle"
.
United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee
. Archived from
the original
on March 3, 2020
. Retrieved
March 3,
2020
.
- ^
"Kathleen Doyle"
.
USA Basketball
. Archived from
the original
on March 3, 2020
. Retrieved
March 3,
2020
.
- ^
"Candidates for graduation from Benet Academy".
Daily Herald
(Arlington Heights, Illinois). May 26, 2000. p. 7.
- ^
"Meagen Fay's Face Familiar to TV Viewers".
Herald-News
.
Joliet, Illinois
. June 21, 1998.
- ^
Broz, Joan (June 4, 2001). "Celebrities to help Benet debut new Arts Center".
Daily Herald
. p. 1.
- ^
"Marita Geraghty"
.
Fandango.com
. Archived from
the original
on 2016-03-04
. Retrieved
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.
- ^
Allen, John (January 2001).
"After the Gold Rush (A Heart of Gold)"
.
OutdoorIllinois
.
9
(8).
Springfield, Illinois
:
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, Office of Public Services.
ISSN
1072-7175
.
OCLC
29189971
.
Archived
from the original on June 16, 2011
. Retrieved
April 3,
2011
.
- ^
Clark, Mike.
"Frank Kaminsky put Purdue on ice"
.
Chicago Tribune
.
Archived
from the original on March 17, 2015
. Retrieved
March 17,
2015
.
- ^
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"Rookie Frank Kaminsky fits Hornets' future plans"
. Fox Sports Carolinas.
Archived
from the original on September 24, 2015
. Retrieved
June 29,
2015
.
- ^
"Benet graduate Lee is ready to rumble in Golden Gloves".
Daily Herald
. April 16, 2009. p. 6.
- ^
Sandrolini, Mike.
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.
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- ^
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. July 11, 2006. Archived from
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. Retrieved
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.
- ^
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- ^
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.
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. redOrbit.com
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.
- ^
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.
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.
- ^
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.
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. pp.
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.
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.
The championship event started less than two hours ago, but we're already down to the last seven players: myself and the six football cheerleaders from Benet Academy, my alma mater in Lisle, Illinois.
- ^
Powers, Scott (April 3, 2011).
"Sources: Porter Moser to Loyola"
.
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.
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- ^
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