Message from the Academic Dean

Over three hundred years ago, St. John Baptist de La Salle founded the tradition of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. De La Salle was an educational innovator who saw that all children deserved to be enlightened, and he developed instructional techniques that continue to be used in schools like Christian Brothers Academy today.

One of the basic commitments of the Lasallian spirituality of education is the devotion to accessible and comprehensive education. The teachers and administrators at CBA understand that learning is more than a collection of facts and figures; at CBA, the academic program exists principally to help students become young men of Christian maturity and responsible character.

CBA's challenging academic curriculum gives our students a tremendous advantage when it comes to getting into an upper tier college or university. In fact, 86% of last year's senior class is attending a ranked college/university as defined by US News and World Report and 81% received a merit based scholarship. These statistics speak to the depth and breadth of a CBA education. With 21 AP class offerings, 41 honors classes, and many other challenging academic classes, our students excel in the college admissions process and are well prepared to take on the rigors of a college education.

Students at CBA work very hard at their studies; as incoming freshman are told at orientation, three to four hours of homework a night is the normal workload. When students are expected to work so hard for so many hours and when their academic achievement is so highly prized, the temptation to make poor decisions can rise; engaging in acts of academic dishonesty is never the appropriate response to the challenges of CBA’s academic rigors, but neither is elevating the importance of grades on a report card over the greater value of what students learn. Your time at CBA is intended to be a valuable period of growth and self-discovery, and the lessons that remain most important to our graduates are never the specific details of multiple-choice questions or short answer responses.

At Christian Brothers Academy, you will be taught by talented professionals who are committed to the ideals of Lasallian education – teachers who model the practices of St. John Baptist de la Salle by showing the presence of Jesus in themselves and seeing the presence of Jesus in each individual student. Much will be expected of you academically, but as our graduates have proven for over fifty years, the benefits of a CBA education are many and long-lasting.

Sean Nunan '87

Academic Dean