Bellarmine College Preparatory
9 Reviews for Bellarmine College Preparatory
Academics:
Anything involving reading and writing (English, History, etc.) was top notch. Teachers were very passionate about their particular literature or historical specialty. I found I could use a couple of term papers I had written in high school later on at my university.
Anything involving math or science was not so great, and arguably inferior to the better public schools on the west end of Greater San Jose (an arc from Los Gatos to Palo Alto). I used to ask peers who came from those areas why they were in "d'Bell". Those of us who would otherwise have gone to San Jose Unified or East Side Union high schools, which were academically inferior and often crime and gang-infested, knew full well why we were Bells.
(NOTE: I did my time in "Bell Hell" a while back, your mileage may vary, and conditions may have changed in the last decade).
Socially:
To put it bluntly, the social environment at Bellarmine sucked. The big suck. Most of my peers were like characters out of the novel "Lord Of The Flies." Every school has its cliques and it's bullying, of course. But in "d'Bell", thuggish behavior in the name of "school spirit" was condoned if not encouraged. Call it "School Sponsored Terrorism". I gladly lost contact with most people from those days (although in fairness the few I do talk to are lifelong friends).
However, It still might have been better than many San Jose Unified or East Side Union high schools, which were often crime and gang-infested.
It is an open question if the single-sex aspect of the school amplifies this. Obviously, having girls around introduces other issues, but I can't help but think having girls around would give the would-be alpha males another way to demonstrate their masculinity besides brutalizing the lower classmen, freshmen in particular.
Could you pay me to re-live those years? Actually, if you paid enough for me to retire comfortably from then on, with a cushion to invest, and for the necessary psychotherapy, sure. Or if it could have been done differently (a "Do-Over" if you will) . But otherwise...
People thought this was:
Funny (1)
Will change my rating to seven or eight stars once tuition prices fall to a more reasonable figure, our football + basketball programs experience their long overdue resurgence, and we enter the 21st century by embracing the whole co-educational thing. Just a five star institution until then.
Shout outs to Fr. Ron Clemo, Big Jim Harville, the late Charlotte Smith, Senor Cristobal Wolf, and newly minted head volleyball coach Scott Petersen.
i took summer school here, way back when. we all know this place isn't as good as castilleja =D
People thought this was:
Funny (1)
C/O 2004, woopty whoop!
I went here. Got me into USC. Can't really argue with that.
Best teachers I've ever had. If you get a chance to send your son(s) here, do it.
"Man for others" is the motto. You enter as a kid and leave as a man. Unrivaled athletic program, excellent teachers, and a great sense of school pride. Unless you go through the "Bellarmine experience", you can not appreciate the quality of this school.
*I* went there. What other reason do you need?
People thought this was:
Funny (3)
Cool (3)
Yeah, I went there. (Can I say "Yeah" without making Bellarmine look bad?) It was a great school before I attended, it was great while I attended, and it still is a great school.
People thought this was:
Funny (1)
go bells. some of the best teachers you will ever find.
People Who Viewed This Also Viewed...
Hot and New
- Kitsho
138 reviews
Cupertino, CA
- Picasso's Tapas Restaurant
97 reviews
San Jose, CA
- Morocco's
56 reviews
San Jose, CA
- Hong Kong Saigon Seafood…
170 reviews
Sunnyvale, CA
- Crawdaddy
150 reviews
San Jose, CA
