HispanicBusiness

By Daniel Soussa
HispanicBusiness.com


President Bush awarded the Rev. John P. Foley, founder of the Cristo Rey Network, the prestigious Presidential Citizens Medal in a ceremony Wednesday at the White House.

The Cristo Rey Network, established in 2002, is an association of 22 schools across the nation. It has adopted a work-study model providing Catholic college preparatory education for young urban and minority students coming from financially challenged families.
The work-study model provides the students with an intensive college-prep courseload and requires them to work a part-time job to offset some of the tuition costs.

"We believe that all students should have equal access to the educational opportunities they need to be successful in college," said the Rev. Foley.

A Jesuit priest, the Rev. Foley served as president of the original Cristo Rey school in the Chicago Pilsen neighborhood from 1995 to 2002, and as executive chairman of the Cristo Rey Network since 2002. In January 2005, he became president of the Cristo Rey Network and since has been guiding its programs and daily activities.

Cristo Rey Network schools are the backbone for more than 5,300 students in the United States. In the 2008-2009 academic year, 99 percent of the enrolled students are minorities, with 55 percent Hispanic and 34 percent African American.

In 2008, 99 percent of students graduating from Cristo Rey schools were accepted to a two- or four-year college program. These students come from different cultural backgrounds and faiths and this year's incoming student body is comprised of 37 percent non-Catholic students.

"It is with great joy that in only a few short years Cristo Rey schools have opened in many underserved, urban communities across the nation," said the Rev. Foley. In his eight-year term as president of Cristo Rey Jesuit High School in Chicago, he helped raise more than $26 million, with responsibilities that included the hiring of all personnel, student recruitment, and monitoring the construction of 150,000 square feet of classroom and recreation space.

The award to Rev. Foley is the second-highest civilian award presented by the president. The Rev. Foley's name will be added to a list of past recipients that include Muhammad Ali, Henry "Hank" Aaron, HIV researcher Dr. David Ho, and Elizabeth Taylor.

The positive graduation rates and increased success of the Cristo Rey schools have resulted in a number of foundations, such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and other individual donors to join forces to fund and support the schools' objectives of serving economically disadvantaged students. The Cristo Rey Network is scheduled to open an additional four schools in 2010, to drive urban and minority students on the road to success.