Xavier College Preparatory is the only all-girls Catholic high school in Arizona. Although Xavier is Roman Catholic-based, the community of Xavier includes a variety of religions.
“Being able to talk about and celebrate your faith is the most unique part of being in a Catholic school,” says interim principal and theology teacher Brittany Ecker.
At Xavier, there is daily Mass and all-school Masses that connect the student body spiritually. “It wasn’t until I got to Xavier [in 2013] that I started going to Mass and being excited about it,” Kaiti-Lynn Beazley ‘17, theology teacher, says.
Students in faith are provided with religious clubs, activities and events in which students can partake. They have the opportunity to get involved in theology class, prayer days, daily and all-school Masses, Kairos and various religious clubs and organizations.
Every grade will have a class prayer day each year. Prayer day is associated with talks from teachers and students, icebreakers and activities to bring classes together.
Kairos is the senior retreat at Xavier. Students leave for Mount Claret Center on Monday during the week and return on Thursday.
After learning about Catholic beliefs in theology class, Kairos encourages students to embrace their faith so they can see how God is active in their lives and to connect with peers.
“I did not want to attend Xavier at first but found that it was the best thing to ever happen to me at the time. I was in a deep depression freshman year. Learning about theology and how much God loves and cares about me brought me out of that. Xavier saved me from me and I hope to help others in the same way that little me was helped,” Beazley said.
Through these activities, students get to connect with classmates through their faith, while also hearing about teachers’ and peers’ personal faith experiences which help others grow.
“Being able to share my faith journey and experiences with students is the reason I am at a Catholic school because that’s not always possible at public schools,” Ecker said.
Most girls are Catholic before attending Xavier and some became interested in converting to Catholicism during their times here. Each year an average of 5-10 girls convert to Catholicism.
“It’s exciting to think that there are girls from theology classes and Kairos that want to enter the church and be a part of the community. I think we as a community need to support them as they go through that,” Beazley said.
Being at a Catholic school means that students have the opportunity to study while embracing and celebrating faith, which is not necessarily something you can always do at a non-religious- school.
“The ability to share and truly live out my faith in my workplace setting is a gift and such a blessing. I wouldn’t teach anywhere else,” Ecker said.
