St Francis Preparatory School - San Fran Yearbook (Brooklyn, NY)

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lt is another inalienable right of all free men that they freely choose their profession, change it when they so desire and pursue another. Guided by the wisdom of his elders, his own experience and the experience of others, his education and informal training, his talents and his personal desires, the free man makes his own decision to enter the field of his choice. And that is where you stand today, son, on the brink of an important decision. But, take time to consider how fortunate you and all American youth are today, that such a decision is your own. Throughout most of the world, one of two fates befall the boy your age. One, if he has been fortunate to receive an education such as yours, he must realize it is to stop right there. No further institutions are open to him in many cases or his family's standard of living makes it prohibitive for him to even consider further education. You may say that many an American boy faces an economic problem that demands his going to work immediately after high school. This is true, but the difference lays in the fact that he may continue his studies. Evening and night college courses are offered to him by public institutions-Saturday courses and convenient hours during the week are only some of his advantages. Should he choose to go to work, must he traditionally follow his father's trade? Not in America, but the father and son rule is unfortunately true in so many other countries. But even more important, he is not regimented in a so-called Youth Organ- ization and forced to work in the field or in a munitions plant or a mine. Yes, this is true of those countries behind the iron curtain-either that or serve in the armed forces- not much choice there. All this is the result of philoso- phy that holds that the individual exists for the State. Of course this is not new to you-Mr. Reilly and Mr. Donovan have told you of it in their History and Economics courses and Father Redmond and Father Holzheimer have shown the fallacies and viciousness of Communism to you in the Religion classes. Now, on the positive side of the ledger, in this country am- bition and industry are rewarded in a much dif- ferent economic system. Man adopts his life work as I mentioned before. Happier in his job, he is more successful at it. lt's this very same freedom of choice that has gained so many varieties of work for man in America. The entrepreneur isn't stifled--he can build his mousetrap or his limousine and start his business and hire his men and a new industry is born. American ingenuity and business acu- men and the desire to better oneself are all the outgrowth of this freedom. Now, lt's your turn to make this choice. Thank God you can. Pray and work to preserve this freedom. SEl1Vlllllltlll ElH1 li! EIEIVQI

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we PAGE Zl THE FACULTY 1 The Truth will make you free. This means that real liberation comes from the knowledge of the purpose and destiny of man. As students of St. Francis Prep, your entire academic life has been woven around this fundamental prin- ciple. You have had the freedom to choose not blindly and without motives, but among mo- tives, the moral principles of your Christian life, the values in your secular studies, in your physical and social life. There has been a de- velopment of insight, of understanding, of the power of discrimination and of the ability to think and act in ways that distinguish man from all the lower forms of creation. You have been awakened spiritually, without which awaken- ing, no person can be said to be educated, however much he knows. To appreciate fully however, the academic freedom you have enjoyed, it is well to consider briefly those students, who enjoy the illusion of academic freedom. lt is their lot to follow a program of studies, which they elect in their immature fashion, for the shortest and easiest route to a diploma. Superficially, this election of a curriculum appears to be a sound demo- cratic and free process. Actually it represents an act of choice by an unprepared and purpose- less mentality. Again, the same students are subjected to a system of pedagogy in which methods and techniques of instruction are gods in themselves, Their instructors are so absorbed with statistics and measurements that they have little time for the basic values in their specific course of study. With the realization therefore that you have enjoyed an academic freedom under God, in which your dignity and purpose as men were respected, may we send you forth with the words of our Lord to initiates in the moral and mental Life: Friend, go up higher!

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PAGE 72 S99 THE UNDERCLASSMEN Freedom and Equalit Man is a social being and therefore, at some time early in his life, he must learn how to live in Society. We believe all men are free and created equal. This equality does not mean that we are to live in a classless society for it is not an economic nor a social equality. lt is the natural equality of all men before God and their fellow men. ln the Declaration of Indepen- dence, Jefferson stated, We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are the right to Life, Liberty and the pur- suit of Happiness. Each American has these rights, however, each American, for every right he enjoys, has a corresponding duty. lt is only when these duties are performed can the indi- vidual enjoy his inalienable rights. lt is most important, therefore, that early in life each of us recognize our obligations and practice this respect for our fellow man lest we unwittingly let our rights irretrievably slip through our fingers. This very respect you have been taught in your first term at Saint Francis. You have noticed the equality of treatment that you re- ceived from your teachers-all the students are given equal opportunity to learn. The Senior often appears to the underclassman as a privi- leged person, however, it must be understood that the Senior has assumed additional respon- sibilites. lt is in the execution of these duties that he affords the next Senior a new right. This is true of Juniors and even of Sophomores and should not be misconstrued as a case of partiality or inequality. Thus, the entire four years of training at St. Francis teaches the young man to work for his rights-his work being his duty towards his fellow student. Yes, the point of equality is well evidenced in the classroom and on the field of sports. Yet, the net result is not a classless society. On the contrary, we have Varsity and Junior Varsity clubs just as we have Seniors, Juniors, Sopho- mores and Freshmen. Men who gain coveted positions on the Principal's List or in The Opti- mate Society or who earn their major F in athletics do not receive these awards because they are privileged characters. Nor should they be denied them because their achievement is above that of the average man. But, because of their talent, desire and industry, they have won a niche for themselves and deserve all the credit they receive. Thus, we see that Equal- ity as we speak of it, runs hand in hand with Freedom of Achievement. Four years training in which respect for fellow man is taught can- not but have left a defining mark on the gradu- ate. Along with our normal curriculum, St. Francis Preparatory School seeks to mark with distinction all of her graduates.