St. John Bosco Institute

Like a flash our lives on this earth are spent and we find ourselves before Our Lord’s judgment seat. How the scale tips will reflect how well our time has been used or not used in the pursuit of aligning our wills to the will of the Almighty. Many times the world tinkers with experimentation that only leaves us dangling over a dangerous precipice ready to free fall without the aid of a saving net. No, this will not do.

As such, education of the young cannot be of an experimental nature. Using methods and practices that have proven “deficient,” can only lead to further deterioration and endless ploys to make life easier. The word “change” has become the catch word for a world struggling to understand why something out there seems to be wrong. The answer then is not to seek change for the sake of changing. Rather, it would seem that the answer is to look back to the things that made us a true people of God. Herein lies the story of an educational center in Edmond, Oklahoma, attempting to look back to find its way.

St. John Bosco Institute opened its doors in August, 2014. Its mission and purpose is to educate young men (grades 3 - 12) capable of mastering themselves, discerning their God-given vocations, and thereby sanctifying themselves, their families, and this fallen world. Our mission, as stated, is a simple, but profoundly relevant one, encased in the concept that the education of a young man changes the world if it is directed toward the “end” of the student’s own existence, in other words, his eternal salvation. Hence our motto reads, “Finis noster principium nostrum (Our end is our beginning).”

We consider it our duty to educate not only because we have the ability to do so, but also because the good of society depends upon it. It is indeed evident that our culture today lacks a certain direction in finding its way. Through solid educational practices reinforced with a litany of methods handed down to us by our Catholic faith, we intend to rise to the challenge of aiding humanity, albeit on a small scale, in its pursuit of cohesion and brotherly love.

Our focus is to capitalize on the ways boys learn by infusing competition, without distractions or inhibitions from the co-educational setting. In so doing, we can ascertain how boys develop and incorporate the educational opportunities distinctly beneficial to boys. Boys and girls learn at different levels and rates. Our purpose is to bring young men to understand their roles within the natural construct of order given to us by our Creator. The instruction and programs provide academic training that promote strong religious values, individual responsibility, and good citizenship.

Our real difference is that the school day begins with daily Mass in the Extraordinary Form. The purpose? First things first. Mass is the focus of our day. In this way, boys learn that the Catholic Faith does not stop when we exit the Church doors. It is carried to the classroom and becomes a part of how our boys relate to their studies, their peers, and their teachers. Only then can they realize the serious nature of what life truly means as projected and expounded by the Divine Command to “go out and make disciples of all nations.” St. John Bosco knew that a healthy boy could only be defined as one who possessed a healthy soul.

For those of you who have had their interest piqued, I leave you with a final thought from our patron, St. John Bosco: “The Lord turns everything to the advantage of those who love Him.” And so, together with Our Lady, Help of Christians, we ask Our Lord to bless the Institute for many years to come.

Mr. John Zapletal, Headmaster