For the Greater Glory
(This article first appeared in the Belen Jesuit President's Report, 2020-21 edition)
In 2016, when Fr. Guillermo García-Tuñón, S.J. ‘87 became the 37th president of Belen since its inception in 1854, and its seventh since its establishment in Miami, he began his tenure with a set vision for the school. By 2017, he had established the Strategic Plan which laid out the vision for the next five years at Belen Jesuit. The goals set forth in the Strategic Plan included Strengthening our Catholic-Jesuit Identity, Academic Excellence, Forming Well-Rounded Men, and Enhancing our Brotherhood.
“This roadmap was incredibly important for us as a school,” said Fr. Willie. “Together we have been able to do extraordinary things. This has been as a result of the entire school community working together for the betterment of the young men we have been entrusted to educate and form as the future leaders of our community.”
Simultaneously, when the Strategic Plan was launched, Fr. Willie and the Executive Director of Advancement and Alumni Relations Phil Fernández ‘94 were working behind the scenes on the silent phase of the “For the Greater Glory” capital campaign.
“This was an important critical component of the campaign,” said Fernández. “We worked closely with key stakeholders and took a couple of years to cultivate and secure major gifts which helped us get to a milestone of over $27 million of the $34 million goal proposed when we went public two years ago. As our plans evolved and our fundraising continued we extended our goal to $38 million dollars.
By 2019, the campaign went from the silent phase to the public phase at the Annual Gala. The announcement catapulted the ‘For the Greater Glory’ campaign to a new level and invigorated the community to give generously towards the goal.
Many things were accomplished during the campaign. Over twenty distinct improvements, renovations, or new construction have been completed or are nearing completion. These include:
Chapel of the Immaculate Conception: the chapel located at the center of campus was completely renovated upon Fr. Willie becoming president. The first of many projects was in many ways the most significant to begin the series of renovations because it transformed this sacred space on campus with a goal of strengthening our Catholic-Jesuit identity and lifelong devotion to the Blessed Mother. The chapel was blessed on November 29, 2016.
St. Joseph’s Patio: blessed on the feast of St. Joseph on March 19, 2017, this space is dedicated to the fathers of our young men and is adorned with a statue of St. Joseph. The wall next to the image has the Latin title, Redemptoris Custos (Guardian of the Redeemer), along with a passage from Scripture that reads, “Rise, take the child and his mother” (Matthew 2:13).
Dining Hall and Kitchen: the redesigned Dining Hall and Kitchen expanded the old cafeteria and created the single largest assembly space on campus. The 2017-18 school year began with its blessing and inauguration.
Roca Theatre: originally completed in 2002, the technology in the theater was upgraded as were the curtains and other items during the 2017-18 school year.
Gian Zumpano Aquatic Center: on June 6, 2018, the Gian Zumpano Aquatic Center was blessed by Archbishop Thomas Wenski. The cutting-edge Olympic-sized swimming complex honors the beloved alumnus who fought grand mal epilepsy and passed away in 1990.
Indoor Baseball Facility: this state-of-the-art hitting facility debuted in time for the 2019 baseball season and features four retractable sets of netting, artificial turf, and a wide-open floor layout. The 5,000 square-foot facility enables Belen’s baseball athletes to run a wide variety of exercises, from infield drills to bullpen throwing to hitting practice, no matter rain or shine outside
Multi-Functional Courts: in April of 2019 four tennis courts were added behind the Gian Zumpano Aquatic Center. These also function as basketball and volleyball courts.
Football & Baseball Field Lighting: field lights were turned on for the first time allowing night games to take place on the football field on September 6, 2019. The baseball field lights followed within a few months. The added safety of having games at night allows athletes to play in lower temperatures and out of the blazing heat.
BConnected: The alumni networking platform went “live” in the first quarter of 2019 and completely redesigned the way Belen alumni connect with each other. This evolution of belenalumni. org improved the overall look and functionality of the website allowing for networking, mentoring, and job searching to take place in one central location.
Arroyo Quad: dedicated to the Jesuit priests and brothers who have served at Belen Jesuit, the grounds were blessed on November 25, 2019, and include a statue of St. Ignatius of Loyola and Fr. Arroyo. The quad is also didactic. Throughout the gardens, plaques can be found throughout the space that identify each living specimen with both their common and scientific names as well as their country of origin.
Fides et Ratio Patio: The Science Pavillion patio was completely renovated and rededicated to the life of Matteo Ricci, who broke through the barriers of skepticism and fear and pioneered the promotion of faith and science. The blessing took place on January 18, 2020, and includes the words of St. John Paul II as written in his encyclical Fides et Ratio, “Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth.”
Roberto C. Goizueta Innovation Center: This center of innovation opened for the 2020-21 academic year. The 8,000 square foot facility is an integral part of Belen’s mission of academic excellence. The location is also home to the STEAM program, engineering classes, and robotics teams.
Hallway flooring upgrades: throughout the 2020-21 school year the hallways throughout the main school building were polished and sealed as well as the staircases. The lockers were mostly removed and replaced with trophy cases that included digital signage.
Health Clinic: located adjacent to the Dining Hall this space was repurposed to include a permanent location for our school nurse to assist students. This new facility includes 545 square feet with its own ADA restroom.
Café Belen: one of the most popular places after school for students. This location near the De la Cruz and baseball facility is where students can go for an afternoon snack or fans can purchase food while attending a game. The kitchen area was completely renovated in 2020 and the outdoor courtyard will be renovated and expanded throughout the 2021-22 school year.
Classroom Renovations: phase one of this project includes a complete re-imaging of the classrooms to a more modern design with enhanced technology, functionality, and new furniture. So far, over twenty classrooms have been renovated. The goal is to have all classrooms completed within the next couple of years.
Gonzaga Pit: located in between the Gian Zumpano Aquatic Center and the Administration building, this new space on campus will be utilized as an area for reflection and presentations. The area will be completed in 2021 and features a statue of Jesuit saint Aloysius de Gonzaga.
Track Resurfacing: located in De La Cruz Stadium the track was removed in the summer of 2021 and resurfaced from the ground up. The work will be completed in time for the new track season.
Our Lady of Belen Chapel: considered the most ambitious project to date, the chapel will serve as a beacon to the community that we are a Catholic-Jesuit school. The over 15,000 square-foot area will be home to schoolwide masses for the middle and high school as well as serve as a place where alumni can get married and baptize their children. The anticipated completion date is early 2022.
“All these projects which we’ve been able to accomplish would not have been possible without the generous support of so many people,” said Fr. Willie. “If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times, the Belen community is generous beyond measure and when the call to help is put out, the call is always answered. St. Ignatius of Loyola said, ‘to give and not to count the cost,’ and we are blessed that our community feels that way. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the ‘For the Greater Glory’ campaign. Our success is your success and we certainly couldn’t have done it without everyone’s help.”
As this campaign comes to an end, plans are already underway for the new Strategic Plan. The future is exciting at Belen Jesuit. Already announced is the three-level Athletic Facility which will function as a hub for all the sports teams at the school. A new baseball complex, scoreboards, additional classroom remodels, and much more is also in the pipeline. Stay tuned for more information in 2022.
Back
In 2016, when Fr. Guillermo García-Tuñón, S.J. ‘87 became the 37th president of Belen since its inception in 1854, and its seventh since its establishment in Miami, he began his tenure with a set vision for the school. By 2017, he had established the Strategic Plan which laid out the vision for the next five years at Belen Jesuit. The goals set forth in the Strategic Plan included Strengthening our Catholic-Jesuit Identity, Academic Excellence, Forming Well-Rounded Men, and Enhancing our Brotherhood.
“This roadmap was incredibly important for us as a school,” said Fr. Willie. “Together we have been able to do extraordinary things. This has been as a result of the entire school community working together for the betterment of the young men we have been entrusted to educate and form as the future leaders of our community.”
Simultaneously, when the Strategic Plan was launched, Fr. Willie and the Executive Director of Advancement and Alumni Relations Phil Fernández ‘94 were working behind the scenes on the silent phase of the “For the Greater Glory” capital campaign.
“This was an important critical component of the campaign,” said Fernández. “We worked closely with key stakeholders and took a couple of years to cultivate and secure major gifts which helped us get to a milestone of over $27 million of the $34 million goal proposed when we went public two years ago. As our plans evolved and our fundraising continued we extended our goal to $38 million dollars.
By 2019, the campaign went from the silent phase to the public phase at the Annual Gala. The announcement catapulted the ‘For the Greater Glory’ campaign to a new level and invigorated the community to give generously towards the goal.
Many things were accomplished during the campaign. Over twenty distinct improvements, renovations, or new construction have been completed or are nearing completion. These include:
Chapel of the Immaculate Conception: the chapel located at the center of campus was completely renovated upon Fr. Willie becoming president. The first of many projects was in many ways the most significant to begin the series of renovations because it transformed this sacred space on campus with a goal of strengthening our Catholic-Jesuit identity and lifelong devotion to the Blessed Mother. The chapel was blessed on November 29, 2016.
St. Joseph’s Patio: blessed on the feast of St. Joseph on March 19, 2017, this space is dedicated to the fathers of our young men and is adorned with a statue of St. Joseph. The wall next to the image has the Latin title, Redemptoris Custos (Guardian of the Redeemer), along with a passage from Scripture that reads, “Rise, take the child and his mother” (Matthew 2:13).
Dining Hall and Kitchen: the redesigned Dining Hall and Kitchen expanded the old cafeteria and created the single largest assembly space on campus. The 2017-18 school year began with its blessing and inauguration.
Roca Theatre: originally completed in 2002, the technology in the theater was upgraded as were the curtains and other items during the 2017-18 school year.
Gian Zumpano Aquatic Center: on June 6, 2018, the Gian Zumpano Aquatic Center was blessed by Archbishop Thomas Wenski. The cutting-edge Olympic-sized swimming complex honors the beloved alumnus who fought grand mal epilepsy and passed away in 1990.
Indoor Baseball Facility: this state-of-the-art hitting facility debuted in time for the 2019 baseball season and features four retractable sets of netting, artificial turf, and a wide-open floor layout. The 5,000 square-foot facility enables Belen’s baseball athletes to run a wide variety of exercises, from infield drills to bullpen throwing to hitting practice, no matter rain or shine outside
Multi-Functional Courts: in April of 2019 four tennis courts were added behind the Gian Zumpano Aquatic Center. These also function as basketball and volleyball courts.
Football & Baseball Field Lighting: field lights were turned on for the first time allowing night games to take place on the football field on September 6, 2019. The baseball field lights followed within a few months. The added safety of having games at night allows athletes to play in lower temperatures and out of the blazing heat.
BConnected: The alumni networking platform went “live” in the first quarter of 2019 and completely redesigned the way Belen alumni connect with each other. This evolution of belenalumni. org improved the overall look and functionality of the website allowing for networking, mentoring, and job searching to take place in one central location.
Arroyo Quad: dedicated to the Jesuit priests and brothers who have served at Belen Jesuit, the grounds were blessed on November 25, 2019, and include a statue of St. Ignatius of Loyola and Fr. Arroyo. The quad is also didactic. Throughout the gardens, plaques can be found throughout the space that identify each living specimen with both their common and scientific names as well as their country of origin.
Fides et Ratio Patio: The Science Pavillion patio was completely renovated and rededicated to the life of Matteo Ricci, who broke through the barriers of skepticism and fear and pioneered the promotion of faith and science. The blessing took place on January 18, 2020, and includes the words of St. John Paul II as written in his encyclical Fides et Ratio, “Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth.”
Roberto C. Goizueta Innovation Center: This center of innovation opened for the 2020-21 academic year. The 8,000 square foot facility is an integral part of Belen’s mission of academic excellence. The location is also home to the STEAM program, engineering classes, and robotics teams.
Hallway flooring upgrades: throughout the 2020-21 school year the hallways throughout the main school building were polished and sealed as well as the staircases. The lockers were mostly removed and replaced with trophy cases that included digital signage.
Health Clinic: located adjacent to the Dining Hall this space was repurposed to include a permanent location for our school nurse to assist students. This new facility includes 545 square feet with its own ADA restroom.
Café Belen: one of the most popular places after school for students. This location near the De la Cruz and baseball facility is where students can go for an afternoon snack or fans can purchase food while attending a game. The kitchen area was completely renovated in 2020 and the outdoor courtyard will be renovated and expanded throughout the 2021-22 school year.
Classroom Renovations: phase one of this project includes a complete re-imaging of the classrooms to a more modern design with enhanced technology, functionality, and new furniture. So far, over twenty classrooms have been renovated. The goal is to have all classrooms completed within the next couple of years.
Gonzaga Pit: located in between the Gian Zumpano Aquatic Center and the Administration building, this new space on campus will be utilized as an area for reflection and presentations. The area will be completed in 2021 and features a statue of Jesuit saint Aloysius de Gonzaga.
Track Resurfacing: located in De La Cruz Stadium the track was removed in the summer of 2021 and resurfaced from the ground up. The work will be completed in time for the new track season.
Our Lady of Belen Chapel: considered the most ambitious project to date, the chapel will serve as a beacon to the community that we are a Catholic-Jesuit school. The over 15,000 square-foot area will be home to schoolwide masses for the middle and high school as well as serve as a place where alumni can get married and baptize their children. The anticipated completion date is early 2022.
“All these projects which we’ve been able to accomplish would not have been possible without the generous support of so many people,” said Fr. Willie. “If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times, the Belen community is generous beyond measure and when the call to help is put out, the call is always answered. St. Ignatius of Loyola said, ‘to give and not to count the cost,’ and we are blessed that our community feels that way. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the ‘For the Greater Glory’ campaign. Our success is your success and we certainly couldn’t have done it without everyone’s help.”
As this campaign comes to an end, plans are already underway for the new Strategic Plan. The future is exciting at Belen Jesuit. Already announced is the three-level Athletic Facility which will function as a hub for all the sports teams at the school. A new baseball complex, scoreboards, additional classroom remodels, and much more is also in the pipeline. Stay tuned for more information in 2022.
BELEN JESUIT PREPARATORY SCHOOL
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
Belen Jesuit Preparatory School was founded in 1854 in Havana, Cuba by Queen Isabel II of Spain. The task of educating students was assigned to the priests and brothers of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits), whose teaching tradition is synonymous with academic excellence and spiritual discipline. In 1961, the new political regime of Cuba confiscated the School property and expelled the Jesuit faculty. The School was re-established in Miami the same year, and over the next decade, continued to grow. Today, Belen Jesuit sits on a 30-acre site in western Dade County, only minutes away from downtown Miami.