News

Big Future Ambassadors & MIT Program at SJA

Tue, 29 Oct 2024 15:17:58 GMT

Counseling Program, Big Future Ambassadors and MIT Program Acceptance at SJA

Exciting news from Saint Joseph Academy! We’re thrilled to announce that Ari Aguirre and Sofia Guerra, both 11th graders, have been accepted into the BigFuture® Ambassadors program for fall 2024!

BigFuture is a fantastic resource that helps students explore careers, colleges, scholarships, and more, all for free. Plus, with the BigFuture® School app, they can access personalized guidance and connect with educational institutions.

Additionally, we’re proud to share that Iker Balli has achieved a significant milestone by being accepted into the MIT program after a lengthy application process that included essays and letters of recommendation. He will be visiting MIT soon!

Please join us in congratulating our new ambassadors and Iker on these amazing achievements!

SJA Summer Project: Student Outdoor Space

Fri, 23 Aug 2024 21:23:43 GMT

St. Joseph's Day Monies Fund New Outdoor Space

This summer, our campus was enhanced with a new outdoor gathering space designed for students. Thanks to the generous funds raised during St. Joseph's Day, we were able to invest in high-quality outdoor furniture that now adorns this inviting area. The new space provides a refreshing environment where students and teachers alike can unwind and engage in conversation amidst the beauty of our campus.

The decision to use these funds for creating an outdoor gathering spot was a collective one, reflecting our community's commitment to fostering a vibrant and supportive environment. The thoughtful design of the area not only enhances the aesthetic appeal of our surroundings but also encourages more frequent interactions and leisure activities outdoors. This new addition will become a cherished part of our campus, offering everyone a perfect blend of functionality and scenic enjoyment.

New PA System at SJA

Fri, 23 Aug 2024 20:05:39 GMT

With the Help of PAWs, SJA Receives a New PA System

Campus safety is at the top of any school's list. With that in mind, a PA system is one of the most critical assets a school needs. With the need for up-to-date communications and state-of-the-art security systems, SJA has made a massive move to achieve a safe and secure campus with the inclusion of a brand-new PA system.

The fantastic organization that helped achieve this goal is PAWs (Parents at Work). Funds raised by PAWS in the 2023-2024 school year through their revenue from the Bloodhound Café went to purchase this new system for the school. SJA can now send announcements to the school mass or even an individual classroom if necessary, thanks to this new and more updated system. Public address, intercom, paging, mass notification, emergency notification, and synchronized clocks are only a few things that this new PA system will bring us. This system, which can be used on a desktop, laptop, and smartphones, will significantly enhance our school's safety and communication. Additional speakers and new / updated hardware will increase the sound and make it more audible, providing a sense of reassurance and confidence in our safety measures.

In addition, new infrastructure is being installed to ensure this system will be completely new inside and out. This new PA system, called Telecor, is currently being fitted across campus. With the help of PAWs and our amazing SJA families, we have made gracious bounds to ensure that SJA continues to be the best choice for our students. It's a testament to our collective efforts and commitment to school safety and communication. We are proud of what we have achieved together.

College Signing Day

Fri, 10 May 2024 15:42:33 GMT

College Signing Day 2024

This week, we held our annual College Signing Day for the Class of 2024. We are so proud of our graduates. We are happy to report a 100% college acceptance rate. Even more so, we are happy to share that the Class of 2024 obtained over $12 MILLION in college scholarships, effectively becoming the largest amount earned by an SJA graduating class.

NEWSIES!

Tue, 11 Apr 2023 15:41:00 GMT

SJA Performing Arts presents our 2023 Spring Musical, DISNEY'S NEWSIES - April 21-23 at Saint Joseph Academy in the Brother Francis Garza Student Center at 8:00 PM, with an additional matinee performance at 3:00 PM on Sunday, April 23.

Newsies, the smash-hit, crowd-pleasing, Tony Award-winning musical.

Newsies is an extraordinary story, inspired by actual events. When a band of underdogs became unlikely heroes and stood up to the most powerful men in New York, it shook the world. It’s an energetic tale about fighting for what’s right… and staying true to who you are.

Community Prayer Breakfast Keynote Speaker

Fri, 10 Feb 2023 17:05:00 GMT

Dr. Adriana Babiak-Vazquez, PhD '81 has been confirmed as keynote speaker for this year's Saint Joseph Academy 12th Annual Community Prayer Breakfast.

The SJA Alumna is currently the Lead Epidemiologist in the Biomedical Data Reduction & Analysis (BDRA) Group, within the Space Medicine Division with KBR at NASA Johnson Space Center. She formulates and executes strategic plans for data capture and analysis related to disease prevention and occupational surveillance of space travel risks to astronauts (e.g., radiation and microgravity exposure). She frequently collaborates with fellow NASA experts on scientific research papers, abstracts for publication and internal/external presentations. One example led to the first joint research collaboration between the Mayo Clinic and NASA.

In addition to our keynote speaker, this year's Community Prayer Breakfast will present the President's Distinguished Community Service Award to Dr. Emilio Hernandez '72 and Amanda and Patricio Sampayo '00 on Friday, March 3rd.

Community Prayer Breakfast Honorees Announced

Wed, 08 Feb 2023 17:13:00 GMT

We are exc ited to announce that Amanda and Patricio Sampayo ’00 and Dr. Emilio Hernandez '72 have been selected as this year’s recipients of the 2023 President's Distinguished Community Service Award. They will receive this award during the 12th Annual Community Prayer Breakfast on Friday, March 3rd.

At SJA, Amanda chaired the Religious Studies Department and taught Social Justice, World Religions, and Women’s History. She served on the United Way Board from 2012-2018 and currently serves on Brownsville Wellness Coalition, Planned Parenthood Cameron County and Friendship of Women.

After graduating from Harvard College with an A.B. in Economics, Patricio partnered with his father and brother to start Centro Medico Internacional in Matamoros, where he has been managing director since 2005. In 2011, Patricio was appointed to the Board of Commissioners of the Housing Authority of Brownsville, where he helped preserve and develop affordable housing for our community’s most vulnerable families as its Chairman for 9 years.

Dr. Hernandez has been practicing dentistry for over 40 years. He was the first chairman of the inaugural SJA school board in 1998 and then later served from 2012 to 2019. He served on the Finance committee for 21 years from 1998 to 2019. He has served the community by sitting on over 10 different boards. He is a founding member of the Academy for Sports Dentistry created in 1981. For 42 years now, every August, he fabricates 25-30 mouth guards for each of the six football programs at BISD and SJA.

State Champions

Wed, 18 Jan 2023 16:36:00 GMT

Earlier this week, the SJA Sweethearts Dance Team was named State Champions at the 2023 TAPPS Dance Competition in Waco where they earned a superior rating in their division and placed at the top. Several members of the team even made it onto All State Teams.

Division IV - 1st Team

Maria Sarmiento
Gabriela Ortiz
Miranda Villafranca

Division IV - 2nd Team

Leslie Herrera

Turn Company

Frida Zedillo
Maria Sarmiento

Alumni Spotlight: Jaime Diez '14

Tue, 03 Jan 2023 17:17:00 GMT

Jaime Andrés Díez has accomplished a lot since his graduation from Saint Joseph Academy in 2014.

The Southern Methodist graduate is currently starting up the first scrap tire recycler in the Rio Grande Valley in an effort to eliminate the numerous abandoned tires seen through out The Valley.

With Valley Tire Recycling, Díez hopes to eliminate the problem and public health issues that abandoned tires cause.

Water collected inside tires is used as a breeding ground for vermin and insects like mosquitoes which can spread West Nile, Dengue, and Zika Virus.

The operation plans to collect and intake scrap tires in order to convert them into rubber granule and sold in various markets, including asphalt crack sealer, surface treatments and steel to be sold to foundries and nylon fibers to be sold as cement aggregate.

In June, he competed in the StartUp Texas Pitch Competition to get funding for his scrap tire recycling project. Out of 9 teams, Valley Tire Recycling was selected as the winner and received $25,000 to use towards permitting, machinery installation, and electrical.

Q: What has life been like after graduating from Saint Joe?

A: There’s a quote that goes, “It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” I graduated from Saint Joe almost 9 years ago and a lot has happened since, some things good and other things bad, however, Saint Joe taught me the skills to always be able to make the most and get value out of each experience I’ve had.

Q: How has Saint Joe contributed towards your success thus far?

A: When I started my college application process with Mrs. Cisneros, my college counselor, my plan was to only apply to UTB and stay in Brownsville. Mrs. Cisneros motivated me to apply to other school so that if I changed my mind I would at least have other colleges to choose from. With her encouragement I ended up applying to other schools and I was able to get into other universities. After graduating from SJA, I initially decided to attended George Washington University in Washington, DC. I had the opportunity to intern at the U.S. Capitol with Congressman Filemón Vela Jr. However, I ended up transferring out of GW to attend SMU and changed my major from International Affairs to Mechanical Engineering, I grew tremendously during my time in DC and Dallas and I would’ve never had this opportunity without the encouragement of Mrs. Cisneros. Thank you!

Q: What is one achievement you accomplished while attending SJA?

A: While at Saint Joe, my favorite class was always art. In high school my art teacher was Mrs. Rodriguez. My senior year I took art portfolio as one of my electives. The purpose of this class (since I’m not sure it’s still offered) is to give student the chance to complete art projects and compile a collection of works that they can then submit to art colleges for admission. I was able to complete my portfolio and get accepted into an art school. Although I ended up going down a different path, I have always been extremely proud of the art portfolio I was able to complete while in this course. Reminiscing about this time, I always feel very happy.

Q: What were some of your favorite things about Saint Joe?

A: Without a doubt my favorite thing about Saint Joe was the lifelong friends I made. To this day, I’m still friends with a lot of the people I was friends with while in high school. Having a group of people, you can lean on during hard times is invaluable especially because those people always have your long-term best interest at heart. When things get complicated it can get difficult to discern the things that truly matter vs the things that simply don’t and sometimes all you need is a good friend to help you restore that clarity.

Q: Where do you see yourself 10 years from now?

A: Honestly, I have no idea but I’m optimistic about the future.

SJA Mourns the Loss of Tony Cantu '75

Fri, 23 Dec 2022 17:41:00 GMT

Dear SJA Community,

On behalf of the Marist Brothers and the entire SJA community, we mourn the loss of Mr. Tony Cantu ’75 who passed into eternal rest on Saturday, December 17, 2022.

Very rarely does a person become synonymous with an organization or institution—yet Tony Cantu’s legacy will forever be linked to his lifelong work and dedication to his ministry at St. Joe. He dedicated over 40 years of his life to St. Joseph Academy, as a student and a beloved teacher/Campus Minister. He was the definition of what it meant to be truly Marist and he will be dearly missed by our entire community. As the history of St. Joe is retold, Tony Cantu will forever be a legend in that story. Not only is Tony’s loss felt immensely here on our campus, but he also touched so many other lives around our Marist World.

When the province first created our Marist Mission in Liberia, they needed to educate the teachers there on how to teach Religion from a Marist perspective. Tony was the person chosen to best accomplish that task and he did so remarkably during his time in Liberia.

He also represented the Marist Province at many International meetings and was an active member of one of their Arco Norte committees. He helped ensure that the Marist Encounter program continued to impact the lives of most juniors at SJA. For the past twenty years, he was a key participant and visionary for many of the Province's Evangelization Programs.

As we attempt to navigate life at St. Joe without Tony’s presence, let us pray for the repose of Mr. Cantu’s soul and for the needs of his family and friends.

Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Saint Marcellin Champagnat, pray for us.

Mary Our Good Mother, pray for us.

St. Joseph, pray for us.

And let us remember, to pray for each other.

Blessings from the entire SJA community,

Michael Motyl

President

Obituary

SJA Counselor Awarded

Tue, 06 Dec 2022 16:56:00 GMT

The National Society of High School Scholars (NSHSS) has awarded a College Counselor Service Award in the amount of $1000 to Vilma Wolfe.

The grant has been awarded to Wolfe, a high-achieving educator who has shown outstanding leadership and commitment to the feild of education to better serve the academic community. This award is sponsored by the NSHSS, an honors organization founded by Claes Nobel, member of the family that established the Nobel Prizes.

The NSHSS offers a lifetime of benefits, pairing the highest performing students worldwide with high school and college scholarships, events, connections, internships, and career opportunities that begin in high school and carry on through college and careers.

Student Spotlight: Salomon Najera

Fri, 04 Nov 2022 18:33:00 GMT

Get to know the Student Leaders of Saint Joseph Academy. Meet Student Council President Salomon Najera '23. The video spotlight was produced and directed by Digital Media Intern Will Hainley '23

Marist Day of Service

Tue, 01 Nov 2022 15:23:00 GMT

On Saturday, October 29, 2022, our very Marist students spent their day volunteering and serving the community. In true family spirit, students went out to serve our school and community as agents of justice and peace.

At Saint Joseph Academy, we live and teach the Marist Way of Life, and we believe that anyone can “Be Marist”. Chosen and called by Mary to bear her name and share in concern for the Church, the world, and the whole human race, Mary is our model in all that we do. We are called to think, judge, feel, and act as Mary did and to embody the Marist Charisms or virtues of Mary in our daily life. One of the ways we do this is by serving the community.

Many thanks to all the organizations who gave us the opportunity to serve:

Good Neighbor Settlement House

Brownsville Wellness Coalition

Tip of Texas Family Outreach

Proyecto Juan Diego

Incarnate Word Academy

SJA Green Team

Brownsville Parks

Spanish Meadows

Board member has run 100,000 miles

Thu, 27 Oct 2022 13:54:00 GMT

Cross Country Assistant Coach and School Board Member Michael J. Schlater has been keeping track of the miles he has ran for more than 40 years.

Before the start of Friday's Homecoming Football Game, he ran his 100,000th mile.

35th Annual Alumni Golf Tournament

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 16:41:00 GMT

We held our 35th Annual SJA Alumni Golf Tournament this Saturday! A huge thank you to all of our sponsors, alumni and friends of SJA who helped and/or participated in this event. Thank you to the Rancho Viejo Resort & Country Club and all its staff members for hosting us.

Until next year!

The following are the winning teams!

Flight A

Team 1: Bryan Kennedy, Fred Kennedy, Eduardo De La Garza

Team 2: Robert Camargo, Mike Garcia, Gustavo Paez

Team 3: Frank Wood, Lee Ostis, Walter Clint

Flight B

Team 1: Alvaro De La Garza, Luis Gonzalez, Ramon Sampayo

Team 2: Rick Ortiz, Seve Ortiz, Diego Ortiz

Team 3: Ronnie Humphreys, Teddy Lopez, John Clint

Alumni Homecoming Tailgate/Reunions

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 16:25:00 GMT

Thank you all for joining us Friday, October 22, 2022 for our annual alumni homecoming tailgate! It was great seeing everyone and catching up. We welcomed home alumni from the 1960’s all the way to our most recent grads - 2022! We also had 7 reunions join us.

Class of 1972 celebrating their 50th reunion
Class of 1982 celebrating their 40th reunion
Class of 1987 celebrating their 35th reunion
Class of 1992 celebrating their 30th reunion
Class of 1997 celebrating their 25th reunion
Class of 2002 celebrating their 20th reunion
Class of 2012 celebrating their 10th reunion

As always, it’s a great day to be a bloodhound!

The Alumni Association is always seeking new members to be a part of thier expansive group. For more information about joining the Alumni Association, click the button below.

Coach of the Week

Tue, 18 Oct 2022 18:48:00 GMT

This week, Head Football Coach Tino Villarreal '99 was named Texas Football Week 8 COACH OF THE WEEK.

The Bloodhounds fell behind 28-0 to Austin St. Michael’s, but Coach Villarreal’s squad never quit, rattling off 29 unanswered points — including a touchdown as time expire and a game winning two-point conversation to earn a thrilling 29-28 walk-off win.

Dave Campbell’s Texas Football is proud to honor one head football coach in each classification with the Coach of the Week award. Each coach recognized with this special honor typifies the best in Texas high school football.

Learn More!

La Valla Weekend

Thu, 13 Oct 2022 13:56:00 GMT

Saint Joseph Academy students Diego Sanchez ’24, Julio Silguero ’24 and Alejandro Ramirez ‘23 are back from the 10th annual La Valla Weekend. Organized by the Marist Brothers, this retreat is designed to allow students and an adult chaperone (Teacher Matt Curoe) from the Marist network of schools to enjoy a weekend of prayer, community and service in Esopus, NY. They were joined by Marist schools from New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Texas, Florida, Illinois and Canada.

Every retreat, the students are given a task, experience an extreme scenario and see how you get through it using teamwork. This years scenario was a flood. According to Silguero, the groups were given different family roles and different tasks to tackle in the event of a flood.

His family had to build a wall in an effort to stop the water from flowing in. It wasn't easy, he said. "It was hard work for my team and I."

One of the special aspects of these retreats is that students meet other Marist students from all over the country and Canada. One of his favorite parts about the trip was getting to know the different people, sitting outside in the country New York air, talking. "You could speak your mind, everyone was really welcoming, accepting and open minded," he said.

Before the retreat started, students were asked to give up their phones. This turned out to be a good thing for the students. Silguero said by not having so many distractions, he was able to get to know his classmates Sanchez and Ramirez better. "We got to really focus on the retreat and how peacful it all was," he said.

Being around others who hold the same values of service above self, really touched the students. As student of SJA, service is one of the missions and major responsibilities to enabling that mission. It was nice to see other schools who mirrored those same values, he said.

Learn more about La Valla Weekend

Alumni Spotlight: Alex Gonzalez '03

Wed, 12 Oct 2022 17:44:00 GMT

In September, SJA Alumnus Alex Gonzalez ' 03 was honored with South Texas College of Law Houston's Young Alumni Award.

He was recognized for his significant leadership and service contributions to STCL Houston and the legal profession in the decade since his graduation. He is an attorney and partner at the law firm of Pacheco Couceiro & Gonzalez, where his practice is dedicated solely to helping people who have been hurt due to the negligence of others. In his 10 years as a personal injury attorney, he has recovered millions for his clients.

Gonzalez graduated from the University of Texas at San Antonio with a Bachelor’s Degree in International Business before attending South Texas College of Law Houston. While in law school, he was a varsity advocate on the school’s nationally ranked advocacy program. Gonzalez won several awards including the Heart of South Texas Advocacy Award and the Bernardino Agosto Sr. Award.

Gonzalez is a board member and past president of the Mexican American Bar Association of Houston. He also serves as a member of the Alumni Association Board of Directors at STCL Houston, where he is the co-vice president of the Career Resources Committee. In that role, Gonzalez frequently brings attorneys to campus to impart first-hand knowledge to students about practicing law in various specialties. He previously served as an advocacy coach for nearly a decade at South Texas, leading his teams to three national championships. “He remains active in giving back to STCL Houston,” said Nick Lanza ’89 in his nomination letter.

Outside of practicing law, Gonzalez enjoys spending time with his wife and family and credits them for all the success he has been fortunate enough to achieve.

Q: What inspired you to become a lawyer, specifically personal injury law?

A: I honestly never considered becoming a lawyer until my older brother, Armando (’00), enrolled in law school. It didn’t seem like something feasible but he showed me it could be done and he was the one who first got me interested in applying to law school. I specifically chose personal injury law because it felt like my true calling—I like helping the underdog and I can relate to my clients who have been seriously hurt. I feel a deep satisfaction representing them and fighting to get them justice.

Q: What advice would you give to future/current SJA students who are interested in law?

A: I would tell them to first learn about law school and the practice of law so that they can come up with their own reason for wanting to pursue law, not the reasons that others might give them. Those who want to become lawyers merely to become rich or other superficial reasons, quickly learn that this is not a get-rich-quick scheme. It’s a noble profession but it also demands a lot of you. During those difficult times in law school or later as an attorney, it helps to have a good reason for why you want to do this that will carry you past those tough times.

Q: What is one achievement you accomplished while attending SJA?

A: I was quite proud of our baseball team’s achievements during my senior year. Our program was still quite new at the time, but we started the season 7-0, won our district title, and eventually made it to within one game of the state tournament. Along the way, we beat the so-called bigger schools, won a few tournaments, and put together one of the best seasons SJA Baseball has ever had.

Q: In what ways would you say you benefited from attending SJA?

A:The relationships I made at St. Joe have continued beyond the school. There’s a special bond among people who went to St. Joe; whenever I’ve visited to a new city, I’ve found that our alumni seem to find each other naturally and form little friend groups no matter how far away from home we are. Whether it be in Houston, New York or Austin—there seems to be a kind of magic drawing alumni to each other. It’s a special thing.

Q: How has SJA contributed to your success thus far?

A: St. Joe is where I grew up, where I learned some of the important lessons, and created some of the most impactful relationships in my life. So wherever I go, I take St. Joe with me.

Q: What is your favorite memory of SJA?

A: Just playing baseball with my teammates under the Brownsville sun. It’s funny, but I have a recurring dream where I'm back in high school at practice with my teammates. Maybe it’s because that's one my most joyful memories.

Q: In what ways have your experiences at SJA prepared you to succeed in College and in your career?

A: St. Joe gave me the foundation upon which I’ve created my life. It was here that I crafted my moral compass, learned how to strive for my goals, and built relationships that helped me become the man I am today.

Taste of the Town is set for November 3rd

Thu, 06 Oct 2022 20:19:00 GMT

BENEFITING SJA ATHLETICS

Taste of the Town is designed to raise funds in support of the many teams and programs vital to the Athletic Department at Saint Joseph Academy. The nature of athletics and goals of the school's program demand our efforts to stay competitive and provide the best and safest facilities, equipment, transportation and schedules to our Bloodhound athletes.

Our annual Taste of the Town is a casual affair hosted in our very own beautiful courtyard that delivers fun and excitement centered around tasty food selections from local chefs and restaurants and includes wine and beer. Event attendees are also able to participate in a silent auction that includes amazing gift baskets and special auction items prepared by each sports team at SJA and generous local business donors. Additionally, we use this special night to celebrate our Ring of Honor recipient.

RGV Sports Player of the Week: Ethan Gallegos '23

Tue, 04 Oct 2022 20:15:00 GMT

Senior Ethan Gallegos has been featured as this weeks Player of the Week with RGV Sports.

Read the feature here

SJA Performing Arts to hold auditions for its new production

Wed, 28 Sep 2022 15:03:00 GMT

Auditions for the SJA Performing Arts Winter Musical Into the Woods will be held October 17 and 18.

This will be the 2022-23 Palm Awards Submission.

For an audition appointment and audition materials, please email Director of Performing Arts Chris Ikner at cikner@sja.us

All Saint Joseph Academy Students in grades 9-12 are eligible to audition.

Into the Woods is a 1987 musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim , and a book by James Lapine .

The musical intertwines the plots of several Brothers Grimm fairy tales , exploring the consequences of the characters' wishes and quests. The main characters are taken from " Little Red Riding Hood " (spelled "Ridinghood" in the published vocal score), " Jack and the Beanstalk ", " Rapunzel ", and " Cinderella ", as well as several others. The musical is tied together by a story involving a childless baker and his wife and their quest to begin a family (the original beginning of the Grimm Brothers' "Rapunzel"), their interaction with a witch who has placed a curse on them, and their interaction with other storybook characters during their journey.

Marist of the Week: Victoria Hinojos '20

Wed, 21 Sep 2022 19:20:00 GMT