Cathedral Preparatory School has been carrying on traditions and different types of legacies for countless years. 2021 marks the school’s 100th anniversary since it was founded in 1921. Over the 100 years of its existence Prep has racked up a numerous sports titles, had countless remodels to the campus, and developed thousands of young men into men of vision in spirit, mind, and body.
Prep was started by Bishop John Mark Gannon when he summoned the pastors of Erie’s 12-parish diocese and brought up the lack of Catholic education for young men in the city. His goal was to make a high school that “provided the moral, intellectual, social, and physical training designed to prepare men to live in our democratic society…”
This meeting led to the creation of Cathedral Prep in the fall of 1921. The first day of school for Cathedral Prep was held in the basement of St. Peter’s Cathedral. The tuition to attend Prep was only $50, which was paid for by the students’ respective churches. The faculty consisted of four priests and one layperson, who were tasked with giving 43 young men a catholic education. In 1925, Cathedral Prep held their first graduation with a class of 43 men that became the first alumni of Cathedral Prep.
While Prep started off in the basement of the cathedral with only a few staff and a small amount of students, the building, faculty, and student body has increased significantly since then. The building itself came to life behind the cathedral and originally consisted of four floors in the main building as it still is today. However, within these past couple years there has been renovations to add new ceilings, windows, flooring, lockers, lighting fixtures, and carpet, which came to a total of $3 million to complete.
Another add-on to the building was the auditorium and the science wing that cost around $1 million to complete. Straying away from the building, Cathedral prep also completed construction on the Cathedral Prep Events Center in September of 2010, which has since been renamed the Hagerty Family Events Center.
In the beginning of Cathedral Prep, sports were not the main focus of the school and still aren’t to this day; however, it’s hard to overlook such a powerhouse of sports like Cathedral Prep. Cathedral Prep’s basketball team hosts the Burger King Classic, previously known as the McDonald’s Classic from 1983 until 2010, which is commonly referred to as the best four-team basketball tournament in the country. The {rep basketball team has also managed to get 6 state championships for the school.
The cross country team was able to bring home 17 District 10 titles, along side the Golf team who has brought home 16 District 10 titles, alongside their 2 state titles.
The soccer team racked up 32 District 10 titles. They haven’t lost in the District 10 finals since 2014 and also has one state title in the trophy case.
Cathedral Prep’s football program has been a powerhouse in Pennsylvania for quite awhile tallying up five state titles, including three in a row (2016-2018) and another 25 District 10 titles.
Over the years Cathedral Prep has made it to the state championships 36 times and won 21 of those times, and this isn’t including all the individual athletes who won states in individual sports.
All in all, Cathedral Preparatory School has been a great school to attend for 100 years now, and it doesn’t seem like it will be stopping anytime soon. Prep has created so many memories and opportunities for the young men of Erie and hopefully it can continue to produce men of vision in spirit, mind, and body. Now that we’ve taken a look at the first 100 years of prep, here’s to the next 100 years!
