Catholic education matters because it seeks to educate the whole person — mind, body, and spirit. Our Catholic school provides a safe learning environment where each student is nurtured and encouraged to live up to their God-given dignity. Students are challenged to learn not only for their own sake, but to help build up the world around them according to their values.
Students at Archbishop Walsh not only learn the three “R’s,” they learn what it is to be part of a community, and they carry their friendships with them the rest of their lives. Read these excerpts from Walsh World, of former students explain how attending Walsh changed their lives.
Edward Gabriel ’68, United States Ambassador and president of the consulting company,
Gabriel Group, LLC.
“The most formidable years of my life were during high school,” Gabriel said. The friendships he formed and the experiences he had left a lasting impression on him. “My deepest and dearest friends are from Walsh. We are still close and the influence we have on each other is still significant. My fellow students became my brothers and sisters and my family for life. The teachers and friars influenced my thinking and I must admit I learned the value of patience from them. My deceased classmate, Tom Drum, opened my eyes to the idea that the world was bigger, different and more diverse than Walsh,” Gabriel said.
Patrick Cady ’86, cinematographer and movie director
“Attending a small school was a huge advantage,” Cady said. “I was able to thrive under the attention small classes provided. I feel that the combination of my high school education and my extracurricular activities really helped me express myself in college. “The other major advantage of having attended Walsh was meeting Fr. Barry Allaire. His generosity allowed me to literally see the world. Travel changed everything for me. When you are 16 and realizing the world does not revolve around Olean, your perspective on everything changes. I learned a very powerful lesson taking in other cultures. Luckily, the film business has had me continue traveling around the world, so it’s a lesson that I can’t easily forget.”
Col. Eugene T. Daniels ’73, retired military colonel and deputy director for Expeditionary Operations at the Office of Naval Research
“I cannot say enough about my background in a Catholic education,” said Daniels, who now resides in Stafford, Va. “That was the foundation that enabled me to continue pushing forward into my career. Everyday I’m thankful for the education I received at Walsh. “Mrs. Sinesiou, Sr. Marie Catherine, Mr. Butler … these people gave us the foundation and the tools we needed to compete in the real world. I was not an A student, but these people help me find out where I fit. If it wasn’t for those basics, I would not be at where I am today.”
Andrew W. Johns ’86, patent examiner at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
“I certainly believe that my education at Walsh provided me with the communication tools that are so critically important to be a successful patent examiner,” Johns said. “While the technical background of my university degree is necessary to understand the inventions I review, the larger part of my job involves communicating my findings to the applicants. “As I frequently see in the examiners I help train, these communications skills are not generally learned in engineering school. Without these skills, I would not have been nearly as successful in this job as I have been.”
Dan Clark ’03, interrogator in the United States Army, currently serving in Iraq
“Talking with people and speaking out came easy to me,” Clark said. “The atmosphere and dynamics at Walsh helped with that. It made it so I had to grow up and take things into my own hands, and to be a good interrogator, you have to be in control. That’s one of the main reasons I joined the Army,” he said. “I’ve always been good with languages, and I talked with Fr. Barry before I left, and he thought it was a good idea. I wanted to join the Army, and now I could join the Army and work with languages. I really couldn’t turn that down.”
Cody Davis ’06, a junior biology major at St. Bonaventure University who was placed in a foster home when he began attending Walsh in 2002
“The school that I attended and would eventually graduate from was very small and had a very personal environment. All of the teachers showed that they cared and helped me when I was experiencing the roughest time of my life. Archbishop Walsh High School has been and still is a very big influence in my life. I graduated in 2006 and still share very close relationships with a vast majority of the teachers. I know that the relationships I have made will last for the rest of my life. “I believe and know that Archbishop Walsh High School is very valuable not only to me but also to my community. There are no other private Catholic high schools within 70 miles of here and Walsh really is in a prime location. From a student’s and an alum’s perspective, Walsh is worth it.”
Juliette (‘06) and Claudine (‘10) Dumas, attended Walsh after arriving in America from France, where they grew up
Juliette and Claudine began attending Walsh because their father, Pierre, was transferred to the Olean area, from France. It was their first time living in America, and the treatment they received at Walsh continues to provide warm memories for the entire family. “The time I spent at Walsh was an amazing experience. I will never forget about it. I was in 11th grade. Everyone was very nice and welcoming when we arrived. We barely spoke English but the teachers and students took time to explain everything to us. We never felt rejected,” Juliette notes. “Moreover, doing sports with the school was incredible, I really loved it. And the coaches were really nice. I also made some great friends that I still keep in touch with, which is very important to me. I was more than satisfied with the people at Walsh,” She continued. Clothilde, her younger sister, did not speak English when they first arrived. Yet, as Clothilde says, “The teachers at Walsh were very welcoming and they spent a lot of their time to help me in English, they worked very hard. They make me feel like I was at home. They brought me joy. Thanks to them, I now speak English fluently. They could have done something else with their time, but they always took time to help me. They helped me discover another culture which brought me a lot of understanding. I have never met teachers like them — they are great. The students also took very good care of my sister and me. It is the best school I have been to and it will always be.”
Ryan Dwyer, ‘98, strongly believes in Catholic education, and continued his at Notre Dame University. Alarmed that Walsh might close from low enrollment and lack of community involvement, he canvassed far and wide, including talking to the head of the Catholic Bishop’s Conference. The following is an excerpt he wrote for the Olean Times Herald, on the benefits of a Catholic education in the community.
“In the United States, 99% of Catholic high school students graduate and 97% go on to some form of post-secondary education. Walsh tracks closely with this trend. Most recently, Walsh has landed its grads in leadership positions in the Southern Tier community, as well as positions in the State Department, Wall Street, Capitol Hill, and the U.S. Military. Parents should see sending their children to Walsh as an investment not only in a sound education but also in solid character formation. As an alumnus, I can testify to the faith-based values Walsh instilled in my classmates and me.
“The Southern Tier community should view investment in Walsh as a way to ensure that even children of limited means can receive an education in faith. Catholic schools like Walsh provide this unique form of education wherein the learning environment itself becomes a place to encounter the love of God. Such an encounter recently proved to be pivotal for a kid from Brooklyn who was brought to Walsh by a Catholic priest after having just seen his close friend killed in a drive-by shooting. At Walsh, he was able to receive a free education, participate in sports, obtain tutoring from upperclassmen, live with a Walsh graduate’s family, and go on to a four-year college education. He now serves in the U.S. Army. This is a Walsh story. This is the sort of contribution Walsh makes to our society and our nation.”