Our Mission

Montini Catholic High School is a family-centered, co-educational, college preparatory high school, rooted in the life and teaching of Jesus Christ as emulated by St. John Baptist DeLaSalle and committed to the education of the whole person. Our LaSallian tradition recognizes the sacredness of all persons and educates students of diverse abilities, cultures, and socioeconomic backgrounds.

Each student is expected to participate in an educational setting that will emphasize the message of Christ, service, and responsibility to Church, family and community.

The Brothers of the Christian Schools sponsor and manage Montini Catholic in association with lay men and women, religious and clergy. In accordance with the Christian Brothers' presence, the following characteristic elements are given priority:


  • Attention to the individual
  • Special concern for the poor
  • Commitment to excellence
  • Creative education for a variety of ability levels
  • Religious instruction and service
  • Promotion of justice and peace
  • Faith-filled and zealous teachers working in association


Montini has a religious purpose and an academic purpose. Montini works to create a Catholic educational community in which faith, culture and knowledge are integrated among teachers, students and parents in a spirit of cooperation. Montini's programs attempt to challenge and encourage the spiritual, intellectual, personal, cultural, social and physical development of each student.

Lasallian Tradition

Montini Catholic is an educational institution that is guided by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, founded by St. John Baptist de La Salle, who is the Patron Saint of Teachers.

 

Since 1680, the Christian Brothers have encompassed the globe with institutions in over 80 countries.

A Lasallian education strives to touch the heart of every child, through academic excellence, individualized attention, faith formation, inclusion, respect for the individual, service and social justice. This form of teaching attains transformative experiences that enrich each student's cultural, intellectual, physical, social and spiritual development. Through St. John Baptist de La Salle’s inspiration, these educators transform education through a new vision of teaching young people, especially the poor.

Mission Statement

Montini Catholic High School is a family-centered, co-educational, college preparatory high school, rooted in the life and teaching of Jesus Christ as emulated by St. John Baptist De La Salle and committed to the education of the whole person. Our LaSallian tradition recognizes the sacredness of all persons and educates students of diverse abilities, cultures, and socioeconomic backgrounds.



Each student is expected to participate in an educational setting that will emphasize the message of Christ, service, and responsibility to Church, family and community.

Qualities of Lasallian Education

  • Teaching based on the vision and spirituality of Saint John Baptist de La Salle
  • Living the Institute’s mission for more than three centuries
  • Centering on Catholic values and personal relationships
  • Leading with De La Salle Christian Brothers and Lasallian Partners
  • Advancing innovations in teaching, technology and scholarship


To learn more about the Christian Brothers or Lasallian formation, please visit lasalle.org.

To learn more about the De La Salle Christian Brothers of the Midwest District, please visit cbmidwest.org.

Our Founder, St. John Baptist De LaSalle

Saint John Baptist de La Salle (1651 - 1719) opened his first school in Reims, his birthplace in northeastern France, in 1679. He was convinced that without Christian schools, poor children would be lost both to the church and to civil society. His initial efforts led him to organize the teachers whose services he had secured into a religious community called the Brothers of the Christian Schools. Over a period of thirty years, he opened schools in several French cities and towns and worked with numerous teachers and students from various socio-economic levels. By the time of his death he had founded different types of educational institutions: primary schools, teacher training centers, boarding schools, and homes for delinquents.


Alert to the needs of his time, he was an innovator in the development of teacher training programs and in curricular and pedagogical practices. Although de La Salle’s schools were primarily for the poor, they attracted children from families of differing economic backgrounds. However, he tolerated nothing of the social segregating which was the practice of the day. He prescribed uniform management procedures for the classroom instruction of students from different social and academic levels.


De La Salle regarded a school as a community of believers working cooperatively to achieve a shared vision. De La Salle was a prolific writer and his educational ideas are embodied in several major works: Rule of the Brothers of the Christian schools, Meditations for the Time of Retreat, and the Conduct of Schools, as well as in the textbooks he wrote for students. His contributions to Catholic education led Pope Pius XII in 1950 to proclaim him the Patron of Teachers.


Prayer to Our Founder.

Pope Paul VI

The ground work to establish a Catholic High School in the Lombard/Villa park community began in 1960 when pastors of six local Catholic parishes contact Bishop D. McNamara and requested the creation of a Catholic Co-educational high School. The Brothers of the Christian Schools were approached and agreed to sponsor this new high school. The new high school was slated to open in September, 1966 under the name of Montini in honor of the pope at that time, Pope Paul VI whose family name was Montini.


Pope Paul VI was born as Giovanni Battista Montini (John Baptist) Montini in 1897 in the Northern Italian province of Brescia. He was elected pope in 1963, and served a 15 year pontificate before his death in Castel Gandolfo on August 6, 1978. Pope Paul VI is described as a brilliant man, deeply spiritual, reserved and gentle.


Pope Paul was beautified on May 10, 2014 after a miracle was accredited to Paul's intercession. Blessed Pope Paul VI was canonized on October 14, 2018. His feast day will be September 26th.


On Monday, October 14, 2019, our school community marked the one year anniversary of the canonization of Pope Paul VI, St. Pope Paul VI. With that, Pope Paul VI joins in sainthood the founder of the Lasallian school charism, St. John Baptist de La Salle. Since the founding of the Montini Catholic High School community in 1966, we have invoked the name of De La Salle countless times at the conclusion of each instance of prayer. The tradition of closing prayers with “St. John Baptist de La Salle… Pray for Us” is one we share with the more than one million Lasallians studying and working in ministries throughout the world. 

With the recent canonization of Pope Paul VI, our school community is blessed to have another saint so closely associated with our community to whom we can appeal for prayers. It is with that in mind that following his canonization, we added to our prayers an appeal to St. Pope Paul VI. Moving forward, “St. John Baptist de La Salle… Pray for Us,” will be followed by “St. Pope Paul VI… Pray for Us.” As always, we will conclude all prayers with “Live Jesus in our hearts… forever."

Our Leadership

Board of Directors

Dr. Janice Orlowski '74
Chairman of the Board


Michael Manna '70
Vice Chairman

Michael Bava
Treasurer


Edward Mack
Secretary

Dr. Michael Alebich '03
Jeannette (Workman) Bartosz '85
Frank Conforti '86
Joseph Dailey
Michael Gilmartin '86
Shaun Hickombottom '02
Catherine Hoovel-Giffin
Leigh-Anne Kazma 
Dennis McNicholas

James Miller

Richard Rafanelli '76
Michael Santay

Dr. Kurt Schackmuth
Michael Schumacher '71
Norm Sidler '87
Shannon (Mullins) Smith '89 
Tracy TreDenick-Fricke
James Van De Velde '70
Walter Weisenburger '75
Carol Winfrey

Emeritus Members
Ronald Mangelsdorf
Jan McGivern
Charles Thompson

School Attorney
Mike Devine, Partner
Nisen & Elliott, LLC

Ex-Officio Members
Kevin Beirne, President
Chris Tiritilli, Principal
James Nelson, Business Manager

Committee Chairs
Buildings & Grounds - Edward Mack
Development - Jeannette (Workman) Bartosz '85
Finance - Michael Bava
Marketing - James Miller

Faculty & Staff

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