More Than a Dream: The Cristo Rey Story: How One School's Vision Is Changing the World

By G.R. Kearney

In a big city there are many big dreams, but only a special few come true . . .The Cristo Rey story is one of the more improbable and inspiring educational success stories in decades. In the early 1990s, the Jesuits in Chicago had an audacious dream--to start a new college prep school for the children of Hispanic working poor. But questions needed to be answered: With so many established Catholic high schools closing their doors, did it make sense to try to build a new one? Would parents support a demanding prep school? Could students overcome deficient academic backgrounds? How could such a school be financed?
Despite many real and potential barriers, the Jesuits set to work--and in 1996, Cristo Rey Jesuit High School opened its doors in Pilsen, a predominantly Mexican-immigrant inner-city neighborhood on Chicago's Lower West Side.
In More Than a Dream, G. R. Kearney shows how one daring vision became a reality and turned into a resounding success. Through Cristo Rey's innovative curriculum, creative financing model, and intense devotion to the needs of Hispanic students, the lives of thousands of families continue to be changed. In demonstrating how Cristo Rey has sparked an educational revolution in urban America, the book leaves every reader with a bold challenge: Attempt to change what seems unchangeable.

"Cristo Rey is magical. What you see there is hope and optimism."
--Melinda French Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
They built more than a school--they built a future
Brick by brick, Chicago-area Jesuits saw their dream of starting a new college prep school for the children of Hispanic working poor come true. Student by student, they saw a better and brighter future unfold. You'll be truly inspired as you read how this Jesuit vision--now a national model for educational success--continues to challenge those who have much and to change the lives of those who have little.
"More Than a Dream shines a light into the soul of urban education, illuminating the extraordinary challenges and the breathtaking and transformational results of the Cristo Rey-model schools."
--Darren Jackson, CFO of Best Buy
"Cristo Rey schools change children's lives. This is a story that needs to be told."
--Laura Vanderkam, member of USA Today's Board of Contributors
"An enticing tale of inspiration, improvisation and innovation . . . A testament to the will and wisdom of a hearty lot who believed in poor kids and who had faith that the impossible is possible in urban education."
--Jerome T. Murphy, Dean emeritus and Harold Howe II Professor of Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education
Thank you--by purchasing this book, you participate in the ongoing story of Cristo Rey Jesuit High School. G. R. Kearney and Loyola Press will donate a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book to Cristo Rey Jesuit High School in Chicago.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0829425764
• ISBN13: 9780829425765
• Release Date: January 2008
• Publisher: Loyola Press
• Length: 424 Pages
• Weight: 1.62 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.5" x 9.0"
• Age Range: 14 years and up

Customer Reviews

Inspirational!

This book captured my attention, provoked many thoughts, and sparked my enthusiasm for what the Cristo Rey schools are doing to make a significant difference in inner-city schools. G.R.Kearney took me, the reader, on an incredible journey...from when the Chicago school was only a dream to where it is today...a unique and promising school providing an amazing education to low-income families. The tireless efforts of the founders, supporters, teachers, volunteers, and students have been rewarded with successes both big and small...making this book impossible to ignore! Thank you to G.R. Kearney for telling a story that deserves to be heard by the world!

The Power of Hope

What an inspiring book! The detail with which Kearney tackles this story conveys the dedication, hard work, hope, and faith of everyone involved in developing Cristo Rey High School and the Corporate Internship Program. The extensive research that the author presents makes it an easy read; one that outlines the power of people from different backgrounds working together for a common goal. A must read for anyone undertaking a feat that at one time or another seems insurmountable.

Another winner

In More than a Dream, GR Kearney highlights the success of the Cristo Rey school model, an innovative private-partnership tuition payment program that is opening new doors for students in over a dozen schools nationwide. This insightful book is an inspirational read. Check out Kearney's first work "The Small Things" as well.

Great read!

Ever wonder how ideas and innovations become reality? Pick up 'More than a Dream'. The Cristo Rey story balances the challenges of institutional change with the triumphs of personal dedication, and confronts head-on the failures of today's approach to education for low-income families. Along the way you'll meet CEO's and gang members, teenage moms and Catholic priests. The journey promises to be thought provoking, contentious, heart-warming and full of inspirational anecdotes for every reader. I couldn't put it down.

Inspirational!

What makes this book so special is that it focuses in on perhaps the most daunting challenge our country faces today...educational inequality in inner-city schools. Further, what makes this books so great is that it provides hope and inspiration through the example that Christo Rey has set forth as the gold standard for reforming inner-city education. In America, the level of educational inequality is mind-boggling. Students growing up in low-income neighborhoods face challenges that are hardly believable. Take for example, the following stats: *Nine-year-olds growing up in low-income communities are already three grade levels behind their peers in high-income communities. *Half of them won't graduate from high school by the time they're 18. *Those who do graduate will, on average, read and do math at the level of eighth graders in high-income communities. Only 1 in 10 will graduate from college. This book serves as an example as to what is right in the complicated and somewhat troubling world of inner-city education. Christo Rey's success should be shared with the world as the role model for other schools. I'm certain that anyone who reads this will find it to be inspirational and time well spent.