Verbum Dei High School

Verbum Dei Jesuit High School, nicknamed the Verb, is a private Catholic all-boys college preparatory school sponsored by the Society of Jesus in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1962 by the Society of the Divine Word to serve students from the Watts neighborhood and the surrounding communities who are economically and academically under-served. Verbum Dei is known for sending its graduates to some of the more selective colleges in the United States and has held a 100% success rate for sending graduating seniors to college. History Verbum Dei was founded in 1962 by the Divine Word Missionaries with the permission and recommendation of Cardinal James McIntyre to serve the educational needs of the black community of South Los Angeles. The school was named after one of Jesus' epithets, Verbum Dei ("the Word of God"). Bishop Joseph Francis, S.V.D., led the founding team and was the school's first principal. The Society maintained a presence at the school until December 2006, when the long-time Verbum Dei faculty/staff member Br. Richard "Rich" Morrill, S.V.D., left because of terminal illness. At some point, the school expanded its mission in order to also serve the educational needs of the Latino community of South Los Angeles.