Prep Talk
Meet the New Faculty for 2013-2014
Posted August 27th, 2013
There are three new faculty members at St. Augustine Prep for the 2013 – 2014 Academic Year: Mr. James Clark, Mr. Michael Foley, and Mr. Joseph Zagarella.
Mr. James Clark joins St. Augustine Prep as an English/journalism teacher after 17-plus years as an editor/reporter at The Press of Atlantic City newspaper. Mr. Clark, who also will helm the Prep yearbook, is a certified teacher in New Jersey and has taught in the Ventnor school district. He is a 1993 graduate of Wilkes University with a B.A. in communications. Mr. Clark champions the unique nature of a Prep education at every turn and resides in Northfield with his wife Victoria and twin sons Alexander and Benjamin. The boys are juniors at the Prep and play varsity soccer.
Mr. Clark is an advocate of both the art and function of good writing, and he wants students to share his enthusiasm. “By the end of this year, I want the boys to recognize the economy of an Ernest Hemingway, the wit of a P.J. O’Rourke, and the expansiveness of a Barbara Tuchman when they read a piece,” he says. “Not many of us ever will reach those levels as writers, but it sure is fun to try.”
Mr. Michael Foley will be teaching World Literature this upcoming year at the Prep. He attended Catholic school and is thoroughly excited to give back and do his part in continuing the tradition of strong, Catholic education. He received his B.A. in English from La Salle University and continued his education at La Salle, receiving an M.A. in Education. This past year he was employed in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia as a teacher at St. Lucy’s School for Children with Visual Impairments and the Archbishop Ryan Academy for the Deaf.
His goals for teaching at the Prep are to create an environment where students will cultivate a love of literature and to help the young men develop an ability to read, think, and write critically. In his brief encounters with the students and faculty of the Prep so far, he has found a strong sense of community that he is excited to become a part of, and he cannot wait for the beginning of the school year.
Mr. Joseph Zagarella comes to the St. Augustine Prep community after multiple years of experience in the field of religious education. Mr. Zagarella has worked as a Director of Religious Education at the parish level, Director of Youth Ministry for the diocese of Camden, and teaching at two schools, one all boys school in New York and a diocesan high school in the Diocese of Camden. Mr. Zagarella has a love for the Catholic faith and a passion to share that love and knowledge of the faith with all. Mr. Zagarella will be joining the faculty at St. Augustine Preparatory School as a Theology teacher. He will teach both Sophomore and Junior courses. Mr. Zagarella’s goal as a teacher is to form good Christians and honest citizens, a motto he acquired from St. John Bosco, the patron saint of youth workers. Mr. Zagarella is looking forward to teaching here at the Prep and serving the needs of the community.
