Kenneth Montague became the first African-American student at Loyola in 1956. He “opened the door for others to follow.”

My new motto has become, “Preach the Exercises always; when necessary, use words.”

Joseph Ross, an English teacher at Gonzaga High School in Washington, D.C., says poetry requires us to look deeply at the world around us.

As a young teacher at Canisius High School in Buffalo, N.Y., John W. Donohue, S.J., worked with Thomas J. Jones, the senior member of the lay faculty: “From him I was to learn more about the practice of teaching than from any book or course in education.”

Jim Rowen discusses the genesis of the Great Ignatian Challenge, a yearly competition among Jesuit high schools to see which institution can bring in the most donations for local charities.

Mr. Pérez is now the executive director of the NativityMiguel Coalition, a national network of faith-based schools that follow the Nativity model for helping children prepare for rigorous high school curricula.