Alumni/Father-Son Communion Breakfast 2026
You're Cordially Invited
Sunday, March 1
9:30 a.m. Mass | Church of the Gesu
Sunday, March 1
9:30 a.m. Mass | Church of the Gesu
10:30 a.m.Breakfast & Program | Kelly Fieldhouse
Keynote Speaker
Rev. Mario M. Powell, S.J.
Keynote Speaker
Rev. Mario M. Powell, S.J.
Provincial Assistant for Pre-Secondary and Secondary Education (PASE)
Jesuits East Province
Keynote Speaker
Provincial Asst., Pre-Secondary and Secondary Education (PASE)
Jesuits East Province
Mario M. Powell, S.J., serves as the Provincial Assistant for Pre-Secondary and Secondary Education (PASE) for the Jesuits East Province, where he provides leadership and strategic oversight for twenty‑nine educational institutions. Prior to this appointment, he served as President of Brooklyn Jesuit Prep from 2019 to 2023 and as Director of the REACH Program at Regis High School.
Father Powell entered the Society of Jesus in 2003 following his graduation from Boston College and professed first vows in 2005. He holds a master’s degree in American Studies from Saint Louis University, as well as a Master of Divinity and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology from Boston College. His Jesuit formation included service experiences in Jamaica, the Philippines, and Honduras.
Father Powell commenced his educational ministry at Cheverus High School, where he taught history and theology for three years. In 2014, he joined Regis High School as Director of the REACH Program, significantly expanding its impact and establishing it as the largest feeder initiative for low‑income students seeking admission to Jesuit high schools in New York.
His dedication to Jesuit education is further reflected in his extensive board service. He currently serves on the boards of Regis High School, Fairfield University, and Le Moyne College. His previous board memberships include Boston College High School, Fordham Preparatory School, Xavier High School, and Nativity Prep Boston.
Rev. Charles A. Schnorr, S.J. '39
Service Award
Former Prep President, Saint Joseph's University Chaplain/Special Asst., to the President
Rev. George W. Bur, S.J. ’59 has spent decades ensuring access to high-quality education for all, especially those from poor neighborhoods and underrepresented populations.
Early in his career, Father Bur worked to fight for racial and social justice during the era of infamous redlining, when former white neighborhoods refused to allow Black families to purchase homes. Father Bur worked with community leaders against this practice and helped many middle-class Black families find housing.
He served as pastor of the Gesu Parish when the parish merged with Saint Malachy’s. Throughout this transition, Fr. Bur was clear in his desire to keep Catholic education thriving in North Philadelphia. He founded Gesu School, now a thriving institution located in the former Saint Joseph’s Prep building at 17th and Thompson Streets.
A humble, spiritual, and faith-filled individual, Fr. Bur, who returned to the Prep as president from 2008-2015, is a true servant leader. Kindness permeates the air around him and his ministry is rooted in a love for young people and service. Fr. Bur once said that God had blessed him "with service in poor neighborhoods.” It is we who have been blessed by his life of humble service.
MJ Connell '12
Address
Resources
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