Fr. Rizzo, SJ '99 Finds His Dream Job at Scranton Prep
Rev. AJ Rizzo, SJ ’99 is getting his “dream.” Ever since serving his regency at Scranton Prep, he has yearned to return there to continue his ministry. Last month, he learned that dream will be coming true as he was named as the next President of Scranton Prep, the only other Jesuit high school in Pennsylvania. He will be replacing Rev. Ryan Maher, SJ, who will have served six years as President. Ironically, Fr. Maher was a teacher at the Prep when Rizzo was a student, as was Fr. Maher’s predecessor, Rev. Herbert Keller, SJ ’69, who served as Principal.
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It was at the Prep when Fr. Rizzo was first connected to the Jesuits. As a 14 year old, he didn’t fully understand it or hear a calling, he was fascinated by the many Jesuits who taught him. “At that time, we had so many Jesuits who were great examples to us,” Fr. Rizzo says. “While I don’t think I would have said then that I wanted to be a Jesuit, I would have said that I wanted to be like Fr. (Joe) Michini or Fr. Keller. They were funny, they were smart, they took their faith seriously. I know it was something I wanted to be a part of.”
After graduating from the University of Scranton, Rizzo returned to the Prep to be a part of the Alumni Service Corps. It was during that year when he fell in love with teaching. “Going into my ASC year, I had no plans to be in education,” he says. “That year was transformative for me. I was able to work at a place that I loved with the people who had inspired me. When I was finished, I only applied for jobs in education.”
When he joined the Jesuits, Rizzo hoped to be missioned to one of the high schools in the province and, as a regent, he was sent to Scranton Prep. While he expected to enjoy being back in a city he loves, he didn’t expect to find another home or, as he puts it, “many homes.” “The students and families were so kind and welcoming,” he says. “They literally invited me into their homes, to be a part of their lives.”
He made such good friendships that many of his former students travelled to California when he was ordained to the diaconate and he still returns to Scranton several times a year to visit. He had always hoped to return to the school someday but his first missions were to St. Ignatius Parish in Baltimore and then Regis High School in New York City where he currently serves as the Director of Mission and Identity. Still, he held out hope that a future missioning would bring him “home” to Scranton.
That moment came last month, when the Scranton Prep Board of Trustees named him as their next President. He loves working in high schools, saying “students between the age of 13 and 17, their brains are not fully formed, specifically the part which governs how they view the world and how they make decisions. It is an incredible opportunity to make an impact on a person’s life and have that person make an impact on the world to build the kingdom of God. I think it’s the best work that the Jesuits do.”
While he knows many in the community that he will now lead, Fr. Rizzo is aware that there is much work to be done. “One positive is I don’t have to spend any time falling in love with the project because I already love Scranton Prep,” he says. “But even though is a place that I know and love, in order to be an effective leader, I have to learn it even better and in a different way. I look forward to the challenge.”
Rizzo was the first of four sons in his family to attend the Prep (Walt ’02, Manny ’15, and Gabe ’17) and he credits his alma mater for so much. “I can’t imagine my life without my four years at the Prep, it changed my life,” he says. “In addition to giving me the tools to be a funny, smart, and faithful man, it also taught me what to care about. And that led me to the Jesuits.”
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