The Jesuits are organized by geographical units called "provinces," each governed by a Jesuit priest who holds the title of Provincial. St. Louis University High is an apostolate of the Central and Southern Province of the Jesuits. This province includes all of the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, southern Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, Texas, Tennessee and Oklahoma, as well as the Central American country of Belize and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

SLUH is part of a nearly 500-year-old tradition of schools known worldwide for their academic excellence and rich spirituality. It is one of 60 Jesuit high schools across the U.S. The schools, all members of the Jesuit Schools Network, share common goals and characteristics. 

The focus of SLUH in all endeavors reflects the Jesuit motto AMDG, or "Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam," a Latin term meaning "For the greater glory of God."

SLUH instills Ignatian ideals in its students through a variety of opportunities (see Campus Ministry). Some examples include:

• Daily Mass
• All-school and class liturgies
• Theology class five days per week
• Active retreat and community service programs
• Daily reflective silence dedicated to the Examen of Consciousness

The SLUH Ignatian Mission and Identity Committee and the Assistant Principal for Mission help to maintain the Jesuit charism of the school. Indicative of its spiritual environment, SLUH is a top feeder school for the Jesuits and Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in St. Louis.

The Universal Apostolic Preferences are a guide for improving both the apostolic work of the body of the Society of Jesus as a whole and the many different ways in which it carries out its ministries. According to Fr. General Arturo Sosa, “The Universal Apostolic Preferences are a call to conversion. They are an invitation to rethink how we live, how we work and how we relate to the people we serve.”

The four Preferences include:

1. To show the way to God through the Spiritual Exercises and discernment;
2. To walk with the poor, the outcasts of the world, those whose dignity has been violated, in a mission of reconciliation and justice; 
3. To accompany young people in the creation of a hope-filled future;
4. To collaborate in the care of our Common Home.

SLUH embodies the Universal Apostolic Preferences through our mission of forming Men for Others. To view some examples, visit our Service and Justice, Diversity and Sustainability sections.

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The Way of Proceeding: Standards and Benchmarks for Jesuit Schools in the 21st Century was born from a need expressed by the schools for an instrument better suited to the Sponsorship Review Process. The goal was to draft a new, user-friendly instrument that would articulate what should be present in an excellent Jesuit school, using language and descriptors that would make it easier for schools and reviewers to know what to look for. The new instrument would draw on and reflect current documents used in the Sponsorship Review Process while adding clarity and reducing overlap.

Society of Jesus

Jesuit Schools Network

America Magazine

Jesuit Refugee Service

Jesuit Volunteers Corps

Meditation on Our Response to the Call of Christ

Ignatian Spirituality