Reflection #78: Father Arimond, S.J.

           Allow me to introduce you to Rev. James Arimond, S.J., a gentleman-and-a-scholar.  Father Arimond is mostly identified with Loyola Academy, the largest Jesuit high school in the world.  He is a graduate of Loyola, taught there and was headmaster for 11 years (1971-1982).  Since then he has stayed active with the L.A. alumni.

            From ’82 to ’87, he was Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences of Loyola U. and Director/ Academic Dean of Loyola’s Rome Center.  He was also headmaster at Fairfield College Prep in Connecticut from 1989 to 1996.  There he was able to turn around the fortunes of a school that was experiencing a financial crisis.  At each assignment, he has had vast responsibilities and vast authority, and he was successful.

            When I started teaching at Ignatius, I realized that there was a rivalry between these two Jesuit high schools.  Sometimes it was friendly; sometimes, not so much.   I would characterize the tension as a cultural divide.  Loyola was north-shore while Ignatius was inner-city, generally with families of more modest means. Through the ‘70’s, Ignatius struggled to stay open while Loyola thrived.

Over the years, when Loyola personnel came to Ignatius, they weren’t always greeted with open arms.  They often arrived in positions of authority, which meant they would be our “bosses”.  Whether true or not, the perception among veteran staff and alumni was that they were trying to change Ignatius into “Loyola South”.

So why do I write about Fr. Arimond as an Ignatius reminiscence?  From 1987 to 1989, he served as the academic assistant principal at St. Ignatius, which included being a member of the Curriculum committee and the Board of Trustees’ Academic Committee. 

From 1997 to 2003, Fr. Arimond was the Rector, a position which included being a member of the Leadership Team, the Religious Formation team and the Board of Trustees.   For 16 months, in ’97 and ’98, he was the acting-president, and like the good soldier he is, he was able to step into the job as president and keep the “ship on even keel”.  Now he is the Alumni Chaplain at Ignatius, attending any and all events that involve, even tangentially, alumni.

            Since most of Father’s responsibilities have been behind the scenes, not everyone in the Ignatius community is familiar with him.  Also, he had a unique approach in transitioning from Loyola to Ignatius.  It wasn’t his intention to try to change Ignatius, but rather assist the school in being the best Ignatius that it could be.  He sensed the nature of the school and worked within that framework.

                                                                                                                                                                                          Finally, I want to mention something that is near-and-dear to me; Fr. Arimond’s involvement in athletics.  Besides writing the history of Loyola football, while at Loyola, he was instrumental in moving the Chicago Catholic League into the Illinois High School Assn.  This earned him a spot in the Catholic League Hall-of-Fame.   In Connecticut, he served as President of the All-Connecticut Catholic Athletic Conference.

            For all of your service and contributions to Jesuit education, Father Arimond, thank you and God bless you.