Fr. Tompson’s ‘dream school’ celebrates its first med student

Story by Beth Donze, Clarion Herald; photos courtesy of Andrew Joseph and The Good Shepherd School

Just as The Good Shepherd School was launching its 20th year of providing local children with a top-notch Catholic education, a celebration involving one of the school’s first graduates was taking place in faraway Pennsylvania.

On Aug. 7, Andrew Joseph III, a member of Good Shepherd’s first graduating class of 2008, listened as his name was announced during a Zoom-based White Coat Ceremony marking his formal entrance as a student at Philadelphia’s Drexel University College of Medicine.

It was a major milestone in Joseph’s goal of becoming a pediatric surgeon.

“When you first put on that white coat, it’s indescribable! You work so hard for this moment,” said Algiers-raised Joseph, 25. “It’s one of the greatest reflective moments, because as every medical professional can attest, the MCAT’s hard; getting into medical school is hard and tedious and strenuous and stressful. It’s also nerve-wracking, as in, ‘Uh-oh, we’re doing it now. There’s no turning back!’”

Mother’s dream realized

Joseph traces his educational journey – which includes graduating magna cum laude from Jesuit High and earning his biology degree on academic scholarship from Cornell College in Iowa – back to his mother’s declaration that “my son’s gonna go to that school” every time she passed the soon-to-open Good Shepherd at its original CBD location on Baronne Street. In 2001, that dream came true when her 5-year-old became a Good Shepherd first grader.

Andrew Joseph (standing in the top row at far right, next to his teacher) poses with his second-grade classmates. (Photo courtesy of The Good Shepherd School)

“She knew the type of education she wanted for us – one that would allow us to fulfill our dreams,” Joseph said of the school founded by the late Jesuit Father Harry Tompson to put an extended-day, year-round Catholic education in the reach of families in lower-income brackets. The cost of school tuition is covered by generous benefactors, state sources and internal fundraising.

“Because it was a year-round school, you developed a work ethic that is so seldom found in people; we weren’t afraid of working hard throughout the year,” said Joseph, recalling his love for science from a young age. He was fascinated with “the anatomy of objects,” continually taking his toys apart and putting them back together.

“Biology always came so naturally to me. I always wanted to know more about the human body and how cells worked, how processes worked,” Joseph said.

He said a service project undertaken the summer before his senior year at Jesuit sparked his desire to pursue pediatrics: youngsters at a muscular dystrophy camp showed Joseph the joy that even children with a terminal illness might experience, given extra attention.

“I want to help children like those kids live their lives to the fullest,“ Joseph said.

School’s pride in future doctor

Thomas Moran, Good Shepherd’s president, called Joseph’s success “a manifestation” of what Father Tompson dreamed of when he started Good Shepherd 20 years ago. Now located in a sleek school building at 1839 Agriculture St., the school offers grades pre-K4 through 7 and has 20 classrooms and a current enrollment of nearly 300 students. All of Good Shepherd‘s graduates have gone on to complete high school, while some 83% have gone on to graduate from college, Moran said.

“It was Father Tompson’s dream to have a school that would help people break the cycle of financial poverty and give them access to an education to fulfill their dreams,“ Moran said. “Andrew’s smile is Father Tompson’s smile. He will be our first doctor!”

Joseph said he hopes to be a “beacon of light” to young people, both in his hometown of New Orleans and across the country.

“You don’t see many people who look like me – black African Americans from low-income neighborhoods – succeeding in the sciences and in businesses,” he said. “I want to show inner-city youth that they can do it, too. It may not be easy, and the path might not be straightforward, but what matters is your dedication and persistence. There are going to be obstacles at every step, but if you really want it, you can do it!”

The Good Shepherd School will hold its 20th Anniversary Celebration on Dec. 3 from 6-8 p.m. The event will feature home-delivered meals and wine from Commander's Palace and livestreamed music from notable New Orleans entertainers. For sponsorships and tickets, visit the school's website, www.thegoodshepherdschool.org, or call (504) 598-9399.

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