THE RULE PRESS
Steve Adubato, Jr., Fr. Edwin Leahy, OSB, and filmmakers Marylou & Jerome Bongiorno
WBGO's Doug Doyle, filmmakers Jerome & Marylou Bongiorno, and Fr. Albert Holtz, OSB
Bryan Jenkins and filmmakers Marylou & Jerome Bongiorno
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Marylou and Jerome receive
The New Jersey Historical Commission
Award of Recognition
for Outstanding Service
to Public Knowledge and
Preservation of the
History of New Jersey
2013
Filmmakers Marylou and Jerome Bongiorno are recognized for their significant role in producing public history documentaries that engage the public in critical thinking about tumultuous times in New Jersey’s past. The Bongiornos’ trilogy of films on urban America encourage viewers to consider the importance of studying events in state history that are linked to the nation’s social and political history. In Revolution ’67, which analyzes the outbreak of the Newark Riots, the filmmakers consider the event a cultural and social revolution demonstrative of a massive decline in civic order. The Rule explores the success of Newark Abbey and its school, St. Benedict’s Prep, as a model for inner cities that provides valuable insights into American religious, immigration, educational, and metropolitan history. The final film in the trilogy, [upcoming] Rust, examines the decline of America's industrial urban centers. These films have been widely shown and continue to foster dialogue about social, ethnic, and economic tensions in our state’s and nation’s history.
“THE RULE is a terrific film about an inspiring school in the heart of Newark. It shows how an urban high school can succeed against the odds. A MUST SEE movie!!”
Steve Adubato, Ph.D., Emmy Award Winning Anchor, WNET & NJTV (PBS)
Steve Adubato goes on-location to the Montclair Film Festival, where he talks to Newark residents and filmmaking team Marylou and Jerome Bongiorno about their documentary-in-progress, "The Rule", covering the success of Newark Abbey and its school, St. Benedict’s Prep.
THE RULE (2014) Saint Benedict’s Preparatory School, a high school in Newark, New Jersey, run by the Benedictine monks of Newark Abbey, has recorded a near 100 percent college-acceptance rate for their predominantly African American and Latino young men -- a rate that soars well above the average for the city. Filmmakers Marylou and Jerome Bongiorno profile the school and the monks to learn how and why they achieve what they do.
“Incredibly involving and moving and uplifting. And, if you care about the heartbreaking and intractable problems facing America’s poor and oftentimes minority youth, it’s instructive...Watch The Rule. It’ll make you laugh and cry and think differently.”
Listen to the Interview
Listen to the
Full Interview
WBGO Journal
Episode: 2014-09-26: Interview with Father Edwin Leahy
A Flexible Fix
In impoverished Newark, NJ, where fewer than one in four students
graduates high school, almost 100 percent of kids at St. Benedict’s Prep go
directly to college. Although academic requirements are stringent, the
headmaster sums up the school’s philosophy in a single word: flexibility.
Meet the monks of Newark
Abbey who sustain this
remarkable story of success
and see how their ingenious
application of the sixth century
rule of St. Benedict
may serve as a model for
schools nationwide.
The Rule
“A must-see -- inspiring, witty and engaging… for a filmgoer entertaining; to watch it as an educator is revelatory.”
National PBS websites
THE RULE
PBS film website
PBS Pressroom
Kresta in the Afternoon
November 14. 2014
We meet with filmmakers Jerome and Marylou Bongiorno to discuss the making of their film and the influence of St. Benedict on the school’s success.
37% of Oscar-Submitted Documentaries Directed by Women including Marylou Tibaldo-Bongiorno of The Rule
"The film doesn't flinch when it shows how the demographics changed Newark over the years, how the riots decimated neighborhoods, how poverty, drugs and the seventh highest murder rate in the country make it difficult to raise children."
“[The film] is an excellent example of the practical application of the Rule
that is part of our own charism and an inherent part of Benedictine DNA.”
“The conference will focus in large part on the educational innovations that have brought about continued growth in St. Benedict’s Preparatory School, Newark, under the direction of Father Edwin Leahy. The school’s philosophy, “Anything that hurts my brother, hurts me,” has become a central part of the school’s mission, and the institution has come to be seen as a model for urban educational reform.”
Catholic Campus Ministry at Princeton University.
“This uplifting film offers hope for inner-city youth and is highly recommended for all audiences, especially educators and aspiring educators.”
Starred Review
2.3.15 Broadcast Message to Superintendents in NJ
“The film details how this rule can serve as a model for urban education nationwide”
In Newark, New Jersey, a city struggling with poverty, crime, and low academic performance, a school for boys led by Benedictine monks has helped 95 percent of its senior class go on to college by emphasizing personal responsibility, Christian community, and the Rule of St. Benedict.
see it on:
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•TEACHERS COLLEGE, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY is developing “a study guide for policymakers and educational practitioners for the landmark documentary film, THE RULE.”
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•“We very much look forward to working with this film as one vehicle for urban school reform.”
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•“THE RULE brilliantly connects multiple audiences from varying backgrounds and points of view to issues of urban school reform in the public sector."
Here’s what Dr. Anand R. Marri of TEACHERS COLLEGE, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY has to say about THE RULE:
Guided by the Rule of Saint Benedict
The success of Father Edwin Leahy ’68 in running Saint Benedict’s Prep in Newark has generated national attention and inspired a new documentary.
Magis Medal Winner:
Jerome Bongiorno and Marylou Tibaldo-Bongiorno
“This documentary makes the point, very clearly, that this school is built on the wisdom and insight of The Rule of St. Benedict,”
“A solid case study of an educational model for at-risk
kids that seems to be working. Recommended.”
"Magis invites us to serve the world better, with fire, passion, and zeal to better glorify or serve God."
They watched a PBS documentary called “The Rule,” which chronicles the success story of St. Benedict’s Preparatory School in a rough, low-income neighborhood in Newark, New Jersey. There, the students run the day-to-day business of the school — they call assemblies, make announcements, make decisions about how the school operates, and keep each other in check and in line. The film resonated with [Johnson High School students].
...“We don’t ask enough of our students,” [Principal Micheal Thompson] said.
Reduce Poverty in Inner Cities: Marylou & Jerome Bongiorno at TEDxNJIT
“From education to religion to social justice issues and more, these leaders have raised the bar in countless fields and are making a substantial impact on the world.”
"We will find ways to educate, empower and engage anyone...
to listen to stories of unparalleled excellence.”
listen to the interview
THE RULE inspires a 60 Minutes episode
THE RULE inspires a 60 Minutes episode
