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ST. AUGUSTINE HIGH SCHOOL PURPLE KNIGHTS
CLASS OF 1965
Kabrel Johnson graduated from St. Aug in May
2021 and is now asophomore at Xavier University in New Orleans.
WE'VE COME A LONG WAY

MORE THAN HALF A CENTURY LATER
St. Augustine High School is a prestigious private Catholic school for young black men in New Orleans. The Purple Knights Class of 1965 is one of St. Augustine's most distinguished groups of graduates. It includes Wendell Knox who scaled several corporate ladders to join the board of directors at Hanover Insurance as well as several banks and investment groups. Danny Bakewell, the former owner of radio station WBOK in New Orleans, is now owner and publisher of the Los Angeles Sentinel newspaper. Furnell Chatman became the first African-American hired by a New Orleans television news station and the first black person to anchor a TV newscast in Louisiana. Michael Glapion founded his own insurance company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota then launched an insurance consulting firm in New Orleans when he retired. Larry Reed became Deputy Administrator of Emergency Management for the state of Wisconsin. Henry Julien was recognized as one of the most influential civil rights attorneys in New Orleans. Rhaoul Guillaume founded the engineering firm GOTECH and worked on construction of the New Orleans Super Dome. Louis Atkins was the first African-American to be elected President of the National Association of Postal Supervisors. Joseph Ortique served as Superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department. Wayne Baquet and his family of restauranteurs founded the ever-popular Lil' Dizzy's Cafe just outside the historic French Quarter. Paul Valteau was elected Orleans Parish Civil Sheriff and held that position for more than twenty-five years. St. Augustine's alumni from 1965 include civic leaders, educators, doctors, lawyers, and businessmen who carried their high school banner into success all across the country.
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