in my career has been to try to advance health
equity and to increase the opportunities for
children to really succeed in life.”
He’s been able to do this in a variety of
ways. “There have been times when I’ve been
more involved in research on health equity
but now, being in the role of a leader, I have
more influence in terms of what our clinical
care looks like, how we educate our learners
and our faculty about health equity, and also
pushing our group and our institution in areas
of advocacy to ensure that there is equity
within the healthcare system and in the general
society.”
Dr. Raphael says his experience at Xaverian
played a “huge role” in his life. Because he
grew up without a father present, he says the
relationships and role models at Xaverian took
on added importance for him. “Having that
community, that constant nurturing from all
the teachers and the administration, made it a
place I went into every day, and I felt cared for
and nurtured. I knew all of the people around
me were invested in me as a person. I think
Xaverian was such a great match for me in
terms of high school.” He didn’t always think
that, though. Young Jean dreamt of going to
a different area boys’ school. He’d never even
heard of Xaverian. He and his mother attended
a school fair, however, and heard one of the
Xaverian Brothers give a presentation on their
school in Westwood.
“My mom was just so impacted by her
conversation with the Brother who was
presenting. At the end of it, she said, ‘This
is where you’re going,’” he says. “I knew that
conversation meant a lot to her. With the
attention they paid to us that day and when I
visited the school, I was also convinced; there
was no question where I wanted to go. Xaverian
just had the environment and the culture that I
wanted for the next steps of my development.”
There were many teachers along the way at
Xaverian who Dr. Raphael remembers fondly.
Mr. Higgins, Mr. Glinski, Ms. Schofield, Dr.
Eckstrom, Mr. McCready—he rattles off their
names with a smile, talking about their unique
quirks or innate ability to show their students
how to overcome obstacles, to learn, and to
grow in mental toughness. “I can go through
the names of teachers at Xaverian very easily,
but college and med school not so much,”
he says. “It’s because Xaverian was such an
impactful part of my life. I looked forward to
seeing all of those teachers every day because
I knew they cared so much. They didn’t come
just to teach, they came to nurture their
students and make a difference.”
Dr. Raphael is sure to point out though
that the person who had the biggest influence
on his life at Xaverian wasn’t a teacher or an
administrator; it was his best friend, Andres
(Andy) Vizoso ’93. Andy passed away in July
2022 after a battle with gastric cancer. “He and I
were very different people, but we immediately
hit it off,” Dr. Raphael says. “He always inspired
Dr. Jean Raphael ’93 with his children, Zora, Glenna, and Griff
Photo credit to Quy Tran Photography
me, was a great support throughout my time
there, and will forever be part of the foundation
of who I aspire to be.”
Brother Daniel Skala, C.F.X., former
Xaverian Headmaster and current General
Superior of the Congregation of the Brothers of
St. Francis Xavier, remembers Jean as a young
man. “Not only was Jean an outstanding student
blessed with considerable intelligence, but he
also was a humble and compassionate young
man. He had an uncanny ability to connect with
fellow students and faculty, and he was always
ready to help out in any way he could. It was
easy to see that Jean had tremendous promise.”
Dr. Raphael has put that promise, humility,
compassion, and his ability to connect with
others to work fostering the next generation
of physicians. “It’s so easy to get focused on
what you accomplish and what you do, but that
only goes so far,” he says. “It’s so much more
important to consistently think about how you
can help other people get to where they need to
go. I’m most proud of being able to mentor and
provide career guidance to people who also
want to do great work for children and have an
impact on the world. I’ve done research, I’ve
had different leadership roles, I’ve been able
to have a lot of individual success in that way,
but it’s not meaningful to me. It’s the other
part that’s meaningful. It goes back to what I
learned at Xaverian, what’s essential is how you
impact the world.”
Winter 2023
Xaverian Magazine