Every gift to St. Catharine School makes a major difference-whether the gift is large or small, it signifies your confidence in us as a school worthy of your support. Your confidence is well placed. Your gifts are much appreciated.
Since its humble beginnings in 1931 as a four-room school housing 66 students, St. Catharine School has enjoyed a rich tradition of excellence in Catholic primary education and a record of charitable support from the Parish and parents. The temporary wooden structure known affectionately by the students and faculty alike as the “Pasteboard Palace” gave the Sisters of the Holy Cross the structure they needed to educate Grades 1-6 in that first year, and made way for the 7th and 8th graders in 1932. St. Catharine’s first “bricks and mortar” structure was actually its present-day school which broke ground in 1949 and was completed just 17 months later. It didn’t take long for the school enrollment to outgrow its new home, so a second wing was added just six years later. The school has thrived ever since and has enhanced the St. Catharine community in every facet of faith, service, and education.
Today the School enrollment is 245 students in grades Kindergarten through 8th grade, with a 13:1 student to teacher ratio including classroom teaching aides. In addition, St. Catharine opened their new preschool location in September, 2018 (now located in the old convent). It has been entirely renovated and holds 77 preschool students between the ages of 2 ½ through pre-kindergarten. Each year, the majority of our 8th grade graduating class choose to attend a Catholic high school, with many receiving scholarships.
The parish contributes approximately $400,000 annually towards our school’s operating budget which includes $100,000 of needs-based tuition grants. Needs-based assistance is also provided through a Tuition Assistance Fund created many years ago as well as additional private sources in the amount of $30,000 – $45,000 annually. Our principal, Janet Weisner, and the St. Catharine School Advisory Board are in the process of developing new sources of charitable funds designated exclusively for scholarship assistance to supplement the parish subsidy. The school building, built in 1949, has several needs of its own, so St. Catharine School Home & School organization has raised funds to renovate some the restrooms and several classroom floors. In 2020, the Parish capital campaign “For God’s Glory,” will provide the school a new Music Room, a new Language Arts Room, and a new Conference Room to accommodate guest speakers and small-group presentations. An elevator is also planned to serve the disabled and handicapped members of the School community.
Charitable support, no matter how big or how small, allows St. Catharine School to fulfill its founding mission of providing a quality, Christ-centered education to present and future students.
For Ways of Giving or additional information, please feel free to contact School principal, Janet Weisner, at jweisner@cdeducation.org or our Parish Development Office at (614) 231-4509 ext. 317 or by email at: info@stcatharine.com