St. Monica Academy

Great school! If you care about both the intellectual and spiritual wellbeing of your child . . . look no further!

This is the place to send your kids if you want an environment that is authentically and unapologetically Catholic. In our experience, most Catholic schools are basically public schools with crucifixes. What makes the difference at St. Monica is that the founding parents were strongly and devoutly faithful, and they attracted likeminded families. The result is a community of faith in which the truths of Catholicism are taken for granted. You don t have to worry whether your kids are learning things in school that are opposed to the faith, and the vast majority of students (not all, of course) are decent and well-behaved. There are some bad apples, but the vast bulk of the peer pressure is positive. My sons were shy and reserved when they arrived here, but gained a ton of confidence by the time they graduated. I attribute this largely to the kindness of the students and teachers. It s easier to put yourself out there when you re not afraid of being torn to pieces by your peers. And lastly, but most importantly, my sons faith was strengthened, not only by learning authentic doctrine, but also due to the excellent example and kindness of parents, teachers and fellow students.

At first we fell in love with St Monica Academy. We were attracted to the Classic Education, the strong spiritual values, the small class sizes and beautiful campus. But we ended up removing our child from the school for other reasons. The lack of transparency when we first visited the school about the true school and community culture, which we only later realized is strongly affiliated with Opus Dei. We found that most of the teachers and Board members are Opus Dei, as well as most of the families. If you align with their values you will do well here, however, if you are slightly less "conservative" you might feel quickly out of place.

First , this is more a constructive criticism of the school. I only comment on what I observed. We live in arguably the most diverse state in this country. I I was initially attracted to this school based, on what I have read about it. I visited the school with my daughter who was interested in enrolling. She genuinely liked what she saw. The students were friendly. After waiting for about a month from the school to determine if she was accepted or not, we received a letter stating that she was not admitted. Although, disappointed, I realized there were many other schools she could apply to. What was insulting on the letter was that her name and another student's was on it. The school didn't even bother to proofread the letter before sending it out. Maybe they weren't interested in her as a student in the first place. I am happy to say that my daughter is now in an academically great Christian school with a diverse population. She is very happy with the outcome. Something great came out of this. My advise to this school, you need to a have a more diverse population which represents this great country. Isn't this what a true Catholic Education is all about. Good Luck!

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