Santa Catalina School

The original Santa Catalina Convent was founded by Sister Marie Geomaere, a Dominican sister, in what is now downtown Monterey in 1850, when Monterey was the capital of California.[3] With the help of Rev. Joseph Alemany, O.P., Bishop of Monterey, she created the first Catholic school in California, excluding mission schools. Students were predominantly daughters of local town residents and of nearby Spanish landowners and classes were taught in Castilian Spanish. In 1854 the school was moved to Benicia, the new state capital, where it was renamed St. Catherine's Academy.[4]

In 1950, Sister Margaret Thompson, Mother General of the Dominican Sisters of San Rafael, California, decided to reestablish Santa Catalina in Monterey. After buying the 36-acre campus from a local cattle rancher, Col. Harold Mack, the school opened in the fall of 1950, with Sister Mary Kieran as the first principal.[4] When Sister Kieran died in 1965, Sister Carlotta became principal, a title she held for 35 years. As principal, Sister Carlotta's goal was to "educate the whole child... by guiding young people toward intellectual attainment and social, physical, and spiritual well-being."[4]

Boys were allowed to enroll in preschool and kindergarten at the request of Sister Jean, and Sister Carlotta encouraged male students to continue their education at the school through 8th grade.[4]

Sister Claire, after serving as Head of Upper School since 1982, became Head of School in 2002.[5] Sister Claire and Sister Christine still reside on campus, though both are now retired.

Margaret K. Bradley became Head of School in 2016 upon the retirement of Sister Claire. Margaret Bradley retired in June 2022. Upon her retirement, Dr. Barbara Ostos became the fifth Head of School.

There are 238 students in the Lower and Middle School; 61 percent are girls and 39 percent are boys.[1]

Class sizes are generally small, but vary by grade level as follows:[1]

Tuition varies by grade level, and the school offers need-based financial aid. Below is tuition and financial aid information for the 2010-2011 school year.[6]

• Pre-K: $14,500
• Kindergarten: $22,750
• Grades 1-8: $24,750
• 42 percent of students receive financial aid.

As of August 2019, there were 216 girls enrolled at Santa Catalina: 113 were boarding students and 103 were day students.[1] International students made up 19% of the student body. The average class size was 12 students, and the student-teacher ratio was 8:1.

Upper School tuition varies between resident and day students, and both need and merit-based financial aid are offered.

• Boarding: $59,000 for the 2019-20 school year
• Day: $38,250 for the 2019-20 school year
• 42% of students received financial aid for the 2019-20 school year.

[7]

Santa Catalina Lower and Middle School "encourage[s] each boy and girl to work effectively, to communicate articulately, [and] to approach life with a sense of purpose and competence" and prepares students for secondary schooling.[8]

Santa Catalina School aims to "combine a rigorous liberal arts curriculum, modern educational technology, and solid Christian principles" to prepare its students for college and beyond.[3] The single-sex environment, Catholic background, and college preparatory courses are emphasized to "teach the importance of becoming leaders in our communities by serving others."[9] The school attempts to develop each girl's abilities and emphasizes balancing intellectual growth with spiritual awareness.[2] Santa Catalina also seeks diversity in order to enhance a student's sense of responsibility to her community and herself.[5]

• 4 years of English[10]
• 3 years of math, foreign language, religious studies, lab sciences, and arts[10]
• Extracurricular activities are required for each of the three athletic seasons. Students have a choice each season between sports, performing arts (theater, dance, and music), and physical education.

Santa Catalina accepts students on the basis of academic achievement and personal qualification "without regard to race, creed, color, or national and ethnic origins."[5] The admissions office requires a questionnaire and writing sample, school transcript, teacher recommendations, parent statements, SSAT scores, an interview, and an optional personal recommendation. Non-native English speakers are required to take the TOEFL.[11]

Academics are divided among the following departments: Art, Drama, English, Foreign Language (including French, Spanish, and Mandarin Chinese), History, Math, Music, Religion, and Science.[10]

Santa Catalina School offers 11 AP (Advanced Placement) and 7 Advanced Topics courses.

The school has two college counselors on campus who work closely with seniors and assist with students' college applications and SAT and ACT registration. In addition, the school has an online resource for students called Naviance,[12] which provides further college counseling. In addition, approximately 65 colleges and universities from within the United States and abroad send representatives to Catalina to discuss their schools with students throughout the academic year.[13] The average SAT score of students is 1732.[2] 100% of graduates attend college and within the past five years the most-attended colleges were UC Davis (20 students), UCLA (11 students), Boston University (11 students), New York University (9 students), and Loyola Marymount University (9 students).[14]

From kindergarten to fifth grade, students take courses in art, computer studies, language arts, math, music, physical education, religion, science, and social science. Spanish classes are introduced in the 4th grade. In grades 6 – 8, students take classes in art, computer science, English, foreign language (Spanish), history, math, music, physical education, religion, and science.[15]

Despite the school's religious background, the current administrators are laypeople and not affiliated with a religious order.[16]

• Head of School - Margaret K. "Meg" Bradley
• Assistant Head of School - John Aime
• Assistant Head of School for Mission and Identity - John Murphy, Ph.D.
• Head of Upper School - Julie Lenherr Edson ’88
• Head of Lower and Middle School, PreK–Grade 8 - Christy Pollacci

The Upper School is ranked among the top 20 boarding schools for faculty education because a high percentage of the faculty has advanced degrees.[2]

Competitive sports are offered, but not required, for students in grades 6 - 8. Teams compete by grade level with other public and private schools in the area.[23]

Students can choose to participate in one sport per season. Teams compete in the Pacific Coast Athletic League (PCAL) and the CIF / Central Coast Section (CCS). The volleyball, basketball, tennis, soccer, water polo, lacrosse, field hockey, and softball teams compete at both the varsity and junior varsity levels.[24]

Students may also participate in theatre or dance, rather than athletic teams, after school.

• Theatre: In addition to offering drama classes, the school presents two musicals and one drama each year, which students can choose to participate in.[25]
• Dance: Dance classes are offered in ballet technique, jazz, contemporary, and musical-theater tap.[25]
• Music: In addition to the required extracurricular athletics or performing arts, private musical and vocal lessons are available to students. There are also school-wide recitals and a school choir.[25]

• Upper School - Each class has a day designated for mandatory community service. Students choose between the following sites: Dorothy's Place, St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store, Salvation Army Youth Center, Ave Maria Convalescent Center, Ag Against Hunger, Gateway Center, Harbor Project, STAR Riders, and Food Bank of Monterey County. Certain sites are also offered for students two afternoons each week.[26]
• Lower and Middle School - The entire Lower and Middle School is involved in one community service project each month.[27]