WARWICK – Come next fall, the approximately 41% of Catholics in Rhode Island will have a new Catholic high school to potentially send their children to.
Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence Bishop The Most Rev. Thomas J. Tobin on Nov. 21, signed a canonical decree that approved allowing Chesterton Academy of Our Lady of Hope to open up a new location in the Ocean State in the fall of 2023. Chesterton Academy, which has 44 other locations across the U.S., will open its first New England location at 487 Jefferson Blvd., just a few minutes off of Interstate 95.
Michael Casey, Chesterton Academy’s board president, told Providence Business News on Monday that school officials wanted to launch the academy here is because there wasn’t a classical Catholic education being offered in Rhode Island. Casey describes classical Catholic education as having students sit together at a table and have a collaborative dialogue about topics in lieu of a traditional “row of desks with a lecturer and taking notes” school setting. The school looks to make its mark in Rhode Island offering that interactive learning style to students, Casey said.
“It’s much more interactive,” he said. “Liberal arts schools do this and it’s their way on how they go to market.” Casey also resides in Rhode Island, which also made it more attractive for Chesterton Academy to open up in the Ocean State, he said.
Casey says Chesterton Academy’s first fall enrollment will start with approximately 15 to 20 students and grow over the next four of five years to a maximum of around 160 to 200 students between grades 9-12. Casey says keeping the enrollment low allows better learning opportunities and connections between students and teachers.
“You start to lose the effectiveness of the style of education when you get above [having more than 200 students],” Casey said.
Chesterton Academy, Casey said, is also looking to be an affordable option for students and families when it opens. He said tuition to attend Chesterton will be around $8,000, which will make it the only private secondary school for grades 9-12 in the state to charge annual tuition of less than $13,000.
Chesterton Academy will also hold daily Mass at the start of each school day when it opens next fall, Casey said. The school is currently seeking a new headmaster and teachers to be ready for opening up in the fall. Casey says the school hopes to have a new headmaster in place by the start of March 2023.
The school on Dec. 10 is hosting an open house for interested students and families from noon to 3 p.m.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
