The mission of St. Ann Catholic School is to provide excellence in education and Christian spiritual development through a strong curriculum rich in Catholic tradition, academics, international awareness, the fine arts, physical development and life learning skills.
Each student is a unique and creative individual and we seek to educate the whole child, spiritually, intellectually, morally, physically and socially in a global and nurturing environment. Our school community strongly supports our mission of a faith-filled foundation which aims to make the message of the Gospel a way of life.
Notable Academics and Extracurriculars
St. Ann Catholic School is the only Catholic International Baccalaureate elementary school in the Diocese of Palm Beach. The International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme and the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme at the school offer students at both the elementary and middle school levels an opportunity to become faith filled learners who see and take action with a global perspective through an engaging curriculum, which prepares students for success in the 21st century.
The school also fosters in students a passion for the arts. The visual art program is designed to build student’s confidence in their abilities to create through engaged training of the art mediums. Art history is explored, as well as the techniques of specific artists throughout history.
St. Ann Catholic School is pleased to offer a comprehensive music education program that will benefit every level of ability. The casual music student will gain fundamental skills to complement their general education; the potential music hobbyist will further their appreciation and understanding for the art; the future musician will develop and fine tune their craft. The school has a variety of performing groups; third grade recorders, fourth grade choir, fifth grade beginning band, advanced band and the St. Ann Parish Youth choir.
Theater classes provide the development of imaginative and disciplined expression. In addition, the classes provide each child with the opportunity for intellectual growth, social skill development, and cultural enrichment. Theater students focus on multiple theatrical areas including character development, staging, directing, technical theatre, improvisation, and musical theatre. The theater program is a wonderful outlet for creativity and teamwork and is geared toward building self-confidence and instilling a lasting appreciation for the arts.
For the past three years students in Mrs. Kawecki's Language Arts class have taken part in a poetry unit that teaches them the various types of poetry. The American Library of Poetry publishes a new book of all the chosen poems each year. St. Ann Catholic School will have more than 16 students published in this year's edition of poetry winners.
Individualized Attention Tailored to Each Student
St. Ann Catholic School partners with the Duke University Talent Identification Program (Duke TIP), a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving academically gifted youth. As a world leader in gifted and talented education, Duke TIP works with students, their parents and educators to identify, recognize, challenge, engage and help students reach their highest potential.
Since 1980, more than 2.5 million gifted youth have explored the heights of their abilities through Duke TIP’s two annual talent searches. These talent searches help gifted students and their families learn more about where a student stands in relation to peers and what level of educational challenge is appropriate.
Specifically, the 7th Grade Talent Search identifies academically qualified students and invites them to complete college entrance examinations (ACT or SAT) alongside high-school students. Students are formally recognized for their test scores, provided with detailed information about their abilities, and introduced to a network of academic opportunities and resources.
Fostering of Spiritual Growth in Faculty and Students
In addition to regular communal opening prayers each day and prayerful conclusions to the day in classrooms, each classroom has a “prayer center” dedicated as sacred space. Prayers are offered before and after meals to remind students and faculty of God’s generosity to each of us and our dependence upon him for “our daily bread”.
Daily religious studies in each class engage students and faculty in the processing of their faith by learning and addressing scriptural, historical and current faith-related topics and individual questions.
Each Friday classes participate in Mass or a prayer service, which is prepared by an individual class. The students and faculty are engaged in an active liturgical music program by a professionally trained faculty member.
The school itself provides an atmosphere of faith as it is filled with religious symbolism including statuary, art, and religious messages. Liturgical seasons are celebrated with appropriate catechesis and symbolism such as the school center Advent wreath, a crucifix and book where students and faculty can record petitions for community prayer during Lent; a central enthronement ceremony for Scripture with class delegates attending and bringing individual bibles back to the classrooms.
Initiatives in Support of a Wholistic Education
The school has a tradition of building stronger community spirit, and one way to encourage this is by placing each student and family in a Cathedral. The Cathedral system helps foster student relationships with a variety of faculty members, parents and students of other grades. Students will remain in their Cathedral for their entire school career, and each Cathedral has a color to represent them.
Cathedrals meet several times per year for celebrating accomplishments, developing goals, teambuilding, praying and taking action to live the faith. Younger students have Guardian Angels in the upper grades, who will buddy with them for meetings and special events.
Cathedrals also collect items for mission families at Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. Each Cathedral sets a yearly point goal and a reward for reaching that goal together. Points can be earned by participating in prayer service on Fridays, Spirit Week events and the Awesome Angels program.
Why St. Ann Catholic School is Something Greater
“Many things stand out that created the drive towards excellence that I now find as my impetus in everything I do, stemming from my early experiences at St Ann. I pursued the fine arts due in part to the large urge at St. Ann to participate in the arts there. Now, I could not be happier practicing Art Therapy with addicts in recovery. My Christian spiritual development imparted values and morals in me that, I believe, have led me to my vocation; teaching art to those less fortunate and marginalized in poor communities. If I had not built my skills creatively with so much dedication learned at St. Ann, I would not be where I am today, working actively in my community!” - Isabella Gonzalez Class of 2006
