TLDR: Excellent academics, abundant extracurricular opportunities, and an outstanding COMMUNITY.
I have two children attending St. Patrick School, one who has attended since preschool and the other who is currently in preschool. As a product of a Gurnee public school, I was skeptical about spending money on a private school, but my wife (a product of Indianapolis Catholic school), convinced me to give it a try and I couldn't be happier with our decision. Both the academics and extracurricular opportunities are top-notch, but most importantly, St. Patrick's has a wonderful community.
As a small school (in comparison to the local public schools), I've found the relationships that our family has formed with the teachers, administration, and other families in the school have been incredibly rich and rewarding. This comes not just from the fact that the school is small, but also from the efforts of the entire staff from top to bottom, as well as the strong engagement of parents in school activities and administration. I have a strong sense that the staff and other families are looking out for the well-being of one another, and that sense of security is very difficult to replicate.
Unfortunately the last two years with COVID has reduced parents' involvement in the school. My family is fortunate enough to have experienced the St. Patrick community prior to the pandemic with and hope that any families recently joining the St. Patrick school community will stay around so that they may experience the community when the pandemic passes. (Side note: the school took early and effective measures to ensure that kids were able to return to school in a safe manner well before the public schools resumed and I have full confidence in measures that the administration has and continues to undertake to ensure a healthy learning environment).
St. Patrick is a wonderful school with a wonderful community in and around it. I am incredibly thankful to be a part of it! read more