History
In 1853, Catholic education was established in Plaquemine under the leadership of Father Charles Chambost, Pastor of St. John Church. He founded the College of the Immaculate Conception and a separate boys' school. This college was incorporated and authorized to grant BA and BS degrees by the State of Louisiana. In 1857, Father Chambost engaged the services of the Marianite Sisters of the Holy Cross, who came to Plaquemine to set up a school for girls, St. Basil's Academy. In 1858, the college, the boys' school, and St. Johns' Church was destroyed by fire. Father Chambost was financially unable to rebuild; heartbroken, he returned to France. During the Civil War, St. Basil's Academy was closed and was occupied by Union soldiers. For safety, the Sisters were recalled to the Motherhouse in New Orleans where they remained for three years. After the Civil War, Catholic education suffered. In 1866, Father Victor C'Hemecourt opened a school for boys. However, the school closed in 1871 due to a shortage of funds. It did not reopen until 1886. Father M. Harnais constructed a new school building adjacent to the church in 1888. This building burned in 1907, and the first two stories of the present brick structure were rebuilt to replace it in 1910.
Attendance at St. Basil's and St. John School for Boys grew rapidly in the 1900s. Under the direction of Monsignor Leonard Robin, education flourished. In 1933, St. John Free School for Boys and St. Basil's Academy merged to form the present day St. John School. Monsignor Robin bought the property where the schools are located today. He showed great interest in this new educational center. The gymnasium was built and used for classrooms while the high school was being built. The high school, under the direction of the Marianite Sisters, was dedicated in 1960. The elementary school was opened in the fall of 1967.
St. John has survived fires, yellow fever, epidemics, wars, the Depression, and other financial hardships. The school today is a symbol of dedication, faith, and endurance. The dreams of many men and women make St. John School what it is today-a symbol of rich history and tradition-which is kept alive today through the alumni, faculty, staff and student body.
On March 9, 1951, Monsignor Leonard Robin purchased 18 acres (73,000 m2), the current site of St. John School, for $25,000. Joseph H. Marix was contracted to construct the gymnasium, the first building on the new campus. The ground breaking ceremonies were held in August 1953. The gym, which cost $159,378, was completed in time for the 1954-55 basketball season.
A new gym would be cost prohibitive; therefore, St. John School is moving forward with plans to renovate the existing gym. The renovated gym will be named the Monsignor Leonard Robin Gymnasium
The Congregation of Holy Cross, abbreviated CSC, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical rite for men founded in 1837 by Basil Moreau, in Le Mans, France.
Basil Moreau, C.S.C. was the French priest who founded the Congregation of Holy Cross from which two additional congregations were founded, namely the Marianites of Holy Cross and the Sisters of the Holy Cross. Moreau was beatified on September 15, 2007 in Le Mans, France.
The Marianites of Holy Cross (MSC) is a Catholic congregation of nuns, founded in Le Mans, France, in 1841, by Fr Basil Moreau. It was founded as a third distinct society within the Congregation of Holy Cross. The Marianites of Holy Cross is now an independent congregation.
The Sisters of Holy Cross, headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada is an international Catholic congregation of religious sisters which traces its origins to the foundation of the Congregation of Holy Cross in 1837 in Le Mans, France by the Blessed Father Basil Anthony-Marie Moreau, CSC. Two other congregations of sisters also have the same origins: the Marianites of Holy Cross and the Sisters of the Holy Cross.
St. Mary's Academy is a private Catholic girls' school in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It was founded by the Grey Nuns in 1869 and became the oldest continually operating independent school in the province. In the late 1960s, the school became primarily focused on education of junior and senior high school girls. It is currently run by the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary.
Catholic High School is a private, Catholic college-preparatory day school run by the United States Province of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It was founded in 1894 as St. Vincent's Academy. It offers grades eight through twelve.
Saint Paul's School is a private all-boys Lasallian high school, located in Covington, Louisiana just to the north of New Orleans, United States. Located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans, the school is run by the Christian Brothers and is one of the 1,000 Lasallian schools in more than 80 countries. It is part of 300 years of history originating from the founding of the Christian Brother Schools by Saint Jean Baptiste de La Salle. In 2015 and 2021, the United States Department of Education recognized St. Paul's as a Blue Ribbon School.
St. Joseph Elementary and High School, in Plaucheville, Louisiana, is the only Catholic high school within the civil parish of Avoyelles. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Alexandria in Louisiana.
St. Mary's Academy is a private Catholic K-12 school in New Orleans, Louisiana run by the Sisters of the Holy Family. Founded in 1867, it is one of the oldest Black Catholic schools in the country.
Chalmette High School is a public secondary school in the unincorporated Chalmette area of St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is a part of St. Bernard Parish Public Schools.
Monsignor Edward Pace High School is a Catholic secondary school in the Opa-locka North neighborhood of Miami Gardens, Florida. It was named a Blue Ribbon School in 2002 and one of the top 50 Catholic high schools in the country in 2004 and 2005 by the Catholic High School Honor Roll. Pace is a member of the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA). This school is part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami.
Sacred Heart School is a private, Catholic school in East Grand Forks, Minnesota. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Crookston. The school caters to the Greater Grand Forks community in northwest Minnesota and northeast North Dakota.
Hanson Memorial High School is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Franklin, Louisiana. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette.
St. Edmund Preparatory High School, also referred to by its acronym SEP is commonly known as St. Edmund Prep. It is a private Roman Catholic high school in Brooklyn, New York and it is located within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn.
St Peters College is an integrated state secondary school in Gore, Southland, New Zealand. It was founded in 1969 as a private co-ed school and was the first Catholic co-educational boarding school established in New Zealand.
St. Landry Catholic Church is a historic Roman Catholic church in Opelousas, Louisiana. It is dedicated to Saint Landry of Paris. The current church building, in Gothic and Romanesque Revival style, was completed in 1909. The church and cemetery were placed on the National Register of Historic Places in the United States on May 5, 1982. By 1792, the church had been renamed from the original title, "Parish Church of the Immaculate Conception of the Post of Opelousas".
The Cathedral of St. Francis de Sales is a Catholic cathedral located in Houma, Louisiana, United States. Along with St. Joseph Co-Cathedral in Thibodaux it is the seat of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux.
St. Mary Magdalen Church is a historic Roman Catholic church at in Abbeville, Louisiana. In 1988 the church, along with the associated rectory and cemetery, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Regina Pacis Catholic Secondary School is a former Catholic secondary school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. From 1980 to 2002, it was operated by the Toronto Catholic District School Board serving the Downsview neighbourhood. The name Regina Pacis comes from Latin which means Queen of Peace, referring to the Virgin Mary.
Saint Stephen Martyr Catholic Church is a Catholic parish church located at 2436 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., in the United States. The parish was founded on August 4, 1867, and the first church building consecrated and used for worship on December 27, 1868. This brick structure closed on July 15, 1959, and the current new building was consecrated and first used for worship on June 11, 1961. The church was a favorite of President John F. Kennedy.
