Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School
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| Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School is a K-12 Catholic school in Montgomery, Alabama.
Brief history: Originally founded as St. Mary's of Loretto in 1873 as an all girl's school by the Sisters of Loretto, it became co-ed in 1929 and a diocesan school in 1952, when it was renamed "Montgomery Catholic High". As part of a regionalization plan approved by Archbishop Oscar H. Lipscomb in 2001, it merged with St. Bede Catholic elementary school (K-8) and Our Lady Queen of Mercy elementary school (K-8) to become "Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School". In 2004 it opened a middle school for grades 7-8, and the two elementary schools became K-6 campuses. Mission: MCPS is an integral part of the Catholic Church's mission to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. As a community of adults, it strives to develop children into people of faith, virtue and wisdom. Academic/Curricular: MCPS is a college preparatory school, offering both an honors and regular program to its students. In the high school honors program, students may take upper level electives, such as Advanced Placement courses in American History, Calculus, English, Physics and Fine Arts, as well as honors courses in Chemistry, British Literature, Algebra II, Trigonometry, French III and Spanish III among others. Between thirty and forty percent of its graduates receive scholarship offers to colleges around the United States. Four years of Religion, Social Studies, Science, Mathematics and English are required for all students. Electives include offerings in Band, Physical Education, Art, Computer Applications, HTML design, French and Spanish among others. |
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Extra-Curricular: MCPS fields varsity teams in football, volleyball, cheerleading, cross-country, basketball, softball, soccer, girls' tennis, track and baseball. Introductory Band begins in 5th grade, Intermediate Band in grades 7-8, with a Concert and Marching Band for grades 7-12. Students may also participate in Yearbook, Key Club, Drama, Student Government and Right to Life clubs at the high school level.
The Facilities: There are now two campuses to MCPS, both located in east Montgomery: the St. Bede campus (K-6) on the corner of Atlanta Highway and Perry Hill Road, and the 7-12 campus on 5350 Vaughn Road. At the St. Bede campus, there are two academic buildings, a new Family Life Center consisting of an infant to PreK day care, meeting rooms and a gym, a fine arts building, a soccer field, playground and a church. The Vaughn Road campus consists of a main academic building, cafeteria, a Science/Library Center dedicated in 1999, a gym, a separate middle school which opened in 2004, a football/soccer stadium, baseball field, softball field, practice fields, concessions, lockers and weightroom.
The Daily Schedule: The K-6 program follows a traditional elementary schedule, augmented by weekly offerings in Art, Music, Band, Library and Computer Literacy classes. The middle school features two exploratory classes each day in subjects ranging from Band to cooking, and five core subjects in Math, English, Social Studies, Science and Religion. The high school program runs on a trimester schedule, in which students take five classes per day, with the first semester ending in mid-November, the second in mid-February, and the third at the end of May. For each trimester class, students earn 1/2 credit, and must pass two trimesters in core classes each year. In all three programs, Mass is offered once a week.
