Strategic Growth Plan Year One

STRATEGIC GROWTH PLAN year one 2021-2025

To say St. Cecilia Academy has been abuzz with activity would be an understatement. On top of the day-to-day happenings of a thriving college preparatory school, the school has been steadfastly moving forward with its strategic growth plan.

The planning process, which pulled together the voices of hundreds of stakeholders and only paused briefly in the spring of 2020, culminated in December 2020 when the Congregation Council of the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia (the Academy’s

(Above) Sister Ann Hyacinth and John Wall discuss junior high renovation plans with architect and contractor. (Right) Bishop Spalding blesses the new SCA chapel on St. Cecilia Day.

governing board) approved the final plan. The plan’s overarching goals center on four areas:

• Faith, Reason, and Virtue • Organizational Structure and

School Collaboration • Facilities • Advancement

The organizational structure and school collaboration planning team took a shared look at the needs of St. Cecilia Academy and Overbrook School and went to work immediately to address its first task, which involved involved studying the question of creating a thriving junior high program on the Dominican Campus, knowing that the results of that study would inform and guide much of the remaining strategic plan roll-out. At the same time, St. Cecilia embarked on what it termed “low-hanging fruit projects:” no-regrets enhancements to the school’s facility that would have positive and immediate impact ahead of any larger-scale capital projects.

“I am astounded by what has taken place on the campus in the last 24 months, said Principal Sister Anna Laura, "The Lord is blessing St. Cecilia Academy in so many ways, especially through our generous benefactors, faculty and staff."

The “low-hanging fruit projects” include a beautifully renovated St. Cecilia Academy chapel that was blessed by Bishop Spalding on St. Cecilia Day. The new chapel provides a most fitting space for class Masses, First Friday Adoration, and daily prayer for students and faculty. Additionally, construction will begin this spring on a shared SCA and Overbrook field house that features restrooms and concessions at the athletic field. Sister Anna Laura has also pulled together a team of women designers (including several alumnae) to help update and provide a cohesive look for school hallways through repainting, updated lighting fixtures, and new furnishings. The team is planning a display for the main hallway of the school that celebrates the life of St. Cecilia and connects visually with the 1860 Motherhouse where St. Cecilia Academy first began.

Rendering of SCA and OS field house with restrooms and concessions

With the junior high study complete, the Dominican Sisters made the historic decision to move to a new campus model in which St. Cecilia Academy will serve girls in grades 7-12, and Overbrook will focus on the co-ed education of children in grades preschool to 6th grade. Since the announcement of that decision this past August, the academic, student life, and faith formation committees have been in sprint mode to welcome students for the inaugural junior high classes in August 2022.

To ready the building for distinct junior high spaces, renovations of existing square footage are set to begin the day school breaks for summer. As one facilities team member noted, it is as if the building was made for this plan because there is ample space to accommodate seventh and eighth graders in an area separate from the high school girls, a move that will increase the student body by about 25 percent in the first year.

To learn more about St. Cecilia Academy’s strategic growth plan initiatives, visit stcecilia.edu/about/strategic-plan. ◊ This year SCA announced the establishment of two new endowed scholarships totaling $1.5 million that will provide tuition assistance to multiple girls in grades 7-12 starting in 2022- 2023.

The new scholarships are:

The Mother Frances Walsh Scholarship: Mother Frances Walsh was one of the four foundresses of the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia Congregation. She was a pivotal figure in the establishment and early history of St. Cecilia Academy and firmly dedicated to excellent Catholic education for young women.

The Saint Margaret of Hungary Endowed Scholarship: St. Margaret of Hungary was an early Dominican who showed her love for Christ in overflowing charity and quiet acts of service to her neighbor.

On top of all the planning and renovations, St. Cecilia Academy has been blessed by strong financial support this school year. With a robust Annual Fund campaign, a successful Day of Giving, flourishing special events, and the creation of three new endowment funds, it is a record year in terms of development support.