Mission/Philosophy

Our Mission

Notre Dame School is a faith-filled, Catholic community comprised of staff, students, parents, and parishioners devoted to the following:

Encouraging students to know and live their Catholic faith;
Building a strong academic foundation;
Helping students grow into confident, socially responsible citizens.

Our Philosophy

We, the Notre Dame School Community, within the framework of St. Joseph and St. Mary's parishes, are committed to giving our students a firm academic and spiritual foundation rooted in Catholic values. The parents are the primary educators of their children, and we, in respectful partnership, assist them in their children's pursuits of academic excellence and success. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the school community strives to develop Catholic Social Teachings in our contemporary, multicultural world. We foster the growth of the whole child as a unique creation of God.

With these convictions to guide us, we see this overall process as a cooperative effort between the parish community and the school. To implement these philosophical beliefs, we established the following goals:

Spiritual

To build a Community of Faith in our school, our parish, and our neighboring community.
To help students develop a closer relationship with God through Liturgy and prayer, both personally and communally.
To impart in each child a knowledge, understanding, and love of the word of God in Scripture.
To prepare each child to apply Catholic Christian values in his or her individual daily life.
To develop in each student a 'Gospel Awareness' of the needs of others within our parish, community and our world.
To teach that each student is responsible for peace, freedom and preservation of the world.
To provide opportunities for experiencing 'awe' at God's creation.

Intellectual

To provide a quality academic program that fosters critical thinking and cooperative learning.
To meet the individual needs of each student through a variety of learning experiences.
To develop each student's creativity and intellectual awareness.
To promote effective study skills, work habits, and a zest for lifelong learning.

Physical

To provide opportunities for students to develop fine motor and gross motor skills.
To help students develop healthy bodies by fostering good health attitudes and practices that will benefit them through life.
To help each student develop a healthy respect for his or her body.
To provide opportunities for students to participate in extra-curricular sports activities.
To promote good sportsmanship in each student.

Community Service

To develop in each student a 'Gospel Awareness' of the needs of others within our parish, community, and our world.
To teach each student that he or she is responsible for peace, freedom and preservation of the world.

Personal-Social

To recognize "self" as a unique and valuable being.
To appreciate the diversity of all individuals.
To foster a spirit of openness, friendship, caring and sharing.
To appreciate racial and cultural differences, as well as similarities.

Psychological-Emotional

To develop a realistic self-image.
To achieve high ideals of truth, justice and shared responsibility.