Sacred Heart Schools in Edgewater launch expansion

By Mary Corrado
Associate Editor

At the 125th anniversary celebration of Sacred Heart Schools in Chicago, Sr. Susan Maxwell, the director of schools, announced Phase I of a major expansion and renovation of the 6250 N. Sheridan Rd. campus.

“We are moving full-speed ahead on construction of a new classroom building as part of our long-term commitment to the education of this city’s children,” she said at the May 3rd event. “Our Board of Trustees has approved a $12.5 million capital campaign that will fund the best learning environment possible for our students.”

The new three-story classroom structure will be built between the Campbell and Main Buildings and will house nine classrooms, two science labs, one computer lab, a new library and a rooftop play area. This phase will add 33,000 square feet of educational space. Architectural firm DLR Group was tapped to design the new look of the campus, and Valenti Builders was chosen to handle the construction.

Early pledges of $4.3 million to the Capital Campaign have enabled the Schools to receive preliminary approval for $12.5 million in low rate tax-exempt bond financing. A total of $6 million in pledges will be needed to qualify for the bond. The bond financing allows a larger Phase I facility project than initial fund-raising alone would permit.

“We thank the early benefactors who have provided the momentum to launch this project,” notes Bill Aldeen, president of the board of trustees. “Fund-raising will continue as the 125th Anniversary Capital Campaign now moves into high gear. The Campaign will reach out to Sacred Heart’s family of parents, alumni, friends, foundations and many other constituents whose contributions will ensure that Sacred Heart Schools continue to thrive as the city’s only independent Catholic single-sex elementary schools.”

The Schools—Academy of the Sacred Heart for girls and Hardey Prepatory for boys—enroll 500 students. Enrollment has risen sharply, up 40 percent over the past five years, and demographic research indicates this trend will continue.

“The values-based education that Sacred Heart provides is in high demand,” said Aldeen, “and in an effort to manage this growth, we developed a vision for the Schools that includes not only Phase I construction of the new classroom building, but also Phase II renovation of the existing Main Building and an increased endowment for financial aid and salaries. The financial status of the Schools is strong so our timing could not be better.”

When the project is complete, the Schools will be able to accommodate 600 students. Classes will be held to their current size of not more than 16 to 18 students, with two sections of girls and two sections of boys at each grade level and five sections of kindergarten.

Sacred Heart Schools are independent Catholic schools, with tuition at about $10,000 per year. About 20 percent of the students receive financial assistance. About two thirds of the students are Catholic.

While the boys and girls have different classrooms for grades one through eight, they have the same curriculum and opportunities. They are not totally separated by any means. “The kindergarten boys and girls are together, first of all,” said Judy Corrigan, director of admissions. “Then, the higher grades share lunch, recess, sports, and plays.”

Besides providing a top-notch academic training, the Schools provide the atmosphere to thrive. “Students feel safe here. We can always talk to the teachers,” said eighth grader Max Lisy. “Teachers tell us to we are to complete an assignment but we are to find a way to do it. They allow us to go as far as we can. And it’s easy to make friends here. It’s not like the boys are secluded from the girls here.”

Zoe Schwartz, another eighth grader, agreed. “It’s the best of both worlds, since we share lunch, recess, dances. The small classes are great. There’s more participation.” Both students praised the teachers as awesome.

The Schools were founded by Society of the Sacred Heart, which has 21 schools in the U. S. and over 200 worldwide, each run as a single-sex academy. Each Sacred Heart School shares a commitment to educate students to a personal and active faith in God, a deep respect for intellectual values, and a social awareness which impels to action. In addition, it promotes the building of community as a Christian value, and personal growth in an atmosphere of wise freedom.

Symbols of each of these five goals were placed in a time capsule during the assembly May 3, to be opened on the School’s 200th birthday. In fact, the current kindergartners were invited to return when they are 80 years old to open the capsule and reveal the contents. Certainly the current expansion and renovation, carefully planned and generously funded, will enable the Sacred Heart Schools to remain a vibrant educational force far into the future.