Cristo Rey High School to open;
St. Anthony School relocating to parish

By Mary Ann Wyand

Providence Cristo Rey High School, offering a college preparatory curriculum and corporate work study program for center-city students with financial needs, will open in August at the former All Saints School in Indianapolis.

As a result, 72 pre-kindergarten through sixth-grade students who currently attend the former All Saints School at 75 N. Belleville Place on the near-west side will move on April 11 into the newly renovated St. Anthony School six blocks away at 337 N. Warman Ave.

Providence Sister Jeanne Hagelskamp, president of the new Catholic secondary school sponsored by the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods and operated by a board of directors, said on March 7 that the national Cristo Rey or “Christ the King” school model works to “create a more hopeful future” for economically disadvantaged students by combining faith-based coursework with part-time jobs in professional settings.

Sister Jeanne said Providence Cristo Rey administrators contract with local businesses and corporations to hire a team of four students who share a full-time entry-level position while continuing “rigorous” academic instruction.

Students who qualify for admission earn almost 75 percent of their tuition, she said, and gain invaluable work experience in a professional setting that helps them learn job skills, motivation and self-confidence to succeed in higher education, the workplace and life.

Sister Jeanne said partnerships with area businesses and corporations will enable students of all faiths, who otherwise could not afford a Catholic education, to attend the Cristo Rey school.

She said a placement test for admission is scheduled at 8:15 a.m. on March 18 at the school.

The new school is modeled on Cristo Rey Jesuit High School, which was started by the Society of Jesus in Chicago about 10 years ago, and is part of a network of 11 other Cristo Rey schools throughout the United States.

At the Jesuit Cristo Rey school in Chicago, she said, “100 percent of their graduates are accepted into college and over half of them have either graduated or are nearly finished with their undergraduate studies within five years.”

Sister Jeanne said students at Cristo Rey schools work part time at banks, hospitals, law firms, investment firms, construction companies, architectural firms, electronics companies, colleges, social service agencies, and other businesses and corporations.

John Lechleiter, president and chief operating officer of Eli Lilly and Company in Indianapolis, said in a statement that he supports the Providence Cristo Rey school project “because it will change the lives of scores of disadvantaged young people in the center city of Indianapolis.”

Lechleiter said the new school is “based on a proven model that mobilizes the business community to provide meaningful jobs that serve as a key component in the education of Cristo Rey students while helping to offset a significant portion of the cost of their education.”

Annette “Mickey” Lentz, executive director of the archdiocesan Secretariat for Catholic Education and Faith Formation, said she is pleased that the newest private Catholic high school in Indiana will serve low-income students and prepare them for a variety of careers.

Lentz said she also is pleased that the archdiocese’s former All Saints School, which is again called St. Anthony School, will return to its original parish location adjacent to St. Anthony Church.

“I think any time that a [Catholic] school is directly connected to the parish, both in a logistical sense as well as in every other way, it makes a true difference of identification,” Lentz said on March 9.

“I think it will restore interest and identity,” she said, “and a sense of ownership from the parishioners of that area. We’re excited about it. We know it’s going to require some work, but everyone feels very deeply that it’s the right and best thing to do, and it’s certainly the best thing to do for the children.”

Benedictine Sister Pamela Doyle, principal of All Saints School and St. Anthony School for three years, said that St. Anthony School will reopen at its original location in April.

Sister Pamela said the Indianapolis West Deanery grade school was renamed All Saints School in 1974 and relocated to the former Indianapolis Public School building on Belleville Place seven years ago. It was renamed St. Anthony School last July.

“We’re moving back home on April 3, the week of spring break,” Sister Pamela said. “We’ll have students back on April 11 to their new school. I’m really excited about the move. We’re in the midst of a lot of last-minute details, but I think it’s exciting to have a brand new start with a lot of potential ahead, a lot of hope.”

After the archdiocese opened All Saints School seven years ago at the former Indianapolis Public School building, she said, the original St. Anthony School building was used as a parish center for religious education classes and other activities.

This year, about 55 percent of St. Anthony’s 72 students are Hispanic, Sister Pamela said, and there are 19 faculty and staff members.

“We will have everything packed on March 31,” she added. “We will have movers come in over spring break. The teachers and staff members will return on Monday, April 10, and we are going to have a big unpacking day [before classes begin the next day]. We resume classes during Holy Week, so we will try as best as we can to keep that as a reverent and quiet week.”

She said a school open house and celebration will be planned after Easter.

“I can’t thank people enough for all the help that they’ve given us,” Sister Pamela said, “and the faculty and staff for their patience, and for everybody joining in and doing what needs to be done. Our parents support us day in and day out, and they’re the reason why we’re here.”

Sister Pamela said she thinks the new Providence Cristo Rey High School on the near-west side is “going to be a phenomenal thing for this neighborhood.”

(For more information about Providence Cristo Rey High School or to register for the March 18 placement test, call Providence Sister Stacy Pierce, admissions director, at 317-592-4069.) †