St Christine

Soon after the founding of the parish in 1953, plans were underway for the building of St. Christine Elementary School. Ground breaking for a combination temporary church and ten classroom school took place on Sunday afternoon, March 28, 1954. After hard work and the anxieties accompanying any building project, the buildings plus a rectory and convent were blessed and dedicated on Sunday, November 13, 1955. The school had opened in September 1955.

Significant to the development of the parish school was the presence of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent dePaul, from Emmitsburgh, Maryland. They had been invited to the Diocese of Youngstown by Bishop Walsh to staff two parishes, one of them being Saint Christine. In 1955, four Daughters came to Youngstown and opened the school. They lived temporarily at St. Brendan Convent until the newly constructed convent was finished.

The school enrollment grew rapidly from 350 pupils the first year in 1955, to 650 pupils the following year. Accordingly the original 10 classrooms had to be expanded to 24 classrooms in 1957, and to 32 classrooms in 1960, when enrollment was nearly 1500 pupils. Total cost of the school when it was completed was $845,000.

The Daughters of Charity provided a strong presence in the school and in the parish through those years. The highest number present at any one time was 17 when the school enrollment peaked at 1554 pupils in 1965. At that time there were 32 classrooms with half taught by a sister, and the other half taught by lay persons. As enrollment began to decline and as there were fewer sisters, competent and dedicated lay women especially took over the administration and teaching responsibilities in the school. In 1985 a pre-school was added. In 1988 the Daughters of Charity could no longer staff the parish school and left. Since then the Principal has been a lay woman and the total school staffed by competent lay persons.

Over the years the school has reflected many changes and improvements in education and curriculum, with the addition of a pre-school, kindergarten, music, physical education, computers and art. Over the years, the school has often been recognized for its excellence and high academic achievement. Today it numbers close to 375 students, Kindergarten through eighth grade

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