Catch Principal Padrnos and Preschool Director Kathleen Fleming on Good Day Seattle as they weigh in on the new alphabet song! At St. Alphonsus, it’s not just about knowing letters – it’s about mastering their sounds and patterns to build confident readers, writers, and communicators. Whether you’re team new song or classic tune, one thing’s for sure: at St. Alphonsus, we’re shaping excellent learners every day!
Check out this feature piece from Catholic News Agency highlighting the creative ways we’re fostering our Catholic identity and academic excellence. Read HERE.
We were recently featured in the National Catholic Register media outlet for our stance towards cell phones at school and commitment to creating a distraction-free learning environment. A couple of our 8th graders were also interviewed and gave some insightful responses. You can read the article here: https://www.ncregister.com/news/catholic-schools-cellphone-bans-mcdonald.
You may recall that last school year, we earned the distinction of being the first and only Catholic school in Washington state to be officially registered with the Wait Until 8th pledge. This organization empowers parents to wait until at least 8th grade before giving kids a smart phone. To learn more or to sign the pledge, visit our Family Technology Resources webpage.
This article appeared originally appeared FulcrumFoundation.org.
The Fulcrum-funded Innovative Housing Project at St. Alphonsus Parish in Ballard will welcome its first cohort this summer, providing affordable housing to Catholic school teachers in an increasingly high cost of living area.
“The Innovative Housing Project meets two critical needs facing the Archdiocese of Seattle,” said Lizzy Scholz, the pastoral assistant for administration at St. Alphonsus Parish. “The first is the need for adults, especially young adults, to build community. Teaching is a tough career! Living with people going through the same struggles, especially in the early years of teaching, is so beneficial. The second is how difficult it is to pay teachers who want to work in our Catholic schools a competitive rate of pay. The Innovative Housing Project allows us to provide more affordable housing as a way to level the field.”
The program, which has been four years in the making, takes some of the financial burden off local Catholic school teachers by providing an affordable place to live. Accepted applicants will live in community, allowing young teachers to grow together spiritually and professionally.
“The U.S. Surgeon General recently came out and said that loneliness and lack of connection is a major public health crisis,” said Nick Padrnos, principal of St. Alphonsus Parish School. “Community, especially in this day and age, doesn’t happen by accident. It must be intentional. This project anchors young adults to a definite place with a definite purpose. I see this as an incubator, not just for well-formed educators, but also for deeply connected and committed human beings.”
The program currently has space for nine teachers who will be provided with personal apartments as well as communal living spaces, including a garden, courtyard, and chapel. Participants in the program will receive a one-year lease. Teachers will live in the repurposed convent for the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity (SOLT) sisters at St. Alphonsus. In 2021, the SOLT sisters decided to leave the convent, giving the parish and the archdiocese a chance to find a new purpose for the building.
“Transitioning the convent to being a part of the Innovative Housing Project is a perfect fit, because not only do we have a great facility, but Ballard is a very desirable community to live in, and therefore very expensive. It can make it difficult for staff to afford even a simple apartment. Our convent would allow each tenant to have access to a basic apartment, as well as a lot of communal space for cooking, gardening, and indoor and outdoor gatherings,” said Lizzy.
“St. Alphonsus has been a stronghold in the archdiocese and Ballard community since 1907,” Nick added. “To last 100+ years means you have to be adaptive and respond to the signs of the times. We’re a small community, but have lots of young families who are attracted to the energy and mission here. The reality is, we don’t have the nuns and other religious groups running our schools and occupying our living spaces. It’s a wonderful opportunity for this St. Al’s community to witness to these young adults about what family life, devotion, and kinship looks like.”
The Innovative Housing Project was, in part, modeled after programs like the Alliance for Catholic Schools (ACE) program at the University of Notre Dame and the Pacific Alliance for Catholic Education (PACE) program at the University of Portland. PACE, which has placed teachers in Catholic schools here in Western Washington, provides housing for young teachers committed to living in community as they work towards their master’s degrees. The program has a proven track-record of success building future educators and leaders within the Catholic school system.
While teachers in the Innovative Housing Program are not tied to a master’s program, they are expected to engage with one another and participate in community-building activities. The Fulcrum Foundation provided $30,000 in funding to support upgrades to the facility and community programming run by the Office for Catholic Schools.
“I am excited to have St. Alphonsus be at the forefront of this initiative, especially moving into Partners in the Gospel. This project will allow us to better utilize our buildings, provide a service to not only the St. Alphonsus community, but the Archdiocese of Seattle as a whole, and allow us all to build connections with our neighboring parishes and schools,” said Lizzy. “I’d love to see a full house with teachers not only from St. Alphonsus, but also our neighboring K-8 schools and high schools. It will be an incredible way for these teachers to grow into their careers and build relationships with others who may soon be in their parish families.”
“During my first teaching gig, I lived in an old convent with 7 other teachers through Notre Dame’s ACE program,” Nick said. “That experience is what’s kept me in the field and wanting to serve. To have that sort of intentional community in our backyard is tremendous because of the ripple effect. The zeal of the residents will spill over into ministry and engagement in our church and school. That’s the power of the Holy Spirit at work.”
Summer Care is available for students ages 2.5-5. Maximum of 18 students. Priority given to registered St. Alphonsus students. A new kid-friendly theme featured each week. Click here for more information and to register.
On Thursday, March 10 at 7pm, a certified trainer from the Core Knowledge History & Geography program will be hosting an on-campus/virtual presentation for parents interested in learning more about our new curriculum. This is wonderful opportunity to understand the curriculum’s scope and brush up on your history!
Zoom information will be emailed.
*Attending this session counts as Family Service Hours.*
Did you know we have affordable and fun Summer Day Care for 9 weeks? Open to the public and available for students ages 2.5-5. Must be potty-trained. A new kid-friendly theme featured each week! Click here for more information and to register.
St. Alphonsus Students
Extracurricular Involvement
Why did you choose St. Alphonsus for your children?
Our family choose to make a switch from SPS to St. Alphonsus in 2021 and it has become a huge blessing. In midst of Covid and with concerns about the academics for our daughters, we were prompted to explore school options and discovered the St. Als community. We were attracted to the school based on the academics, the small class sizes, and the values, including upholding behavior expectations. All of these benefits have been realized with so much more.
What do you love most about St. Alphonsus?
Our girls love St. Al’s, the commitment from their teachers and the new friendships with classmates. The academics have challenged them and when needed, they have received extra support from St. Al’s teachers/staff. Our girls, surprisingly, appreciate wearing uniforms to school as it makes the mornings so easy with one less decision/choice. They have had opportunities to try new clubs (chess), CYO sports and to pair up with younger class buddies as the school extends from Preschool through 8th grade. We all appreciate the community activities including the auction, Bingo nights, Halloween at school and more. We are relishing in our final year all 3 of our daughters will be together at St. Al’s.
Contact this Parent Ambassador
St. Alphonsus Students
Extracurricular Involvement
Why did you choose St. Alphonsus for your children?
We chose St. Al’s because we desired a school that not only had a strong academic curriculum but also one which focused on values such as Compassion, Generosity, Respect, etc. Educating the full child was important to us and we felt St. Al’s reinforced what we were morally and spiritually working to teach her within our home. We were also attracted to how diverse the student body was and the incredible community the school fosters both on campus and off.
What do you love most about St. Alphonsus?
I love how happy my daughter is when I pick her up and drop her off. She loves the academic and social environment and loves being a member of the St Al’s student body. As a parent I also love seeing how much she has grown intellectually over the past 4+ years at the school. The teachers really care for each individual student and she has flourished each year through the care her teachers take in understanding what she needs in-order to continue to succeed.
Contact this Parent Ambassador
St. Alphonsus Students
Extracurricular Involvement
Why did you choose St. Alphonsus for your children?
When looking for a preschool for our oldest son, we hoped to find a school where our Catholic faith would be reinforced and enriched in the classroom. Finding a school that could also help him excel academically beyond preschool was a secondary goal. St. Alphonsus was both, and so much more. Within the first month at St. Al’s, it was evident that we had found a school that not only embraces the richness of the Catholic faith, but also encourages students and their families to reach their full potential in a welcoming community.
What do you love most about St. Alphonsus?
There is so much to love about St. Alphonsus! I love how our students know each other and are friends across all grades. I love how unmistakably our teachers and staff care for the students and their families. I love how our parents support each other and work together to make the school the best place it can be. And I love that St. Alphonsus is a place where our faith is celebrated and strengthened. Lots of schools have good academic programs and good faculty and staff. But not every school has a great culture and community. We feel very blessed to be a part of a school that has all those things and a rich legacy of faith and academic excellence for over 100 years. We feel loved by the St. Alphonsus community, and we love them!
Contact this Parent Ambassador
St. Alphonsus Students
Extracurricular Involvement
Why did you choose St. Alphonsus for your children?
We chose St. Alphonsus because we needed more academic support and were afraid that our older child would fall through the cracks in middle school. St. Alphonsus has been able to seamlessly meet the educational and social needs of each of our boys. It has been amazing to have a faculty proactively identify particular academic and social needs and then develop a plan and work to support those goals. It was obvious from the very beginning that the teaching staff is dedicated to supporting our boys. The small class sizes help support this effort.
What do you love most about St. Alphonsus?
We love the community! We feel very comfortable here and love the warm and supportive environment. We also feel that our boys are getting a quality education. You also may be surprised to know that many of our students are not Catholic. This school welcomes and embraces all students, Catholic or not.
St. Alphonsus Students
Extracurricular Involvement
Why did you choose St. Alphonsus for your children?
While looking for a faith-based institution for our child and being a parishioner at St. Alphonsus, it was an easy decision to make. St. Al’s has a great community which was apparent in the first few tours/visits. And we found a curriculum that met the needs of our child well.
What do you love most about St. Alphonsus?
Warm community of families, supportive teachers, and faith centric education that enhances the spiritual side of the child along with great academics.
Contact this Parent Ambassador
St. Alphonsus Students
Extracurricular Involvement
Why did you choose St. Alphonsus for your children?
I chose St. Alphonsus because of the small class sizes and excellent education, especially the split-gender middle school.
What do you love most about St. Alphonsus?
I love the community of St. Alphonsus and it continues to be a wonderful experience. Parents and teachers cooperate to give a wonderful nurturing environment to all children. I’m very grateful for the many lifelong relationships that have been created through the school involvement.
Contact this Parent Ambassador