Original Saint Anne Church, Rectory, and School - circa 1894
Founded in 1894, Saint Anne School (then known as The Sacristy School) was established and
housed in the St. Anne Church building—moving to a small, one-room frame schoolhouse in 1894.
The school served 15 students, taught by its first principals, Miss Flora Shafer, followed by Sr.
Bernard Murphy. By 1899 the faculty consisted primarily of the Sisters of St. Agnes. The school
welcomed the Sisters of Divine Providence to its faculty in 1905, and due to steadily increasing
enrollment, the original one-room schoolhouse was expanded to include three floors in 1912. By
1954, the school building was renovated and expanded to accommodate an enrollment of 800
students. Enrollment peaked during the 1960s with some years exceeding 1600 students! Faculty
at the time consisted of 32 teachers, including 21 Sisters of Divine Providence, with Sr. Concepta
serving as principal from 1957-1963. During the 1970s, there were fewer Sisters of Divine Providence available to teach in the school
and by 1973, lay teachers outnumbered the CDP sisters for the first time while enrollment
continued to average 80 students per grade. Additional renovations to the school building were
completed in 1978 to what is the current structure. The last sister, Rita Adams, CDP, served as
principal of the school until 1990 when Mrs. Cathy Jakubowski was hired by then pastor, Fr.
Donald Breier, as only the second laywoman in the history of the school to serve as principal. The
school continues to enjoy strong leadership with its current principal, Mrs. Harmony Stewart, and the
support of the people of Saint Anne Parish and its current pastor, Fr. Michael Caridi. Over the past several years, and throughout the years to come, Saint Anne School is committed to
advancing its curriculum, technology, and facilities. The school offers competitive tuition and a
variety of ways to meet the financial needs of any family wishing to enroll, including scholarships
to qualified students through the Saint Anne School Angel Tuition Assistance Fund. The school is
accredited by the Middle States Association Commission on Elementary Schools and offers a
challenging education for total development of the child—body, mind and soul. |
