Colegio Católico Notre Dame
Encyclopedia
Colegio Católico Notre Dame is a coeducational Roman Catholic school located in Caguas, Puerto Rico
. Notre Dame is composed of a pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, elementary school, a middle school, and a high school. Not all these schools are located on the same campus.
) with the help of the Congregation of the School Sisters of Notre Dame
. Originally the school had the name of Colegio Dulce Nombre de Jesús but this was eventually changed to the name it has today.
Notre Dame initially accepted students from kindergarten to the fourth grade. By 1921, the school had expanded to include the eighth grade. In 1947, the first 24 students graduated twelfth grade from Notre Dame.
In 1956, the grades from seventh to twelfth were moved to Troche Avenue in Caguas, its current location. The high school was then named Notre Dame High School in honor of the Virgin Mary and the Sisters of Notre Dame
. The elementary school is located next to the Cathedral Dulce Nombre de Jesús
in the "plaza
" of Caguas. Notre Dame also has a pre-kindergarten (formed in 1986) and a kindergarten (formed in 1950), both located in the same campus as the high school.
In 1964 Notre Dame received accreditation by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
. Eventually, the school went back to the name Colegio Católico Notre Dame in order to unify the schools.
In 1997, the elementary school received the "Blue Ribbon Award" of Excellence in Education awarded by the "Blue Ribbon Schools Program
".
Notre Dame is currently the biggest private school in Puerto Rico
with more than 2,300 students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade.
The high school campus has a baseball field, a track, volleyball and basketball courts. The Neumann
Hall Auditorium serves as a cafeteria and a place to hold large events and mass.
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
. Notre Dame is composed of a pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, elementary school, a middle school, and a high school. Not all these schools are located on the same campus.
History
The Colegio Católico Notre Dame was founded on October 3, 1916 by Redemptorist Priests (of the Congregation of the Most Holy RedeemerCongregation of the Most Holy Redeemer
The Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer is a Roman Catholic missionary Congregation founded by Saint Alphonsus Liguori at Scala, near Amalfi, Italy for the purpose of labouring among the neglected country people in the neighbourhood of Naples.Members of the Congregation, priests and brothers,...
) with the help of the Congregation of the School Sisters of Notre Dame
School Sisters of Notre Dame
School Sisters of Notre Dame is a worldwide order of Roman Catholic nuns devoted to primary, secondary, and post-secondary education. Their life in mission centers on prayer, community life and ministry...
. Originally the school had the name of Colegio Dulce Nombre de Jesús but this was eventually changed to the name it has today.
Notre Dame initially accepted students from kindergarten to the fourth grade. By 1921, the school had expanded to include the eighth grade. In 1947, the first 24 students graduated twelfth grade from Notre Dame.
In 1956, the grades from seventh to twelfth were moved to Troche Avenue in Caguas, its current location. The high school was then named Notre Dame High School in honor of the Virgin Mary and the Sisters of Notre Dame
Sisters of Notre Dame
Sisters of Notre Dame may refer to:*Congregation of Notre Dame de Montreal*School Sisters of Notre Dame*Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur*Sisters of Notre Dame of Coesfeld...
. The elementary school is located next to the Cathedral Dulce Nombre de Jesús
Cathedral Dulce Nombre de Jesus
Cathedral Dulce Nombre de Jesús is a cathedral of Roman Catholic denomination located on Corchado Street in Caguas, Puerto Rico. It is located in front of Plaza Palmer in the center of town, and next to the Colegio Católico Notre Dame Elementary. There are only five cathedrals in Puerto Rico and...
in the "plaza
Plaza
Plaza is a Spanish word related to "field" which describes an open urban public space, such as a city square. All through Spanish America, the plaza mayor of each center of administration held three closely related institutions: the cathedral, the cabildo or administrative center, which might be...
" of Caguas. Notre Dame also has a pre-kindergarten (formed in 1986) and a kindergarten (formed in 1950), both located in the same campus as the high school.
In 1964 Notre Dame received accreditation by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools
The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools is a voluntary, peer-based, non-profit association dedicated to educational excellence and improvement through peer evaluation and accreditation...
. Eventually, the school went back to the name Colegio Católico Notre Dame in order to unify the schools.
In 1997, the elementary school received the "Blue Ribbon Award" of Excellence in Education awarded by the "Blue Ribbon Schools Program
Blue Ribbon Schools Program
The Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a United States government program created in 1981 to honor schools which have achieved high levels of performance or significant improvements with emphasis on schools serving disadvantaged students. The program centers around a self-assessment conducted by the...
".
Notre Dame is currently the biggest private school in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
with more than 2,300 students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade.
School's Motto
The school's motto is virtus et scientia, which translates to virtue and scienceIn Spanish
"La misión del Colegio Católico Notre Dame es capacitar a los estudiantes para evangelizar con la visión de promover justicia para Puerto Rico y el mundo y vivir la sabiduría de la fe católica. Nos esforzamos por educar a nuestra comunidad con excelencia a fin de incentivar a sus miembros a convertirse en individuos responsables que respeten la diversidad teniendo como prioridad el hacer suya la opción por los pobres."In English
"The mission of Notre Dame High School is to prepare students to evangelize with the vision of promoting justice for Puerto Rico and the world and live the wisdom of the catholic faith. We strive to educate our community with excellence with the purpose to motivate its members to be responsible individuals that respect diversity and having as a priority the poor."Clubs and organizations
Some of the school's clubs are:- Scala, the school's newspaper was founded in 1946.
- Student Council - formed in 1958.
- National Honor SocietyNational Honor SocietyThe National Honor Society is a recognition program for high school students in grades 10-12 in the United States and in several other countries...
- Chemistry Club
- English Club
- Forensics League
- French Club
- History Club
- Chess Club
- Library Club
- School Band
- Oratory Club
- Ministry of Music
- Drama Club
- School Choir
- Math Club
- Robotics Club
- Ecology Club
- T.E.A ("Taller de Expresión Artística" or Drama and Art Club)
- United Nations Club (ONU)
- Soles Verdes Club (Ecology Club)
- Scientia Club (Science Club for the Middle School)
- Huellas - (Villafañe por siempre)
- In Focus (Photography Club)
- Amnistía Internacional Capítulo Notre Dame
Facilities
The elementary school is located next to the city's cathedral, where students attend mass.The high school campus has a baseball field, a track, volleyball and basketball courts. The Neumann
Neumann
Neumann may refer to:*Alfred Neumann, German writer*Alfred Neumann, East German politician*Bernd Neumann, German politician*Bernhard Neumann, German-born mathematician...
Hall Auditorium serves as a cafeteria and a place to hold large events and mass.
Government and politics
- Juan Dalmau - Lost Candidate for Governor Puerto Rican Independence PartyPuerto Rican Independence PartyThe Puerto Rican Independence Party is a Puerto Rican political party that campaigns for the independence of Puerto Rico from United States suzerainty....
- José Luis DalmauJosé Luis DalmauJosé Luis Dalmau Santiago is a Puerto Rican politician and Senator. He is the current Minority Leader for the Popular Democratic Party on the Senate of Puerto Rico.-Public office:...
- former Senator - Jose AponteJosé AponteJose Fernando Aponte Hernández , is an accountant and former Speaker of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico. He was born in San Juan and obtained a bachelor's degree in Accounting from the University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras in 1980.Aponte is married to Aida I. Rodríguez Roig, and has...
- Representative-at-Large, former Speaker of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico & former Secretary General of the PNP
Literature, music and art
- Magali Carrasquillo, artist
- Georgina Borri, artist
- Félix Jiménez, writer
- Jeanette Becerra, writer
- Stella Soto, writer
- Jorge Luis Ramos, actor, producer and director
- Ana IsabelleAna IsabelleAna Isabel Acevedo Avilés is a Puerto Rican dancer, singer and actress. In December 2007 she released her first album, "Por El Amor". And in 2009, she became the first winner of Univision's Viva el Sueño.-Career:...
, singer - Charles Juhász-Alvarado, artist
- Elsa María Meléndez, artist
- Claudio Solano, artist
- Jorge Luis Ramos, artist
- Jorge "Fish" Rodríguez, music video director and editor
- Joann Polanco, actress
Sports
- Felipe CrespoFelipe CrespoFelipe Javier Crespo is a former utility in Major League Baseball who played for three different teams between and . Listed at 5'11, 195 lb., Crespo was a switch-hitter and threw right-handed...
, Baseball - César CrespoCésar CrespoCésar Antonio Crespo is a former second baseman who last played in the Baltimore Orioles organization. Listed at 5'11, 170 lb., Crespo is a switch-hitter and throws right-handed...
, Baseball - Luis J. HaddockLuis HaddockLuis J. Haddock was the #2 rated tennis player in Puerto Rico in . He attended Colegio Católico Notre Dame for high school. He lives in his hometown of Caguas and played for the University of Notre Dame. He graduated from the University of Puerto Rico medical school and is currently an...
, TennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all... - Janice OlivenciaJanice OlivenciaJanice Olivencia has been a professional golf player since May 2005. In 2009, she became the first Puerto Rican woman to play in the U.S. Women's Open, and only the second Puerto Rican since Juan "Chi-Chi" Rodríguez to play in a U.S...
, GolfGolfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes.... - Damaris Flores, VolleyballVolleyballVolleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
- Zamaris Flores, VolleyballVolleyballVolleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
- Jose Mulero, VolleyballVolleyballVolleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
- Carlos RamirezCarlos RamírezCarlos Alberto Ramírez Castillo is a Mexican footballer. He plays for Deportivo Irapuato, wearing #13. He is nicknamed "Tin-Tan" because of an apparent physical likeness to the Mexican actor....
, VolleyballVolleyballVolleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
Other
- Carlos Manuel RodríguezCarlos Manuel RodríguezBlessed Carlos Manuel Rodríguez Santiago was born in Caguas, Puerto Rico. Rodríguez was a layperson of the Roman Catholic Church, who was beatified on April 29, 2001...
- candidate for future canonization; beatified on April 29, 2001.