Fontbonne Academy

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Fontbonne Academy
Address
930 Brook Road
Milton, Massachusetts, (Norfolk County) 02186
United States
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Information
Type Private, All Girls
Motto Respect ∙ Responsibility ∙ Reconciliation ∙ Reverence : original motto on crest related to alma mater wisdom and grace
Religious affiliation(s) Roman Catholic,
Sisters of St. Joseph
Established 1954
Head of school Susan Degnan '79
Faculty 66
Grades 9–12
Enrollment 400 (2008)
Average class size 18
Student to teacher ratio 9:1
Color(s) Navy and gold         
Team name Ducks
Accreditation New England Association of Schools and Colleges[1]
Publication Stylus (literary magazine)
Tuition $13,125
Admissions Director Christin Schow
Athletic Director Ellen Sullivan
Website www.fontbonneacademy.org

Fontbonne Academy is a private Roman Catholic college preparatory high school for girls, located in Milton, Massachusetts, USA. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston. It was started in 1954 by the Sisters of St. Joseph. The school was fully accredited in 1959 by the New England Association of Secondary Schools and Colleges. Accreditation has been consistently renewed for ten-year periods.

Enrollment

Enrollment has multiplied from 97 students in 1954 to just under 400 in 2011. The student body is drawn from more than 45 cities and towns throughout the Boston area, MetroWest, and the South Shore. The school has a seven-acre campus with the original building that has been updated over the years to include science, technology and language labs. The building had a facelift in 2010 and installed many energy-saving improvements throughout. Fontbonne Academy boasts a 100% college acceptance rate. The Class of 2013 averaged $175,000 per student in grants and scholarships to four-year colleges.

History

Founded in 1954, the academy takes its name from Mother St. John Fontbonne, who re-established the congregation in France after its suppression during the French Revolution. Under her leadership, the first Sisters came to the United States. In Boston, the congregation taught in archdioscesan parochial schools, and also founded and conducted its own ministries, of which Fontbonne is one. As a sponsored ministry, Fontbonne Academy furthers the Sisters' charism — a direct outgrowth of the order's experience in revolutionary France — of reconciliation, unity and non-violence in the school's academic programs, spirituality, and co-curricular activities.

Employment discrimination controversy

In January 2014, Fontbonne Academy allegedly rescinded a job offer made to Matthew Barrett. Barrett, who had been offered a position as food services director, claimed the head of school withdrew the job offer after Barrett listed his husband as his emergency contact on his hiring paperwork. "She said the Catholic religion doesn't recognize same-sex marriage, and that was her excuse." Because Massachusetts law protects gay people from employment discrimination, Barrett's attorneys allege that Fontbonne Academy is in violation of that law, and have filed suit on his behalf.[2]

Academics

  • 100% of graduates go to 4-year colleges.[3]
  • Seven AP courses: Art, Biology, Calculus, English, French, Spanish, and U.S. History.
  • 40 honors and AP courses are offered.
  • Over 200 online courses are offered through Virtual High School (VHS) with an onsite coordinator
  • Foreign languages: French, Latin and Spanish. (3 credits of one language are required for graduation).
  • Students complete one hundred hours (25 hours per year) of service outside of school to fulfill graduation requirements.
  • Standardized tests used to evaluate applicants: HSPT (High School Placement Test).
  • Seniors complete a Social Justice Project each year which is a capstone project, spanning every academic discipline, where they advocate for a social injustice and present to the student body in the annual Social Justice Fair.

Athletic program

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  • Basketball
  • Cheerleading
  • Cross country and track
  • Ice hockey
  • Indoor track and field
  • Golf
  • Lacrosse
  • Skiing
  • Soccer
  • Softball
  • Spring track and field
  • Step team
  • Swimming
  • Tennis
  • Volleyball
  • Intramural sports: Flag Football

Activities

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  • Ambassadors
  • Anime
  • Cooking Club
  • Creative Writing Club
  • Good Fountain Players Drama Club
  • International Cultural Club
  • Jazz Choir
  • Jubilee Council
  • Model UN
  • Fountain Friends
  • French Honor Society
  • National Honor Society
  • National Spanish Honor Society
  • Peer Education
  • Peer Ministry/Mentors
  • Select Chorus
  • Service Club (Campus Ministry)
  • Sewing Club
  • Spirit Committee
  • Student Anti-Genocide Coalition
  • Student Council
  • Stylus Literary Magazine
  • Yearbook

Alma mater

The school song was written by Therese Higgins, CSJ (lyrics) and Berj Zamkochian (music).

Memberships

Notable alumni

  • Tara OBrien – Broadway actress (Class of 1986)
  • Lois Roach – directed the Boston premiere of Crowns [1], Legacy of Light, Old Settler with the The Lyric Stage Company of Boston. (Class of 1979)
  • Dolly DiPesa – Managing partner of DiPesa & Company, CPAs, (Class of 1971)
  • Jen Mergel - Senior Curator of Contemporary Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (Class of 1994)
  • Patty Toland - Partner/co-Founder Filament Group (Class of 1983)
  • Gina McCarthy - Administrator of Environmental Protection Agency (Class of 1972)
  • Nina Liang - Quincy, MA at-large city councilor. (Class of 2006)

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ {{cite Although Fontbonne Academy was extremely impressed with Mr. Barrett, the Archdiocese of Boston, who funds Fontbonne and gives out multiple scholarships, wouldn't allow it. Fontbonne Academy did not mind that Mr. Barrett had a husband, it makes no difference! But, the Archdiocese of Boston wouldn't allow it. news|last=Valencia|first=Milton|title=Gay married man says Catholic school rescinded job offer|url=http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2014/01/29/dorchester-man-files-discrimination-against-catholic-school-says-lost-job-because-was-gay-married/0KswVITMsOrruEbhsOsOeN/story.html%7Caccessdate=13 February 2014|newspaper=Boston Globe|date=30 January 2014}}
  3. ↑ The Principal's View of Fontbonne Academy – Milton, Massachusetts – MA

External links

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