Saint Lawrence Academy was a college-preparatory

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

high school in

Santa Clara, California Santa Clara (; Spanish for " Saint Clare") is a city in Santa Clara County, California. The city's population was 127,647 at the 2020 census, making it the eighth-most populous city in the Bay Area. Located in the southern Bay Area, the cit ...

, United States, founded in 1975. The school was marketed for its small size with close interaction among students, administration, faculty, and counselors. It was affiliated with the Diocese of San Jose. It closed in 2016.

Academics

As a college preparatory school, Saint Lawrence Academy's graduation requirements included coursework in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

, social studies,

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

, foreign language,

fine art In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwork ...

s, religious studies,

computers A computer is a machine that can be programmed to carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as programs. These programs ...

and

physical education Physical education, often abbreviated to Phys Ed. or P.E., is a subject taught in schools around the world. It is usually taught during primary and secondary education, and encourages psychomotor learning by using a play and movement explorati ...

. The school also offered

Advanced Placement Advanced Placement (AP) is a program in the United States and Canada created by the College Board which offers college-level curricula and examinations to high school students. American colleges and universities may grant placement and course ...

and various honors courses. Languages included

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

, and

American Sign Language American Sign Language (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant sign language of Deaf communities in the United States of America and most of Anglophone Canadians, Anglophone Canada. ASL is a complete and organized visual lang ...

Athletics

Approximately 70% of Saint Lawrence Academy students participated in athletics. The Celtics fielded 14 teams in 11 sports, including

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

, cross country,

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

, and

volleyball Volleyball 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. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

. Saint Lawrence Academy's Cross Country team began in 1988 and competed in the

Private School Athletic League Private School Athletic League is a high school athletic conference that is part of the CIF Central Coast Section of the California Interscholastic Federation. It comprises 16 small private and/or charter high schools generally between San Jose ...

(PSAL). The school earned 10 individual qualifications to the Division 5 CIF State Cross Country Championships. Celtics runners competed in State Championship races nine times since 2000. Three former athletes finished runner-up in the Division 5

Central Coast Section The Central Coast Section (CCS) is the governing body of public and private high school athletics in the portion of California encompassing San Mateo County, Santa Clara County, Monterey County, San Benito County, Santa Cruz County and a few priv ...

(CCS): Omar Ahmad, 2nd place, 2001 and 2002; Amina Ahmad, 2nd place, 2004 (3rd place in 2003); and Carlos Chavez, 2nd place, 2007. Omar Ahmad competed in cross country and track and field for

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university's campus surrounds the historic Mis ...

. In 2010, the cross country team went undefeated during the regular league season and were co-league champions of the PSAL, representing the best overall team effort on the largest team in school history (33 athletes). The 2010 team also broke numerous school records, including overall team size, earning a perfect score in a league meet (JV league finals with a score of 15), two first place race finishers in two league meet races in the same meet (varsity and JV boys individual champions) and many more. One very important school record was established by the girls—having five girls stay together all season to finish with the first ever girls team in school history. Saint Lawrence Academy Track and Field also began in 1998, and competed as a supplemental member of the

West Bay Athletic League The West Bay Athletic League is a high school athletic conference established in 2002 as part of the CIF Central Coast Section of the California Interscholastic Federation. It comprises twelve private high schools generally around San Mateo Count ...

(WBAL). The Celtics earned a total of 11 CCS trials qualifications. Celtics athletes have competed in the CCS trials in 2001, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and qualified two athletes at the end of the 2011 season. The 2011 track & field team had a roster of 58 athletes and 4 student managers, representing 25% of the student body. One former student is the 11th best pole vaulter in CCS history and later member of the

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

Big Red track & field team, Josh Cusick. During his time at St. Lawrence, Cusick earned All-American status twice: in the decathlon at the 2007 USATF National Junior Olympic Championships in Walnut, California, and in the pentathlon at the 2008 National Scholastic Indoor Championships in New York City. During his junior year, Cusick finished 6th in the state of California at the State Championships in the pole vault. During his senior year he jumped a school record of 16–00.75 and became the 11th best all-time pole vaulter in the CCS. He finished his high school career with a total of 16 school records (400m, 800m, 1000m, 60m/65m/110m/300m/400m hurdles, long jump, high jump, discus, pole vault, 4 × 400m relay, javelin, pentathlon, and decathlon). In February and May 2011, as a sophomore at Cornell, he became the Ivy League's reigning men's heptathlon runner-up and men's decathlon runner-up at the indoor and outdoor Heptagonal Championships, respectively. Saint Lawrence Academy's Baseball team has also been invited, perennially, to the CIF-CCS championships. The soccer team from the 1995–96 school year made the CCS playoffs for the first time in school history.

History

In , Saint Lawrence Academy was founded.

Closure

On , the Diocese of San Jose announced the closure of Saint Lawrence Academy at the conclusion of the school year due to "a significant accumulated deficit, declining enrollment levels, and the inability to raise funds to stabilize and sustain operations".

References

External links

* {{authority control Educational institutions established in 1975 1975 establishments in California Educational institutions disestablished in 2016 2016 disestablishments in California Roman Catholic Diocese of San Jose in California Catholic secondary schools in California Education in Santa Clara, California High schools in Santa Clara County, California