Villa Walsh Academy is a private
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
college preparatory school
A college-preparatory school (usually shortened to preparatory school or prep school) is a type of secondary school. The term refers to public, private independent or parochial schools primarily designed to prepare students for higher educatio ...
for girls in
seventh
Seventh is the ordinal form of the number seven.
Seventh may refer to:
* Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution
* A fraction (mathematics), , equal to one of seven equal parts
Film and television
*"The Seventh", a second-season e ...
through
twelfth grade
Twelfth grade, 12th grade, senior year, or grade 12 is the final year of secondary school in most of North America. In other regions, it may also be referred to as class 12 or Year 13. In most countries, students are usually between the ages of 17 ...
s located in
Morristown, New Jersey, United States, conducted by the
Religious Teachers Filippini. The school is located within the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson
The Diocese of Paterson is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the United States that encompasses Passaic, Morris, and Sussex counties in northern New Jersey. Most of this territory lies to the west of th ...
, operating on an independent basis. Its brother school is
Delbarton School
Delbarton School is a private all-male Catholic Church, Catholic college-preparatory school in Morristown, New Jersey for young men in seventh grade, seventh through twelfth grades. It is an independent school directed by the Benedictine monks ...
, with which it shares a transportation system.
Villa Walsh Academy is overseen by the
New Jersey Department of Education and has accredited by the
Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1987; the school's accreditation expires in May 2023.
[Villa Walsh Academy]
Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary Secondary Schools. Accessed January 26, 2022. The school is a member of the
New Jersey Association of Independent Schools The New Jersey Association of Independent Schools (NJAIS) serves independent elementary and secondary schools throughout the state of New Jersey. The Association consists of 70 member schools with a total enrollment of approximately 26,000 students. ...
.
[2010-11 Profile]
Villa Walsh Academy. Accessed June 17, 2011.
Admissions at Villa Walsh Academy is one of the most selective in the state of New Jersey, with 50 students enrolled from 210 applicants.
[ As of the 2017–18 school year, the school had an enrollment of 227 students and 29.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 7.6:1. The school's student body was 88.1% (200) White, 7.% (16) Asian, 2.6% (6) Hispanic, 0.9% (2) two or more races and 0.4% (1) Black.][School data for Villa Walsh Academy]
National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed September 1, 2020.
Mission statement
"The Mission of Villa Walsh Academy, a college preparatory Catholic school, is to inspire our young women to expand their intellectual breadth and depth and to enhance their sense of local and global concern, empowering them to influence their world in a Christian manner."
Curriculum
Villa Walsh Academy coursework covers theology, mathematics, the sciences, including computer science, humanities, social sciences and the fine arts; presenting a rigorous challenge and solid preparation for a college-bound population. Also offered are Advanced Placement preparation, honors sections, independent study, and academic accommodation for gifted and musically talented students. However, special arrangements for gifted students not capable of being fulfilled within the existing offerings of the academy should be seriously discussed with the administration prior to enrollment.
The school offers Advanced Placement (AP) courses in AP English Language and Composition
Advanced Placement (AP) English Language and Composition (also known as AP English Language, APENG, or AP Lang) is a course and examination offered by the College Board as part of the Advanced Placement Program. When AP exams were first impleme ...
, AP Calculus
Advanced Placement (AP) Calculus (also known as AP Calc, Calc AB / Calc BC or simply AB / BC) is a set of two distinct Advanced Placement calculus courses and exams offered by the American nonprofit organization College Board. AP Calculus AB cover ...
, AP Biology
Advanced Placement (AP) Biology (also known as AP Bio) is an Advanced Placement biology course and exam offered by the College Board in the United States. For the 2012–2013 school year, the College Board unveiled a new curriculum with a greate ...
, AP Chemistry
Advanced Placement (AP) Chemistry (also known as AP Chem) is a course and examination offered by the College Board as a part of the Advanced Placement Program to give American and Canadian high school students the opportunity to demonstrate thei ...
, AP Physics
In the United States, Advanced Placement (AP) Physics collectively refers to the College Board Advanced Placement Program courses and exams covering various areas of physics. These are intended to be equivalent to university courses that use bes ...
, AP French Language
Advanced Placement (AP) French Language and Culture (also known as AP French Lang, AP French Language or AP French) is a course offered by the College Board to high school students in the United States as an opportunity to earn placement credit ...
, AP Italian Language and Culture
Advanced Placement (AP) Italian Language and Culture (also known as AP Italian Language or AP Italian) is a course offered by the American College Board as part of the Advanced Placement Program. It is intended to give students a thorough backgrou ...
, AP Spanish Language
Advanced Placement (AP) Spanish Language and Culture (also known as AP Spanish Language, AP Spanish V, or AP Spanish) is a course and examination offered by the College Board in the United States education system as part of the Advanced Placeme ...
, AP United States History
Advanced Placement (AP) United States History (also known as AP U.S. History or APUSH () is a college-level course and examination offered by College Board as part of the Advanced Placement Program.
Course
The AP U.S. History course is designe ...
, AP European History
Advanced Placement (AP) European History (also known as AP Euro, or APEH), is a course and examination offered by the College Board through the Advanced Placement Program. This course is for high school students who are interested in a first year ...
and AP Computer Science
In the United States, Advanced Placement Computer Science (commonly shortened to AP Comp Sci) is a suite of Advanced Placement courses and examinations covering areas of computer science. They are offered by the College Board to high school studen ...
.
Awards and recognition
In 2010, graduates received almost $5 million in scholarships and grant money. Between 2006 and 2010, 11 students were National Merit Scholar Finalists and 62 were National Merit Scholar Commended Students.[
In 2006, two students had a perfect 800 in the ]SAT
The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and scoring have changed several times; originally called the Scholastic Aptitude Test, it was later called the Schol ...
on critical reading; one had a perfect 800 in math, two had a perfect 800 in writing.[
]
Athletics
The Villa Walsh Academy Vikings[Villa Walsh Academy]
New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association. Accessed January 22, 2017. participates in the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference
The Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) is a sports league that includes 39 public and private high schools from Morris County, New Jersey, Morris County, Sussex County, New Jersey, Sussex County and Warren County, New Jersey, Warren County ...
, which is comprised of public and private high schools in Morris, Sussex and Warren
A warren is a network of wild rodent or lagomorph, typically rabbit burrows. Domestic warrens are artificial, enclosed establishment of animal husbandry dedicated to the raising of rabbits for meat and fur. The term evolved from the medieval A ...
counties and was established following a reorganization of sports leagues in Northern New Jersey by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA). Before the NJSIAA's 2010 realignment, the school had competed in the Northern Hills Conference The Northern Hills Conference, was an athletic conference of nineteen private and public high schools located in Essex, Morris and Passaic counties in Northern New Jersey.
There were nineteen member Northern Hills Conference schools, split into t ...
an athletic conference comprised of public and private high schools located in Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...
, Morris and Passaic
Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city had a total population of 70,537, ranking as the 16th largest municipality in New Jersey and an increase of 656 from the 69,7 ...
counties. With 304 students in grades 10-12, the school was classified by the NJSIAA for the 2019–20 school year as Non-Public B for most athletic competition purposes, which included schools with an enrollment of 37 to 366 students in that grade range (equivalent to Group I for public schools).
Villa Walsh Academy won the ShopRite Cup Group B title in 2013–14, with first-place finishes in indoor relays and third-place finishes in cross-country, swimming (tied), indoor track and spring track and field, plus bonus points for having no disqualifications across all three athletic seasons. The school was recognized as the winner of the 2015-16 ShopRite Cup in Group B, behind first-place finishes in soccer, cross-country, winter track relays and spring track and field, second-place finishes in winter track, and swimming, plus bonus points for having no disqualifications in the fall, winter and spring seasons. The team won the Group B ShopRite Cup in 2016–17.
The swimming team won the Non-Public B state championship in 2006.
The tennis team won the Non-Public B state championship in 2008 and 2009, defeating Ranney School both years in the final match of the tournament. The 2009 team repeated as Non-Public B champion, defeating Ranney School 5-0 in the finals at Mercer County Park
The Richard J. Coffee Mercer County Park is a recreational park located in Mercer County, New Jersey – mostly within West Windsor Township, but also with small western sections extending into Hamilton and Lawrence Townships. Originally and st ...
.
The cross-country team won the Non-Public B state title in 2009 and 2014–2017 and 2019.
The track team won the indoor relay championship from 2013-2016.
The soccer team won the Non-Public B state championship in 2014 and 2015, defeating Moorestown Friends School both years in the tournament final.
The spring track team was Non-Public Group B state champion in 2016.
Notable alumni
* Kathryn Tappen
Kathryn Tappen (born April 9, 1981) is an American sportscaster. Tappen works on NBC Sports Group's coverage of the Notre Dame Football, '' Football Night in America'', Golf, as well as the Summer and Winter Olympic Games among others.
Early li ...
(born 1981), sportscaster who works on NBC Sports Group
NBC Sports Group is a division of NBCUniversal that is responsible for NBC Sports' media properties, encompassing the NBC television network's sports division as well as day-to-day operation of the company's sports-oriented cable networks and oth ...
's coverage of hockey and football.[Havsy, Jane]
"Morristown native to work Notre Dame sideline for NBC"
'' Daily Record'', September 4, 2015. Accessed January 4, 2018. "Tappen grew up participating in many Morristown rec leagues and watching the NFL on Sundays with her family. A distance runner and basketball player at Villa Walsh, Tappen set the Rutgers record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase."
References
External links
Villa Walsh Academy official website
Villa Walsh Academy
National Center for Education Statistics
Religious Teachers Filippini (U.S.)
official website
{{Authority control
Girls' schools in New Jersey
Morristown, New Jersey
New Jersey Association of Independent Schools
Private high schools in Morris County, New Jersey
Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson
Catholic secondary schools in New Jersey