Notre Dame High School (NDWH) is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, co-educational college preparatory school located in

West Haven, Connecticut West Haven is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, located on the coast of Long Island Sound. The city is part of the South Central Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut, South Central Connecticut Planning Region. At the 2 ...

, a coastal suburb of

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

History

Notre Dame High School was founded in 1946 by the

Congregation of Holy Cross The Congregation of Holy Cross (), abbreviated CSC, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men founded in 1837 by Basil Moreau, in Le Mans, France. Moreau also founded the Marianites of Holy Cross for women, n ...

, the same

religious institute In the Catholic Church, a religious institute is "a society in which members, according to proper law, pronounce public religious vows, vows, either perpetual or temporary which are to be renewed, however, when the period of time has elapsed, a ...

that established the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

. The school's name derives from the French ''Notre Dame'', meaning " Our Lady". Situated on a hill, the school originally comprised several buildings, one of which is Harugari Hall (now in the possession of the neighboring

University of New Haven The University of New Haven (UNH) is a private university in West Haven, Connecticut, United States. History The University of New Haven was founded in 1920 as the New Haven YMCA Junior College, a division of Northeastern University, which sha ...

). Announced in 2007, the new 28,000-square-foot Arts, Technology, and Spiritual Center was officially opened for the 2012–13 academic school year. On September 16, 2012, Reverend Henry J. Mansell, Archbishop of Hartford, presided over the blessing and dedication of this addition, which houses the Saint Brother André Bessette Chapel, the Maureen and George Collins ’58 Auditorium, an enhanced Music Room (which includes practice rooms and a technology room), a new Library and Media Center, and a Technology Classroom. In 2014, Notre Dame High School began raising funds for the "Field of Dreams" project, which aimed to create new football practice fields and renovate the outdoor track.

Shift to co-education

Notre Dame High School has been an all-boys school since 1946. On April 3, 2024, the school announced that it will shift to a

co-education Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

model and will begin enrolling girls in fall 2025. Notre Dame cited creating a "sustainable enrollment" as central to its decision to move to co-ed. According to the school, it is the 19th of 22 schools founded in the Holy Cross tradition to become co-educational.

Administration and academics

Located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hartford, Notre Dame is operated independently by the

. The school is run day-to-day on a

Headmaster A headmaster/headmistress, head teacher, head, school administrator, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school. Role While s ...

- Principal model. Notre Dame draws a diverse student body from across the New Haven County area and beyond. Its sister school is Sacred Heart Academy, located in

Hamden, Connecticut Hamden is a New England town, town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The town's nickname is "The Land of the Sleeping Giant (Connecticut), Sleeping Giant". The town is part of the South Central Connecticut Planning Region, Connecti ...

. The teaching faculty is composed predominantly of laypeople, though there are still a handful of

Brothers A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingl ...

. Both "extended study" and "semester at college" programs are available to qualified students during their senior year.

Athletics

Known as the "Green Knights," Notre Dame High School's athletes boast a rich tradition of success with notable football, ice hockey, baseball, tennis, golf, basketball, swim, and track programs. The school also competes in wrestling, lacrosse, and most recently, crew. Notre Dame is a member of the Southern Connecticut Conference. Its

gym A gym, short for gymnasium (: gymnasiums or gymnasia), is an indoor venue for exercise and sports. The word is derived from the ancient Greek term " gymnasion". They are commonly found in athletic and fitness centres, and as activity and learn ...

nasium is decorated with several league and state championship banners and the names of All-State athletes.

Notable alumni

Tom Condon Thomas Joseph Condon (born October 26, 1952) is an American football Sports agent, agent and former right guard. He was named the most powerful agent in American football by ''Sporting News'' in 2006 and heads the Football Division of Creative A ...

, Class of 1970 – former NFL football player * Daniel Cosgrove, Class of 1989 – actor * Ioannis Dangerousage, Class of 1976 – artist famous for rock album covers * Matt DelGuidice, Class of 1985 – former

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hockey player * John DeStefano, Jr., Class of 1973 – former Mayor of

* Bob DuPuy, Class of 1964 – former

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

and

Chief Operating Officer A chief operating officer (COO), also called chief operations officer, is an executive in charge of the daily operations of an organization (i.e. personnel, resources, and logistics). COOs are usually second-in-command immediately after the C ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

* Sean Goldrich, Class of 2010 – Assistant Coach, Football, University of Delaware * Alan Catello Grazioso, Class of 1987 -

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

-winning television producer, director, and editor * James J. Griffin, Class of 1967, author of traditional

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

and Texas Ranger novels * Michael A. Invernale, Class of 2002 – award winning technology transfer professional * David Laflamme, Class of 1987 – Head Coach, Men's Rugby, Brown University * George S. Logan, Class of 1987 - Connecticut State Senator * Frankie Lombardi, Class of 1988 – drummer in the Dickey Betts Band * John Moffitt, Class of 2006 – NFL football player * Leigh Montville, Class of 1961 – journalist and columnist * Paul Pacelli, Class of 1979 – radio talk show host * Wayne Pacelle, Class of 1983 – former president and CEO of

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* John M. Picard, Class of 1983 – former Mayor of

(2005–2013) * Nick Pietrosante, Class of 1954 – former All-American for

and NFL football player * Tarek Saleh, Class of 1993 – former NFL football player * Abdou Toure, Class of 2026 – Five star basketball recruit * Tremont Waters, Class of 2017 – former LSU point guard, drafted in the 2nd round of the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

Draft by the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

References

External links

*
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hartford
{{authority control Boys' schools in the United States Educational institutions established in 1946 Holy Cross secondary schools Catholic secondary schools in Connecticut Schools in New Haven County, Connecticut Buildings and structures in West Haven, Connecticut 1946 establishments in Connecticut