Catholic preschools offer something special: a Christ-centered, Catholic education focused on excellence. They form the intellect through academic excellence, the heart through prayer and service and the will through Catholic morality.
Catholic preschools not only inform students, but they also form and transform hearts, minds and souls to enter the world with a complete and integrated vision of life. When you walk in the door of a Catholic preschool, you may notice that it looks and feels different than other preschools. Children respect their teachers, the school community attends Mass regularly and students treat each other with kindness. These expressions of our Catholic faith are outward signs of our love for Jesus and manifestations of the virtues below — virtues we try to instill in all students. Catholic preschools transform society by shaping students into critical thinkers with mature moral values.
Responsibility: We accept obligations related to our own good and the good of others, and we act on those obligations in a manner suitable to their timely and satisfactory fulfillment. We are willingly accountable for what we do and say, and we seek to learn from our mistakes.
Perseverence: We spurn despair and strive to complete tasks to the best of our abilities, regardless of the difficulty. We respond creatively to overcome obstacles and ask for help when necessary.
Integrity: We are individuals of strong ethical values, who make consistently good choices in keeping with our knowledge of right and wrong. We seek the wisdom of others in cases of moral uncertainty. Integrity is opposed to the vices of hypocrisy, bragging and false humility.
Honesty: We never knowingly induce another to believe what is false. We are always truthful in what we say and do, regardless of the circumstances or consequences. Honesty is opposed to the vice of lying.
Courage: We always do what we know to be right despite fear, hardship and opposition. We resist negative peer pressure, defend our rights and the rights of others and encourage others to do the same.
Citizenship: We honor rules and laws and respond to authority in obedience. We give of our time and abilities to serve others. We uphold liberty and personal equality through respect for one another and for our country.
Humility: We recognize that we are sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father who through His love for us granted us gifts and talents that are specific to each person. Therefore, we do not brag or compare ourselves to others. We always strive to do our best whether we are recognized or not. Humility is opposed to both narcissism and pride on the one hand, and self-degradation on the other.
Friendship: We regard others and ourselves as deserving of kind and just treatment. Our conduct is considerate and polite. We look for the good in others and demonstrate compassion. Our attitude toward others and their property reflects the way we wish to be treated.
Wisdom: We learn from our mistakes and think before we act. We look to great thinkers, holy men and women and Saints of the past for guidance on making good choices. We are passionate about learning and appropriating the truth.
Magnanimity: This is the habit of striving for greatness. The word itself means being ‘great-souled’. It is the strength to pursue and undertake great and noble endeavors, inspired by the hope of attaining something difficult to reach. It is the strength which overcomes both presumption and pusillanimity. This virtue can be expressed as intellectual inquiry and servant leadership.
Mature Obedience: This is the habit of reverence, respect and honor for persons in a position of dignity and authority. It is opposed to both the vice of disobedience and the vice of unquestioning submission.
Religion: This is the habit of cultivating a healthy and reverent relationship with God and all things sacred. It also is the strength of being devoted to God in a relationship of loyalty. This virtue is the opposite of the vices of superstition, idolatry, sacrilege, perjury and false worship. Without this natural virtue, one tends toward a superstitious and psychologically unhealthy approach to spirituality.