Why choose an All Girls School?

Research shows that young women in a single-gender environment excel academically and demonstrate increased self-confidence and leadership abilities.  Robert Felker, founder of Women’s Schools Together, President of Seton Academy, Chicago, reports that, “The confidence nurtured in single-gender schools leads to academic risk-taking, which results in achievement.”

An alumna of an all-female high school recalls her experience this way: “if a girl answered incorrectly or sang off-key, her current heartthrob wasn’t there to hear it.  No one waited for a boy’s approval, or held back in a discussion because she’d heard that boys didn’t like smart girls.”  Furthermore, the “all-female environment offered me some time to build up strength before entering a world where the men’s voices command more attention than women’s.”

“The fact is that young women who graduate from both single-gender and coed high schools still step out into an everyday world of inequality.  The difference is that the young women who have attended an all girls’ school have had four years in which their everyday world has been one of female class officers, newspaper editors, math whizzes and athletic stars.  They have been submersed in an educational culture, which in contrast to that of their coed counterparts, is characterized by smaller class sizes, more ambitious and academically oriented peers, and statistically significant gains in academic achievement.  More satisfied with their schools and the quality of their teaching, more open-minded about their roles and their possibilities, and relieved of some of the social pressures of adolescence, graduates of Catholic girls’ high schools are well prepared to live the values of their faith in their chosen roles as citizens, career women and mothers.

“Moreover, the strong effects of Catholic girls’ schools are sustained into college and beyond.  Graduates of girls’ high schools tend to have higher education aspirations, to attend more selective colleges, to hold less stereotypical attitudes and to be especially likely to attend graduate school.

“Catholic girls’ high schools are proven to be especially empowering environments for young women.  Clearly, these schools are invaluable laboratories and resources for the education of women in and for the 21st century.”

Why choose an All Girls School?

• According to research, young women in a single gender environment will excel academically and develop self-confidence and leadership abilities.
• Classes are smaller; peers are focused on academics.
• Students tend to set higher educational goals for themselves and demonstrate less stereotypical attitudes about gender roles.

Why Choose a Catholic All Girls School?

• The environment is value-based and spiritual growth is encouraged.

• The academic, personal and spiritual growth of young women is the mission of Our Lady of Mercy Academy.
• Each student is valued as a unique individual; her specific talents are nurtured.
• Self-confidence is developed in an atmosphere designed to meet the unique needs of young women.

Young women who are interested in attending Our Lady of Mercy Academy are encouraged to attend the open house held in the fall of each school year.  Arrangements may also be made for a prospective student to visit the Academy and attend classes for a day.  If you wish further information or would like to visit, please call Mrs. June Kennedy at [516] 921-1047 ext. 12.

To be considered for admission to the Freshman Class, the student must successfully complete the eighth grade and take the Catholic High School Entrance Examination.  An application for this test and other details on the Co-Op exam are available at all Catholic grade schools, Religious Education Centers or at Our Lady of Mercy Academy [516] 921-1047 ext. 12.

Our Lady of Mercy does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed or national or ethnic origins in its educational, admissions or financial policies, activities, athletics or school administered programs.

Tuition for the 2009-2010 school year is $7,400. Tuition may be paid quarterly or in full. There is an initial registration fee of $600 for new entrants, a re-registration fee $200 for current students and school fee of $400, which are non-refundable.

Transfer students are accepted on the basis of credits earned in academic subjects, testing results, the motivation of the student, plus favorable recommendations from the student’s previous school.

Accreditation

Our Lady of Mercy Academy holds accreditation from:

• New York State University Board of Regents
• Diocese of Rockville Centre Department of Education
• Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools