Chesterton Academy of Blessed Michael McGivney, a new classical high school rooted in the truths of the Catholic faith, welcomed its first students recently with a founding class of ninth-grade students.
The first day of school was marked by a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a blessing of the school led by Father Michael Dolan, Pastor in Solidum and Moderator of Blessed Michael McGivney Parish in New Haven.
“Chesterton Academy of Blessed Michael McGivney is part of a broader movement to invigorate and reform education,” Headmaster Eric Bradley said in his opening remarks. “Chesterton Academies are affordable and therefore accessible. The curriculum celebrates the Christian heritage of the West and integrates subjects so that children do not become mere repositories of facts but young men and women of wisdom.”
As part of its program, the academy offers daily Mass and opportunities for confession and Eucharistic adoration, he said.
The school will begin with a single ninth-grade class and add a new freshman class each year until it reaches a full four-year high school.
Chesterton Academy, located at the Blessed Michael McGivney Pilgrimage Center in New Haven, is part of the growing Chesterton Schools Network, with nearly 100 schools across the country, according to school representatives.
Named for British-born Catholic journalist, social critic and apologist G.K. Chesterton, the academies emphasize an integrated classical approach to education, with a curriculum centered on theology, classical philosophy and literature, history, mathematics, science and the arts.
The school’s location offers access for students throughout the area. It is off Interstate 95 and a block from the State Street train station, making the school is accessible to students traveling from Fairfield County via Metro-North, as well as students traveling from communities to the east via CT Rail, according to school representatives.
“We are extremely grateful to the Knights of Columbus for allowing us to rent a portion of this building,” said Board Co-chair Kelly Feiler. “The board had been praying for Father McGivney’s intercession to help us find a home and lo and behold, we found ourselves moving into a building where his name is literally on the front door.”
For some 18 months, the academy board searched for a permanent home, and on August 14, the anniversary of Blessed Michael McGivney’s death, the school finalized the lease for its new home at the Pilgrimage Center.
Alicia Formato, whose son is a member of the school’s founding class, said, “Of course Blessed Michael McGivney would send his Knights to help open this school.”
What sets Chesterton Academy apart is its focus on truth, beauty and goodness, school officials said. The Catholic faith is central to the school’s mission, from the artwork throughout its halls to the teachings of the faith woven throughout its rigorous academic curriculum.
Tuition for the 2027-28 academic year is $10,230 (which includes book and supply fees), making it an affordable option for families looking for a faith-filled Catholic education, representatives of the academy said. In addition, financial aid is available.
For more information about Chesterton Academy of Blessed Michael McGivney, to schedule a Shadow Day or to arrange for a Chesterton Academy representative to visit a school or parish, contact [email protected].
