By DAVE DOMESCIK | Staff Writer

MONTEVALLO – St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church, a local parish based in Montevallo, is planning on opening a new elementary school in the fall of 2025.

The school is accepting students in kindergarten, first grade and second grade for the 2025-26 school year. Each grade has 18 slots open for application. Once an application is approved, there is a $40 registration fee per child, or $100 fee per family.

Michael Fisher, the principal of the new school, gave background on what inspired the church to open a school.

“The school’s inspiration came from a couple of different sources,” Fisher said. “First, our parish has steadily been growing over the last several years which has led to an increase in enrollment in our Faith Formation (Sunday School) program and pushed our facilities to capacity. Having our own elementary school would help to alleviate the pressure on the facilities by having students attend the school instead.”

Fisher continued by adding that growth isn’t the only reason the church is creating the school.

“Another major factor in the decision to start a school was simply the need of the community,” Fisher said. “Our pastor, Father Brad Jantz, had several experiences with families wanting their older children (17 or 18 years old) to be baptized. Because of the traditions of the church, Father Jantz needed to meet with these young adults to ensure they understood the tenets of the faith. Through these conversations, it became clear that these young adults were lacking in their basic knowledge of the faith due to language barriers at home and the lack of accessible Catholic schools in the southern part of Shelby County and beyond.”

“St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic School welcomes all people as we welcome Christ, to pass on our rich heritage of Catholic faith from one generation to the next, and root education in the life of Christ so that each person may be filled with the fullness of God’s love and flourish to His glory,” read an official statement on the school’s mission.

The vision statement of the school is “Through Him who is able to do immeasurably more than could be asked for or imagined, we will shine the glory of God in Christ Jesus in the Church and in our community to all generations by providing access to Catholic education of St. Thomas the Apostle Parish.”

Fisher explained how each of these statements explains the purpose behind the school.

“As you can see through the mission and vision statements of the school, we are trusting in the goodness of God as the universal Catholic church calls us to do,” Fisher said. “The church also calls us to spread the word and love of Christ to those we encounter and those entrusted to the pastors of the various parishes across the globe. As Father Jantz experienced with these families, the transmission of faith, the word and love of God, did not occur easily among some of the faithful. This is where the school, an extension of the ministry of the parish, steps in to ensure the youth of our church community grow up to know the love of God and cultivate that relationship with Him.”

Fisher added that there are several qualities setting the school apart from others in the area, beginning with its affordability.

“We are exploring various funding sources to help make this school sustainable and affordable without having to rely predominantly on tuition,” Fisher said. “Options like the new CHOOSE Act (which pays $7,000 per student for qualifying families), scholarship granting organizations (which can pay up to $10,000 per student for qualifying families) and other private funding sources will make this school viable for families who did not believe private school was an option for them based on their income level.”

The school will also have the opportunity to serve communities outside of Montevallo, according to Fisher.

“The church serves a wide range of communities,” Fisher said. “While we of course have a large number of families from Montevallo, Calera, Alabaster and Helena, we also pull families from Jemison and Clanton and points beyond. For these families that live deep in Shelby County and beyond, getting to Our Lady of the Valley or Prince of Peace becomes very difficult because of the distance. These same families can’t go further south for a Catholic education unless they want to go to Montgomery. So we stand out as a viable option because of our unique location.”

Furthermore, the school’s Catholic roots provide a unique opportunity in faith-based education.

“The major difference between us and the other elementary schools in the area is our Catholic identity,” Fisher said. “We will be offering a Christian education through the Catholic tradition which the public schools in the area cannot. We will be able to help our students grow academically and spiritually.”

Fisher gave a preview of what the curriculum at the school will look like as he already has experience in Catholic education.

“The curriculum will involve religion/theology as a core class with a set of standards like other Catholic schools in the diocese,” Fisher said. “My focus is incorporating religious formation throughout the other subjects taught much like I tried to do when I taught English at John Carroll Catholic High School in Birmingham.”

Fisher added that the school is looking into special programs, such as the arts and foreign languages.

“We already have a couple of teachers interested in helping to offer music and art to our students to build on that well-rounded, holistic education,” Fisher said. “We are currently exploring options and ideas regarding STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and how to offer that to our students as soon as possible. In regards to foreign languages, we will want to offer Spanish to help build on the diversity of our church family. Father Jantz has also mentioned the desire to offer Latin which would help our students to understand certain aspects and phrases in our Mass.”

Fisher gave details on what the facilities of the school will look like as well.

“Thanks to some very good foresight by previous pastors, we already have a building on site that serves our Faith Formation program and was clearly designed with the intention of being a school for the church,” Fisher said. “This is one thing that has really made this venture possible because we have room to grow for a few years before we absolutely need a new building. That being said, the reality is we need to start planning the construction of a proper school building in order to have room for the major growth we are expecting and to have facilities such as a gym. All of this mirrors the growth our church has been blessed with over the last several years and has been worked into the site plan for the growth of our campus which will include the construction of a new worship space as well.”

Fisher concluded by explaining the school’s long-term goals.

“Our long-term goals consist of expanding the offerings that we offer,” Fisher said. “We are only starting with three grade levels. We want to eventually go all the way through eighth grade and go as young as 3-K. By following through on these goals and working to make the school affordable, we can be a new, viable option for private Christian education in the communities we serve. From a Catholic diocese perspective, our impact is simply to expand access to Catholic education to areas and families who have not had this opportunity as easily before.”

For more information on St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church’s new school, visit Stthomascatholic.com/school, or contact Principal Michael Fisher at principal@stthomascatholic.school.