Holy Child Academy
History and Mission of Holy Child Academy
Holy Child Academy is part of the Holy Child Network of Schools, encompassing 12 centers of learning in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and California. The Society of the Holy Child Jesus and the Holy Child Network of Schools were founded by Cornelia Connelly, a convert to Catholicism who opened her first school in 1846. While her ideas on education were seen as bold and revolutionary a century and a half ago, they are widely accepted today: that children learn best in an atmosphere of love and warmth rather than sternness and repression; and that the teacher-student relationship should be modeled on that of the parent and child.
Our Holy Child School is the fulfillment of a dream of three Long Island families that their young children could receive a Catholic education close to home. Together they purchased the former Bliss estate in Old Westbury and deeded it to the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. After the manor house was modified to hold classrooms, offices, a cafeteria, a chapel, and a convent, the school opened its doors to forty-four children on September 15, 1959.
Taught by sisters of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus, this first student body grew in “age, grace, and wisdom,” like the Holy Child, and the school thrived. Nearly fifty years later, our 14-acres campus holds two classroom buildings, O’Sullivan Hall and the newly renovated Early Childhood Center. The mansion that held the original school was renamed Connelly Hall in honor of our foundress. Two graceful and highly functional additions to the building are the Lourdes Garcia Conservatory (to the south, overlooking the athletic field where polo ponies once galloped) and the Mother Mary Gabriel Library (to the west).
We are fortunate to be grounded and guided by the goals of the Holy Child Schools. They were set down in very different times, but in this new millennium, with all of its challenges and complexities, they seem more relevant and more urgently needed than ever. They are:
• To foster a faith commitment that engenders a joyous, personal response to God in the challenges of the world.
• To deepen an understanding of Christian community.
• To provide an intellectually challenging and creative program of study that fosters academic excellence.
• To work for Christian principles of justice, peace, and compassion in every facet of life.
• To create a learning climate based on trust and reverence for the dignity and uniqueness of each person.
• To further the integral human development of all who participate in the life of the school.
Mindful of its Christian heritage, Holy Child also stresses enduring spiritual values that help students maintain a strong moral awareness in a challenging world.
A warm bond of closeness unites faculty, students, parents and alumni; a spirit of commitment sets Holy Child apart as an extraordinary place to learn.