Our Lady of Lourdes is an Early Fives through Eighth Grade Elementary School located in Northridge which is in the Northwest San Fernando Valley.
The Sisters of the Immaculate Heart opened the school in the fall of 1959, with an enrollment of 300 in grades one through three. Later, there were sixteen classrooms in use with a capacity enrollment of 800 students.
In 1971, at the direction of His Eminence Cardinal Manning, classroom use was cut to eight classes. A kindergarten opened in 1983, extened day care in 1994, and an Early Fives program was introduced in 2002. The Early Fives program recieved state licensing in 2006. Starting the 2001 school year, Our Lady of Lourdes had her first lay principal.
Since 2002, new additions and upgrades were made to the campus. Every classroom teacher is equipped with a server based network computer, the library adopted a computerized curculation program and new computers were added to the computer lab and library for student use. Phones were installed in all classrooms to allow for better communication throughout the school and safety fencing was added to the parking area to ensure safety and security of all. In 2006, new projectors and monitors were added to classrooms and new computer tables were added to the computer lab.
The student enrollment at Our Lady of Lourdes has remained stable over the past five years. We Currently have a student body of approximately 300 students, all of whom are Roman Catholic. Seventy percent of the students reside within the parish boundaries and the remaining thirty percent come from twelve neighboring parishes.
Our Lady of Lourdes is a true community of education. Teachers are dedicated professionals who actively pursue opportunities for professional growth. They are aided in their classroom endeavors by an equally supportive staff. Parents are actively involved in the school community, sharing both their treasure and talents. The pastor and associates support the school’s mission through their involvement in religious services and sacramental programs. Students in grades five through eight are departmentalized into seven fifty minute classes per day.
The academic preparedness of Our Lady of Lourdes’ students is evidenced in many ways. Students’ achievement on standardized tests meets or exceeds expected Archdiocesan Level B performance expectations. Achievement is further documented by the student work displayed in the classrooms and comprehensive lesson plans. The 100% acceptance rate of Our Lady of Lourdes’ graduates to area Catholic high schools serves as a reflection of the students’ academic preparedness.
In addition to the standards-based curriculum (National, State and Archdiocesan), we have a computer lab, liturgical music program and a physical education program as our electives. In the 2005-2006 school year, the Presidential Fitness program was reintroduced into the P.E. curriculum.
As of the 2004-2005 WCEA/WASC (Western Catholic Education Association/Western Association of Schools and Colleges) review, Our Lady of Lourdes School was honored with the maximum accreditation of six years.
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