High School

Rhetoric Stage- Grades 9-12

Our Classical High School is Now Accredited!

Our Vision

In 2020, St. Monica Catholic School initiated a small, unaccredited high school pilot program to meet the needs of families who desired a Catholic, classical, Liberal Arts curriculum that moved beyond the Grammar (lower school and Logic stage (middle school) into the Rhetoric stage (high school).

Through intellectual and spiritual friendship with fellow classmates and faculty mentors, students explore universal, human questions from the Western Intellectual Tradition that have occupied Catholic thought and culture for two millennia. We seek to help families form young people who seek virtue and love all that is true, good, and beautiful. This pursuit should yield happy lives which experience true joy and delight.

During its first three years of existence, St. Monica High School has operated as a pilot program under the Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle and a homeschool extension under Washington State law. We were granted canonical status in the Spring of 2023 and are now accredited with the Western Catholic Education Association. We’re excited to continue to grow the mission of educating high school students in the eternal verities, guided by the wisdom of the Catholic Church!

Classical Education

The recent revival of classical education is an attempt to return to the rich methods and timeless content of the Seven Liberal Arts as manifest within the Catholic, Western Intellectual Tradition. Emphasis is placed upon fine things, such as great works of literature, beautiful music and paintings, the integration of knowledge across disciplines upon the idea of the good, cultivating a sacramental imagination, and providing space for contemplation and leisure.

At St. Monica, our students read primary source materials, explore and refine their thought in frequent Socratic seminars, as well as evaluate diverse visions of the good life by comparison to the Magisterium. St. Monica is a member of the Institute for Catholic Liberal Education, a network of Catholic classical schools across the nation.

Schedule & Descriptions 2023-2024

Click the tabs below for the St. Monica High School curriculum overview, current schedule and course descriptions. The 2023-2024 schedule will follow the Modern Year course plan.

Faith life

In addition to formal coursework in Catholic theology and spirituality, students participate in the faith life of the larger St. Monica Catholic School by attending Mass each Friday and Eucharistic Adoration on the first Monday of each month. Students and families are encouraged to attend daily Mass at the parish before school Monday through Thursday. This year, we added a service-learning component and retreat experience.

Class size

Our high school currently enrolls 10 students per class grade. Our enrollment will not exceed 12 students per grade (or 48 students total) in order to facilitate the kind of intellectual friendship necessary for classical conversations.

Extracurricular activities

The social atmosphere at St. Monica resembles that of a family. In lieu of conventional offerings such as prom, or student government, our school parents have organized gatherings that support students’ friendship in Christ and maturity as young men and women. These include weekly picnics, a pumpkin-carving evening, a Christmas party, service projects, and an Easter celebration. As we grow, we hope to offer extracurriculars such as theater, choir, and debate.

Athletics

Our present size precludes organized sporting activities. However, under WIAA policy, students are able to compete for their local public high school in any sport of their choosing. If the program were to grow to capacity (48 students), we would then explore fielding small teams or partnering with other independent Mercer Island high schools to do so.

Tuition

Tuition for St. Monica Catholic High School for the 2023-2024 school year is $15,100. Tuition increases approximately 5% per year. This is considerably lower than the existing Catholic high schools in the Seattle area, where tuition ranges from $18,275 to $39,500. We do have tuition assistance available and try to make St. Monica High School accessible for all families. No exam required.

Tuition and Fees

Admission Dates

Wednesday, September 27, 2023, at 6:00 PM
Sunday, January 28, 2024, 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Catholic High School Information Night
Learn about the Seattle area Catholic high schools through this virtual event. Register here.

Applications Open for the 2024-2025 school year: September 25, 2023
Applications Due ($150) for the 2024-2025 school year: January 4, 2024
Tuition Assistance Application Due: January 4, 2024
Acceptance Notification: February 15, 2024
Registration Fee ($250) Due: February 29, 2024
Final Transcript Due: June 30, 2024

APPLY NOW

Contact

For information regarding curriculum and program development, please contact Marybeth Bohm, Principal at mbohm@stmonicasea.org or Brett Bertucio, Vice Principal, at bbertucio@stmonicasea.org.

For information and inquiries regarding application and enrollment, please contact Jamie North, Advancement Director, at jnorth@stmonicasea.org.

SCHEDULE A TOUR

Schedule & Descriptions

HS Curriculum Cycle

St. Monica High School provides a core curriculum of high school courses with a classical pedagogy and a traditional liberal arts curriculum. At St. Monica, parents will find a school that helps prepare their children to model Christian virtue, communicate effectively, think logically, contribute to the common good, and pursue truth. In addition, they will discover comprehensive instruction in the conventional subjects that include theology, literature & writing, history, mathematics, science, and Latin.

	Ancient Year (9^thGrade)	Medieval Year (10^thGrade)	Modern Year (11^th Grade)	American Year (12^th Grade)
Theology	Pentateuch and Synoptic Gospels; Apostolic and Patristic Theology	Historical Books and the Acts of the Apostles; Medieval Theology	Prophets and Pauline Literature; Modern Theology from the Counter-Reformation to the Enlightenment	Wisdom and Johannine Literature; American Catholicism and Contemporary Theology
History	Ancient History to 8th Century AD (Greece, Rome, China, Arabia, India)	Medieval History (Rome, Byzantium, Russia)	Renaissance and Modernity (Reformation, Colonial Age, Industrial Revolution)	American History (17th century to present)
Literature	Classical Literature	Medieval Masterworks	Modern and British Literature	American Literature
Science	Physics	Biology	General Chemistry	The Scientific Revolution (Calculus and Advanced Physics)
Latin	Latin I	Latin II	Latin III*	Latin IV or AP Latin
Mathematics	Algebra, Geometry, or Algebra II	Geometry, Algebra II, or Precalculus/ Trigonometry	Algebra II, Precalculus/ Trigonometry, or Statistics	Calculus
Art	Visual Art	Visual Art	*	*
Physical Education	Physical Education	Physical Education	*	*

* Students will have the option of continuing physical education and visual art or taking non-credit enrichment courses. Current offerings include handbell choir, Spanish, World Religions, rosary-making, and iconography.

Course Schedule 2023-2024

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
1	Humanities	Latin 1 or Physics	Humanities	Latin 1 or Physics	Mass
2	Humanities	Latin 1 or Physics	Humanities	Latin 1 or Physics	Spiritual Practicum
3	Theology	Latin 2 or Biology or Math (Alg. 2 / Pre-Calc)	Latin 1 or Physics	Latin 2 or Biology or Math (Alg. 2 / Pre-Calc)	Theology
4	Theology	Latin 2 or Biology or Math (Alg. 2 / Pre-Calc)	Latin 2 or Biology or Math (Alg. 2 / Pre-Calc)	Latin 2 or Biology or Math (Alg. 2 / Pre-Calc)	Theology
	Lunch Break	Lunch Break	Lunch Break	Lunch Break	Lunch Break
5	Math	Math or Latin 3/4	Math or Latin 3/4	Math or Latin 3/4	Math
6	Art	Humanities	Early Dismissal	Humanities	Humanities
7	Art	Humanities	Early Dismissal	Humanities	Humanities

School starts at 8:15 a.m. and dismisses at 3:10 p.m. (Wednesday dismisses at 1:40 p.m.)

Theology

In this course will have three distinct (but related) components. The first is Sacred Scripture. Students will be asked to read, ponder, and pray with large portions of Scripture. For the early modern year, these portions are taken from the prophets of the Old Testament and the Pauline epistles in the New. A seminar or class discussion will take place on this reading each week.

Theological exploration is the second component of this course. During the early modern year, our primary focus will be on the ideas and thinkers animating the Reformation and Counter-Reformation. Some attention will be paid to Protestant and Eastern Orthodox theology. Discussion/seminars on primary texts will take place each time we meet. Authors include St. John of the Cross, St. Thomas More, St. Ignatius of Loyola, Blaise Pascal, and more.

Finally, there will be a daily spirituality component. Students will be introduced to the practice of Ignatian gospel contemplation, the Rosary, and the Jesus Prayer.

Humanities - Literature/Writing and History

2023-2024 Modern Humanities

In this course, students will journey through the breadth of Western civilization, spanning from the mid-fourteenth century to the mid-twentieth century. Together, we'll dive deep into the project of modernity: the quest to understand man and his place within the universe. Along this voyage, students will encounter and become familiar with significant periods of human thought and societal shifts, including the Renaissance, Secularism, the Enlightenment, Romanticism, Industrialization, Individualism, and Selfhood.

At its core, this course aims to expose the historical roots of our most deeply ingrained ideas, beliefs, attitudes, and practices. Our aim, however, stretches beyond acquiring historical knowledge or literary comprehension. Instead, we hope to inspire self-discovery, aiding students in recognizing how the currents of modernity have shaped their identities. This level of self-awareness is essential in understanding the nuances of Western culture and its interaction with Catholic faith, life, and witness. By examining the history of Western civilization, we aspire to nurture a vision of living Catholic faith authentically in the contemporary world.

This course is a continuous wrestling match with one key question: What does it mean to be human? The authors studied in this course—both Christian and non-Christian alike—provide their own interpretations of humanity, revealing truths about the nature of man, in his original design and his fallen state. Engaging with these pivotal works of the Western literary canon will not only enhance students' literary horizons, but also offer insights into living more authentically and meaningfully as human beings created in the imago Dei.

This course involves a combination of extensive reading (lots and lots of reading), collaborative learning, seminar discussions, lectures, projects, and written work. Our journey will be demanding, insightful, and enlightening. Most importantly, this course endeavors to guide students toward desiring the truth, loving the good, and delighting in the beautiful.

Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2

Biology

In this course, students will familiarize themselves with the emergence and continuation of the modern scientific enterprise that is biology. They will widen their understanding of the world around them. Science comes from the Latin scientia, which means “thorough and detailed demonstrable knowledge”, and is specifically knowledge of causes: what a thing is, what it is made of, its origin, and its purpose. Biology, simply put, is the study of life: bio from the Ancient Greek βίος meaning life, and the suffix -λογία meaning study of, stemming from the word λόγος or logos, often translated word or logic. In contextualizing and encountering primary texts, students will develop a wholistic an understanding of the world of biological studies. Much like all other disciplines, biology is a rich and living conversation, not a static collection of facts. By encountering the original writings and experiments of great biologists throughout history, students will hone the same tools of thought and observation. They will also begin to thoughtfully critique the nature of modern scientific inquiry. They may hope to recover and reconcile with modern science the vision of the world as articulated by the ancient Natural Philosophers: wonderous, beautiful, and worth understanding for its own sake. For, this created world is good.

Physics

In Physical Science, our minds turn to the orders that govern physical phenomena. We study the properties and behaviors of matter and energy, knowing that there is intelligence behind their design. Because of that intelligence, we can explore their intelligibility through experience, as well as through reason, reading, lecture, discussion, and questioning. Wonder and awe are kindled alongside the ability to analyze, explain, and predict.

The purpose of this course is to explore the development and content of the major ideas that have led to our understanding of the physical universe. As in any science course students will learn about many of the important concepts, theories, and laws that make up the content of the science, physics in this case. But this course goes beyond that; it presents science as experience, as an integrated and exciting intellectual adventure, as the product of humankind’s continual drive to know and to understand our world and our relationship to it. At times this course will be mathematically rigorous, at other times, it will be primarily conceptual. The ultimate goal is that students understand the humane study of physical reality in all its interconnected complexities—which requires a deeply integrated approach toward its study. To this end, this course will include a multitude of learning methodologies: lectures, reading, writing, problem solving, seminar, discussions, labs, and presentations.

Nature presents itself to us first through our senses, in all its multitudes, splendors, and mysteries. The good work of great scientists has been to observe, interpret, and present aspects of nature in what they hope is a clear, factual, and propositional system. The beauty of science lies in discovering the intricate ways in which the messy reality of nature reveals itself to us as a coherent whole. This is the wonderous work of scientific inquiry. In other words, the work of science is the human endeavor of uncovering the truth that is reality.

And God saw all that He had done, and look, it was very good.

Genesis 1:31 (trans. Robert Alter)

Latin

Algebra I

As part of St. Monica’s Walk to Math program, all students in grades K-12 are placed in a math course which best fits their abilities and past learning. All SMA students begin 9th grade either at grade level (Algebra I) or above. Algebra I is a first course in algebraic expression and analysis. Students master the fundamentals of abstract mathematics, building a foundation for their study in advanced courses. More importantly, they seek to understand how the natural world is mathematically ordered and thus reflects the divine intellect. This is especially apparent when considering the mathematical realities of beauty in art, nature, and music. Students also study ideas about sacred number from the Christian tradition.

Geometry

Geometry is available to qualifying middle and high school students. As with Algebra I, this course uses Saxon Geometry. Saxon’s classic “spiral” approach means that mathematical concepts are not segregated by chapter as is typical in traditional math courses. This constant review is beneficial within a Geometry course as it provides a natural bridge between Algebra I and Algebra II. Throughout the course, Geometry students will constantly be building upon concepts introduced in Algebra I (ex: simplifying radicals, factoring, and solving algebraic expressions) while entering the world of Euclid’s Geometry. By the end of the course, students will also be introduced to Algebra II foundations such as linear graphing functions, matrices, and trigonometry.

Algebra II

In this course, students will learn about the beauties and truths of numbers. Algebra is the branch of mathematics concerned with manipulating numbers and variables and their mixture through the study of polynomials. In Algebra II, we strengthen the foundations for all other advanced mathematics. By learning the rules of the language of mathematics, students will harness the power of abstraction. They will know how to convert problems from the English language to mathematical sentences (expressions, equations, and inequalities) and back. Along the way, we will hope to understand the world of Mathematics in the context of its long and deep history. In mathematics, we discover a reflection of the order, rationality, and immutability found in God’s divine nature. For, life—this created world—is good.

Parent Perspectives

A few thoughts from some of our current parents:

“We are so grateful to be in our second year at Saint Monica Academy! Our son is engaged and challenged in his studies, and has a strong bond with his fellow classmates. The teachers are brilliant and care wholeheartedly about the students, encouraging them to grow in virtue on a daily basis. SMA is a blessing to us and fills a unique need in the diocese for a Catholic classical high school program.”

“We’ve had the privilege of having our oldest children attend St Monica Academy and they were beautifully inspired by the teachers, the materials and the environment. We have two children currently enrolled, and we are grateful for the continued opportunity for them to learn and be challenged by an authentic Catholic vision of the human person through the beauty of a classical curriculum approach. There is no other institution offering this unique approach in the Seattle area, and we look forward to the rest of our children benefiting from the awesome work that St Monica Academy is undertaking.”

“SMA has been a game changer for us. I wanted a classical Catholic education for my daughter and could find nothing within the area. Previously my daughter went to a public school and the difference in safety, inclusion, Christ centered teaching and the level of learning has been phenomenal. There is nothing like it in the area if you want an exceptional education centered on Christ!”

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