Departments
English
All students are required to take English for four years. During the first year, English 9 is offered at the Honors and College Preparatory levels; sophomores take English 10 (British Literature) at either Honors or College Preparatory level; juniors take English 11 (American Literature) at the College Preparatory, Honors or Advanced Placement level; seniors take the full year Advanced Placement English course, or a combination of Senior English and Twentieth Century Literature. Senior English is offered at College Preparatory and Honors levels, while Twentieth Century English is a CP course. Go to English
Fine Arts
Students are required to fulfill one-half credit in the Fine Arts in addition to the one-quarter Humanities course taken during Freshman Seminar. Students have many courses in Art or Music from which to choose. Go to Fine Arts
All students are required to complete a minimum of 3 credits in mathematics, although it is highly recommended that college-bound students acquire 4 credits in mathematics. The normal course sequence is Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, and Precalculus (or Trigonometry/Statistics). Ninth grade students who have completed a full year Algebra course in 8th grade and have passed the St. Thomas freshman placement exam may take Geometry, Algebra II, Precalculus, and Calculus. Advanced Placement courses in Calculus and Statistics are offered to highly motivated seniors who have demonstrated strong aptitude in previous mathematics coursework. Go to Mathematics.
All students are required to have at least 3.25 credits in Science. It is highly recommended that college-bound students acquire 4 credits in Science. The normal course sequence is Foundations in Science, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics. Ninth grade students who enroll in Geometry (see Mathematics Department; Placement Exam) may enroll in Honors Biology concurrently. The science department offers a number of elective courses for enrichment as well as Advanced Placement courses for college credit. Advanced Placement courses are open to qualified juniors and seniors. Go to Science.
Social Studies
All students are required a minimum of 2.5 credits in social studies. It is recommended that college bound students interested in the social sciences take additional electives in social studies. The normal course sequence is World Geography and Humanities, History of Western Civilization and United States History. Students in their junior year may choose to take the following electives: Advanced Placement American Government and Politics, Economics, Intro to Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, Sociology and US Foreign Policy in the 20th Century. Go to Social Studies.
Students are responsible for successfully completing 4.0 credits in Theology which includes a 0.5 credit Community Service Project. The normal COURSE OF STUDY is An Introduction to Catholicism and Morality during the freshmen year; Scripture I, Scripture II during the sophomore year; a semester of Social Justice during the junior year; and four quarter long seminars during the senior year which includes Christianity & Ethics, Christian Life, Church History and World Religions. All theology courses are CP level courses. The Community Service Project must be completed by the end of the junior year. Go to Theology.
All students are required to have at least 2 consecutive credits in a
World Language for graduation. It is highly recommended that college
bound students acquire 3 or more credits in a World Language as many
colleges require a long term commitment to the study of one language.
Incoming 9th graders who have already finished the equivalent of a full
year of French, Spanish or Latin are strongly advised to enter the same
language at the second level during Freshman Year. A credit for level
one will be granted to those who begin at the second level. Go to World Languages