DE LA SALLE NORTH CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL
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Mission Statement
De La Salle North Catholic High School prepares young men and women for college by providing a rigorous, faith-based education emphasizing math, science, and language arts. We offer a private, college preparatory education to urban students with limited educational opportunities, turning no one away because of an inability to pay. Known as “The School That Works,” our students generate 50 percent of the cost of their education by working five days a month at one of our 80 Corporate Work Study Program partners. Rigorous academics coupled with exposure to real world work opportunities are the reasons that 95% of our graduating seniors earn acceptance to college each year.
About This Cause
De La Salle North Catholic High School was founded in the fall of 2000 in order to provide quality, college preparatory education in North Portland, where the public high schools yield drop-out rates of 45 to 50 percent. The school opened to 74 freshmen in the fall of 2001 and was the first school to replicate an innovative model pioneered by Cristo Rey High School on the South Side of Chicago, which utilizes a work study program with corporate partners to make private education a viable alternative for students from low-income families. Our school was founded to welcome a student body of racially diverse, urban, academic priority youth who are willing to work hard for the opportunities the school provides. Although we are a Catholic school, it is not a requirement of attendance and the majority of the students and staff are not Catholic. Since our first graduation in 2005, we have enjoyed tremendous success among our eleven graduating classes. We have graduated 600 students with an average college acceptance rate of 95 percent. Our goal is to develop tomorrow’s community leaders by making quality education accessible to aspiring and motivated young people in a learning environment that values cultural, spiritual, and ethnic diversity. We have a student body of urban, racially diverse, academic priority students who are willing to take on the challenges our school provides. Our educational approach provides each student an opportunity to succeed through small classes, high expectations, and active participation in a Corporate Work Study Program. Although students enter our school an average of one to two years behind in reading and math, our average college acceptance rate is 95 percent over the last ten years. In addition, our graduates are completing four-year degrees at a rate four times the national average for their socio-economic demographic. Here are some highlights of De La Salle North Catholic High School’s programs and activities: • A complete four-year academic college prep curriculum, the only high school in Portland to require four years of English and religion, four years of math and science, three and a half years of social studies, and comprehensive elective offerings; • Student participation in our Corporate Work Study Program where our 80 corporate sponsors vary from national corporations (Columbia Sportswear, Nike), to local firms (OnPoint Community Credit Union, Wieden + Kennedy), and non-profit organizations (Virginia Garcia, Oregon College of Arts and Crafts). Operating in teams of four at various entry level positions, each student works five days per month and by the time a student graduates, they will have worked over 1,440 hours in the corporate world and earned $27,000 towards their high school education; • Small school/small class size with a student to teacher ratio of 17:1 and average class size of 24 ensure that our students receive the individualized attention needed to thrive; • Additional mandatory supports for struggling students provide extensive tutoring through our Academic Resource Center and summer school programming for students who are testing below grade level in core academic skills. With students entering one to two years behind grade level, these supports ensure that all our students are able to apply to college; • Robust counseling support from a counseling staff of three people, including two master’s level therapists, and a Masters in Social Work intern. Counselors meet weekly with academic teams, with students in 1:1 sessions, and facilitate various ongoing groups; • Other key activities include: o Sports – including basketball, soccer, volleyball, wrestling and track; o Clubs – including dance, art, constitutional law, anime and more; o Service – including homeless outreach, immersion trips to local areas, and community clean-up projects; and o Extra-curriculars – including dances, pep rallies and, of course, the prom.