NASHUA – In efforts to promote its new values, Nashua Catholic Junior Regional High School will be undergoing several changes over the course of the next few years.

For Nashua Catholic Regional Junior High School, change is nothing new, as there have been many over the last 30 years.

Nashua Catholic Regional Junior High School was first part of the Nashua Catholic Regional School System with St. Christopher School and Infant Jesus School. The school itself was located on Vine Street in Nashua until 1992. In 1992, the school bought its current building, located at 6 Bartlett Ave., from Sisters of Mercy.

Shortly after they relocated, St. Christopher School and Infant Jesus School went back to being parish schools. Nashua Catholic has seen four principals since 1992. Up until around the time that a second high school was built in Nashua, Nashua Catholic housed students in grades seven, eight and nine.

Nashua Catholic Principal Glenda McFadden said their numbers were declining so they decided to go back to being a school for grades seven and eight.

In June of 2004, Nashua Catholic graduated its last ninth grade class, according to the schools website.The two feeder schools, St. Christoper School and Infant Jesus School, remained pre-K through sixth grade.

McFadden believes the switch allowed students to thrive.

“It’s been wonderful because you can give (students) all the attention that they need. They’ll tell you they’re not babies and they don’t need attention, but they crave it,” McFadden said. “They need the structure and they need the affirmation because now they’re the big kids and no ones doting over them anymore. They need a lot of love.”

Admissions Consultant Peter Duffy said Nashua Catholic is an institution that has always worked with this student demographic, which makes it unique.

Duffy said they wanted to tap into this more. The school conducted a value survey.

“We sat down with students and parents and teachers and we did a lot of research. It was really beautiful what was said when we asked them what do you value about Nashua Catholic,” Duffy said.

Duffy said the students talked about the teachers, the academic rigor, the faith, the school’s welcoming environment, the affirmation and the level of respect.

“They all felt like this was just a very safe place to be and yet they were very challenged,” Duffy said.

As they began seeing a trend in the students’ values, they spoke with parents.

“The parents were interesting because they send their kids here and not because of the academics. They send their kids here because we have a reputation of forming young teens like no other school,” Duffy said. “They know when (their children) come here, they’ve got to learn how to communicate, they’ve got to learn how to problem solve and work through issues.”

McFadden said students also have the benefit of gaining soft skills, such as advocating for themselves, being organized and managing time.

Duffy said the parents also spoke on the faith.

“What was important about what they said was it’s not ‘in your face Catholic faith.’ It is actually the underpinning of why we have academic rigor, why we do team formation, it’s that the rationale for it,” Duffy explained. “The teachers live the faith in a way that kind of is the fertilizer for what happens here. I think that they come at the faith from a totally different perspective.”

After speaking with parents, a subcommittee of teachers gathered to discuss what to put into a statement of value.

“We said firmly that Nashua Catholic is experts in whole teen education, that develops into a great relationship with God, moral development, creative critical thinking and physical health,” Duffy said.

They also decided along the way that they wanted to incorporate their values through new renovations to the school’s lobby. The lobby has the words “courage,” “acceptance,” and “respect” painted across the wall. There are also award recognitions as well as a painting of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. The school’s motto, “To Believe, To Achieve, To Inspire” was created in honor of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton and her perseverance.

Also showcased in the lobby is the school’s success of becoming a Blue Ribbon School.

Nashua Catholic Regional Junior High School became a Blue Ribbon School in September 2017.

In order to become a Blue Ribbon School, a school must first qualify by being in the top 15 percent of the country for standardized testing scores in math and reading. Once qualified, the school does an extensive report. Nashua Catholic Regional Junior High School was selected as one of only 50 private schools nationwide to win the title of Blue Ribbon School in 2017.

For the future, McFadden and Duffy would like to continue with renovating the hallways of the school. They also plan to bring their school’s science lab into the 21st century with updates.

Duffy said they also want to build out their art, band and music programs.

It is also a possibility that the school will be open to sixth graders. According to a letter put out by Diocese of Manchester Superintendent of Catholic Schools David Thibault back in July after the closing of Infant Jesus School, Thibault stated that by 2022, all three schools would be merged into one Catholic Academy in Nashua, comprised of Nashua Catholic Middle School with grades six through eight and St. Christopher Elementary School with grades Pre-K through five.

Thibault stated they would be adding sixth grade to Nashua Catholic Regional Junior High School in September 2020.

McFadden said if this plan goes through, the sixth graders will be in a separate part of the school from the seventh and eighth graders. According to McFadden, the school holds about 350 students. About 110 students are enrolled this year.

McFadden and Duffy are expecting a good influx of sixth graders from St. Christopher school, but more so from the public school sector. Duffy said families who wanted to send their student to Nashua Catholic can now do it a year earlier.

“The public school parents that are here, they’re really happy that they made the transition,” Duffy said.

According to Duffy, 40 percent of the students at their school come from other public schools.

“The fact of the matter is, they can come here, they can share their faith, they can pray, they can worship. They can do all these things in a very innocent way,” Duffy said.

To learn more about Nashua Catholic Regional Junior High School, visit https://www.ncrjhs.org/

Grace Pecci may be reached at 603-594-1243 or gpecci@nashuatelegraph.com.

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