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More Than a School, It’s a Family
“I hope to give students
the confidence they need
when faced with any
challenges or rigorous
courses in the future. I
hope they will take these
skills with them as they
further their education or
career.” –Erica Hollabaugh
’04, AP English teacher
A
t Our Lady of the Sacred Heart High School in Moon
Township, it’s not uncommon to see football players
attending, or starring in, the spring musical. It’s not
uncommon to see theater students attending softball
games and cheering on their classmates. And it’s definitely not
uncommon seeing teachers coaching and directing it all. That’s
because OLSH is a family, where everyone supports each other
while they pursue their personal best.
With about 310 students, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart,
an independent Catholic school and ministry of the Felician
Sisters, is a close knit community where students build strong
relationships with each other and the faculty that teaches them
along the way.
“Our mission statement highlights educating and
transforming each student, which is important because every
student is different,” said Jessica Cerchiaro Director of Marketing
& Communications. “We’re small in size so students receive
individual attention, yet there are a lot of opportunities for
students to find their niche and what’s important to them.”
Not only do faculty and staff comprise a large part of this
educational family, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart also has
relationships with post-secondary schools like the University of
Notre Dame and Duquesne University, which open pathways to
resources students can’t find anywhere else.
“Through Notre Dame’s Teacher Investment Program,
our teachers get special training to better assist students in
navigating their AP exams,” Cerchiaro said. “And for any students
who need support, the Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Writing and
Learning Center, or OWL Center, is a university-modeled facility
that was developed in partnership with Duquesne. Students
are trained to be peer tutors to assist with writing across the
curriculum. Students can also go there for subject tutoring
during and after school at no additional cost. Through these
programs, we’ve seen a measurable increase in our students’
academic performance. The number of students enrolling in AP
courses at OLSH has nearly doubled over the last two years and
this year our students earned qualifying scores on 75.2% of the
AP exams taken.”
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart also has a relationship with the
Allegheny Intermediate Unit for its Advanced Learning and
Leadership Initiative (ALLI). This program assists students who
are not performing at grade level and may have difficulty with
critical thinking or organizational skills. Through this initiative,
OLSH has a reading specialist on campus every day of the week
to help students who need individual remediation.
And while academics and faith are a primary focus at Our
Lady of the Sacred Heart, there’s plenty of school spirit, as well.
The school made history in 2018-2019 by winning three WPIAL
championships—football and girls and boys basketball—as well
as winning a Gene Kelly Award for best musical.
What’s more, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart has 15 scholarship
opportunities available to students. About 46 percent of the
school’s families qualify for financial assistance and everyone
who qualifies for assistance receives some level of aid from the
school.
For more information on Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, visit
www.olsh.org, or call the school directly at 412.264.5140. OLSH
is located at 1504 Woodcrest Avenue, Moon Township, 15108,
and is easily accessible from routes I-79, 376, and 65. You can also
email the school at [email protected].
Join us at Open House - Sunday, November 3 or Thursday, November 7
28
724.942.0940 TO ADVERTISE
❘
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