Public vs Catholic Schools Fort Wayne (South Bend, Huntington: house, neighborhoods, buyers)

[jae986]

We are looking to move to Fort Wayne and are specifically interested in the Catholic Schools vs Public Schools for our kids (9yrs,6yrs old)
I've read other posts about the good public schools in the SW and NW,
but haven't seen any specific information on Catholic Schools.
Are there some better Catholic schools than others in the area?

We are not opposed to moving outside of Ft Wayne-Huntington on the S side, or on the N side as well if anyone has suggestions.
(I went to Catholic Schools, my wife attended Public Schools, so no real preference just trying to get the best education for our kids.)
Thanks!

[domergurl]

Luers and Dwenger are you choices for Catholic schools. I've heard good things about both academically ... however I'll always harbor ill will toward Dwenger since they beat us in the semistate in 1985 ... double OT ... grrrrr. yea, I need to get over it.

[BCLead]

Since your kids are still elementary school aged, I would recommend looking at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic School if you are going to be living Northwest. It is located on Wallen Rd, just west of Auburn Rd. My niece's daughters go there and are getting an excellent education. They will go on to Bishop Dwenger when the time comes.

[flatlander dave]

I am very proud of the fort wayne area catholic schools. I have a prejudice towards St. Vincents on the north side. I have twin daughters there, my wife went there, my niece and nephew also. They always score very high on ISTEP scores. If you are looking for a great Catholic environment you need to look no farther. We are moving out of state this summer and will miss this school tremendously. There are other great Catholic schools in the area that also do well in ISTEP scores. Contact the Ft wayne-South Bend diocese for more info. Good luck.

[jae986]

Actually, if we move I would be working North of Ft Wayne so St. Vincent would work out well. Thanks everyone for the great info on both the Elementary and High School level. You can research areas and test scores, etc...on the web "forever" but it's great to get some input from actual people.
Now I guess I can start researching more for housing...ideas?
Thanks again.

[flatlander dave]

housing is a great buy at this time, i know we just sold our house at a loss. the market is a buyers market. a great friend is our realtor. go to stevebartkus.com, he works with coldwell banker. if you start looking let me know what areas and maybe i can give some guidance. ft wayne is a nice area to raise a family. we are moving out of state to chase a dream, my dream. wife keeps reminding me.

[JOJOG]

St. Vincent is a wonderful school!

[mbuszu]

In SW Fort Wayne is Saint Elizabeth's - http://www.seasfw.parishesonline.com They recently completed an expansion of the school building on Aboite Center Road and the facility is beautiful (I conducted some enrichment classes there in the Fall). It's also in a great location on the SouthWest side of Fort Wayne nearby the mammoth Jorgenson Family YMCA and some excellent neighborhoods.

[rwsd2004]

I am a recent graduate of Canterbury School on the Southwest side of Fort Wayne. Canterbury is a college-prep Pre-K thru 12 Christian school- while prayer is a big part of school functions, we don't study the Bible except for in religion classes where all religions are studied. Admission is very competitive as class sizes are capped at 50-70 per grade (depending on the age), and tuition is pricey (but financial aid is available). Canterbury is known for its 100% college placement and its excellent AP scores. Volunteering is a requirement of all students, and students also take annual team-building trips: for example, 8th graders go backpacking through Colorado, freshmen go to Culver Academy, while juniors take a regional college tour (mine was the Northeast, but it rotates every year) to 20 institutions to determine the best college type for them. While academics are rigorous, I would not change a thing about my experience as I got all of my college education paid for. On another note, I grew up in Huntington and now live in Fort Wayne... trust me, there's not all that much to like in Huntington. While a few elementary schools score well, the high school has over 2000 students, most of whom do not make it to higher education. And, the commute to Fort Wayne during the winter is pure evil!!

www.canterburyschool.org

[fabumom07]

I have heard that Bishop Dwenger is preferable to Luers, St Elizabeth is very good for K-8.