St. Anthony Catholic School
House System
The mission of the St. Anthony Catholic School House System is to create a school community where students work together and support each other as they grow in their Catholic faith. The purpose of each house is to guide and support the academic, spiritual, social and personal development of each student during their time at St. Anthony School.
Background Information
The “house” system has its roots in the British school system where boarding students are divided into mixed-age groups in order to help meet their basic physical, emotional, and social needs and to create a sense of a “family”.
Catholic schools have begun to use the house system to promote positive character traits as well as to instill a sense of belonging and group pride.
The Sacred Congregation for Catholic Education has said, “the Catholic school, far more than any other, must be a community” and that the “Christian faith, in fact, is born of and grows inside a community.”
According to the Sacred Congregation for Catholic Education, “the family is the first and fundamental school of social living. Schools are an extension of that first family, trying to create a community school climate that reproduces, as far as possible, the warm and intimate atmosphere of family life.”
The underlying purpose of all house systems remains the same: to foster unity, community, and, pastoral relationships among students and faculty.
How It Works
House system organization begins by dividing a school population into several houses, on a vertical plan, in order to ensure an equitable distribution of students from all grade levels in each individual house. Teachers and staff members are assigned to houses to encourage stronger relationships between adults and students.
The goal is for members to remain in the same house until they graduate from St. Anthony. However, changing demographics may result in a need to reassign houses. At the beginning of each school year students participate in the House Sorting Ceremony. Students new to St. Anthony are assigned to houses. Sibling groups are always placed in the same house.
Each house is named after a saint and has a motto, color, and shield. Two teachers in each house serve as deans to oversee the house, and support the house leadership. The house leadership consists of a Prefect, an Assistant Prefect, a Scribe and a Parliamentarian. The house leadership helps plan and lead the house meetings that occur once a month.
House members work together to earn points for their house. Points can be earned by participating in church events, being involved in extracurricular activities, competing in school-wide contests, displaying positive behavior, engaging in service activities, and getting involved in additional activities that might be going on in the school, church, or community.
Students will learn to work hard individually for the good of their house, along with working as a house team. Our house system encourages teamwork, friendship, cooperation and leadership. This year, considering our theme, “We are Keepers of the Flame” our Saint Houses will be doing service projects. Our students will be putting their Faith into Action.
House meetings will be held on the 2nd Tuesday of each month from 8:15-8:45. Students should wear their House T-shirts to school. Jeans may be worn with House shirt on meeting days but must be school appropriate.
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