Padua Academy is an all-girls

Catholic high school Catholic schools are parochial pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school system. In 201 ...

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington is the List of municipalities in Delaware, most populous city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North America. It lie ...

, United States. It is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wilmington. The school strongly emphasizes college preparation, leadership, civic responsibility, and spirituality. Padua is fully accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools and has been recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence. It is a four-time winner of the "Superstars in Education" Award from the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce. Padua was named one of the Top 50 Catholic High Schools in America by the Cardinal Newman Society in 2012. Padua is a member of the National Catholic Education Association (NCEA) and the Delaware Association of Independent Schools (DAIS). Padua’s Student Council has earned recognition as a Council of Excellence. Padua Academy is consistently recognized for outstanding community service and has merited both a Regional Gold Medal and a National Bronze Medal from the Jefferson Awards-Deloitte Students in Action program.

History

The school was founded in 1954 by Rev. Joseph L. McCoy, O.S.F.S. and built with the help of members of the St. Anthony of Padua Parish. Its patron saints are St.

Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone ( 1181 – 3 October 1226), known as Francis of Assisi, was an Italians, Italian Mysticism, mystic, poet and Friar, Catholic friar who founded the religious order of the Franciscans. Inspired to lead a Chris ...

, St.

Francis de Sales Francis de Sales, Congregation of the Oratory, C.O., Order of Minims, O.M. (; ; 21 August 156728 December 1622) was a Savoyard state, Savoyard Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Geneva and is a saint of the Catholic Church. He became n ...

, and St

Anthony of Padua Anthony of Padua, Order of Friars Minor, OFM, (; ; ) or Anthony of Lisbon (; ; ; born Fernando Martins de Bulhões; 15 August 1195 – 13 June 1231) was a Portuguese people, Portuguese Catholic priest and member of the Order of Friars Minor. ...

. The first classes of Padua Academy (in the 1950s) took place in the upper level of Saint Anthony of Padua Grade School, located at 9th and North Scott Streets, two blocks away from the present building. Classes also took place in the old P.S. #11 school building in the early years. The present building at 10th and Broom Streets was designed and executed by Rev. Roberto Balducelli, O.S.F.S., who came to the United States from Italy in the 1940s and died in 2013 at the age of 100. The school was built by volunteer labor with the help of Brother Michael Rosenello, O.S.F.S., who died on September 20, 2019.

Notable alumni

Lisa Blunt Rochester Lisa LaTrelle Blunt Rochester (née Blunt; born February 10, 1962) is an American politician serving since 2025 as the junior United States senator from Delaware. From 2017 to 2025, she served as the U.S. representative for . A member of the ...

, U.S. Senator from Delaware (2025-present) and former member of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from (2017-2025) * Pat Ciarrocchi, newscaster for

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's CBS3 Eyewitness News

References

External links

* {{authority control Roman Catholic Diocese of Wilmington Catholic secondary schools in Delaware Girls' schools in Delaware High schools in New Castle County, Delaware Educational institutions established in 1954 Italian-American culture in Delaware 1954 establishments in Delaware Schools in Wilmington, Delaware