• St. Odilia Stories

    We moved to Shoreview from a small town in northern Minnesota in order to send our daughter to a parochial school. Although we visited many good schools around the Twin Cities, we felt St. Odilia had the best all-around reputation. We have been here now for over 8 years and we could not imagine being anywhere else. The teachers and staff at St. Odilia are very dedicated to their students. Many St. Odilia teachers are former St. Odilia students. Over 75% of the teachers have earned their Master's Degrees. Students develop a high degree of self-confidence from caring and engaged teachers and staff. Although the former Principal retired after 35 years in 2013, our new Principal Mr. Brian Ragatz is simply the best we could have ever hoped for. He is continually improving our school and has earned the respect of all students and parents alike. We consider it a real blessing to have him in charge of our kids.

    - Posted by Steve, parent of a recent graduate

    I am a 1992 graduate of St. Odilia School. St. Odilia gave me a great foundation and I have wonderful memories of my experience during my time attended. Our three sons are all current students and thriving as individuals. The school has tremendous leadership and a very strong faith-based community. The tireless support and dedication from the faculty and staff make it hard to imagine our boys anywhere else. Much like my parents, we believe the commitment and investment in our boys' primary education is a necessary foundation for future growth and success. We find comfort in the fact that our children are attending a school with other children whose parents hold similar values, integrity, and morals as we do. This new expansion is so exciting and will allow for much more growth and overall success for our children. We are thrilled to be a part of this expansion that is sure to create an excellent student experience for many generations to come.

    - Posted by Megan, parent of elementary-aged children

     Our family chose St. Odilia School to assist us in enriching our children with the values of respect, integrity, honesty, and empathy. We found these values are key qualities in the teaching of the staff at St. Odilia, and we could not have asked for a better fit. This community has become a second home to our family. Through the small class sizes and the emphasis on service projects, our daughters, have grown in self-confidence and the feeling of responsibility to both themselves and to their community. When discussing her favorite things about St. Odilia School, our oldest continues to bring up not only the friendships she has made but her growing relationship with God and Jesus.

    - Posted by Alicia, parent of elementary and preschool children

    We have had our children enrolled at St. Odilia for the past 4 years. We are very happy with the experience our kids are having. Of particular note is the community (other families are very easy to get to know and very dedicated to the school). The faculty does a great job taking care of individual kids, probably largely because of the St. O student/faculty ratio keeps class sizes nice and small. We are confident that our kids are having a strong academic experience, but at the same time are not being overburdened by testing-based curriculum choices. Of particular note is the amazing swimming team, available starting in kindergarten, which has turned out to be a wonderful athletic program for those cold, dark winter months. We don't think of ourselves as a big competitive swimming family, but the swim team season has become a very welcome event every winter in our household.

    - Posted by Andy, parent of elementary-aged children

     I am so happy with the progress my son has made since we moved him to St. Odilia. The principal has been more than supportive in helping to my son succeed. He changes and attitude have made a crucial impact in our life. It is because of him I will suggest this school to anyone I meet.

    - Posted by Amir, parent of an elementary-aged child

    Our oldest child transferred to St. Odilia last year, and our two youngest will be transferring there in the fall. We have been very happy with this transition. We have been parishioners for many years and have always loved the sense of community and the emphasis on loving and serving your neighbor. This practice of serving others and supporting those in need flows from the parish to the school and is integrated into the daily life of the school. The principal knows all of the students and families by name and greets them as they enter their the school in the morning. He is always available when parents have questions. Teachers are very easy to communicate with. We also love that St. Odilia's is a K-8 school. I think it is important for students in their middle school years to be around people that are of all different ages. The middle school students do many activities with the younger students so they learn the importance of being a good role model to them. They can also be seen helping older parionshers by moving tables for them or other tasks. They learn the importance of being part of a larger community which is invaluable at this age. We are very happy to be a part of this community.

    - Posted by Jessica, parent of middle school and elementary-aged children

    We transferred our child at the end of 2016. We wanted a school which would best prepare our son for high school and ultimately college. In our family, we believe education is the most important thing a parent can do for their child. Our child was looking to make more friends and looking for a well-rounded and better-focused school with more to offer. We shopped schools in the area before our son ever started school and also shopped St. O's several years before. At the end of last year (2016) we gave St. O's another look and noticed many changes since our first visit several years ago. The school now under new leadership with Mr. Ragatz and has a much different feel which was easily noticeable. We were very impressed with the new direction the school has taken under new leadership.

    The kids and teachers were upbeat, friendly, compassionate and approachable. My son asked if he could start the next day following his shadow day at St. O's. I was very impressed with the quality of the kids who attend St. O's they are friendly, courteous, respectful, kind and compassionate.

    If you spend time at any of the area schools sitting in on classes and touring schools you will find St. O's is a clear choice for any parent looking for an excellent education without paying upwards $30,000 a year in tuition. St. O's is a bargain well worth beyond the price of tuition at a fraction of the cost. My wife and I thought choosing St. O's was a no-brainer and the decision of selecting St. O's for our son's education was an easy choice with absolutely no regrets what so ever! We wish we would have done this earlier!

    - Posted by Kevin, parent of a middle school-aged child