Saint Brigid of Kildare School provides a traditional and rigorous Catholic education for students in preschool through grade eight. As a co-educational, award-winning school in the Diocese of Columbus, we strive for an authentic integration of the Catholic faith and Catholic values within challenging academic experiences.
Belief Statements:
- St. Brigid of Kildare is committed to building a community that knows and lives our Catholic faith.
- Each person is a valued gift from God and worthy of respect.
- In order to be the best version of themselves, students benefit from a variety of instructional experiences while developing and using their unique gifts.
- Students learn to integrate their gifts for moral decision making, critical thinking, and problem solving to build the kingdom of God.
Preschool
Our preschool program offers optimal early childhood educational experiences reflecting the importance of integrating our Catholic faith into daily life. Opportunities fostering self-discipline, self-reliance, and self-respect are provided in a comfortable and stimulating environment. Our teachers are qualified in early childhood education with extensive practical experience working with young children. Preschool classes for our three, four, and five-year-old children are offered. Half-day classes are offered as two-day options, three-day options, and a pre-kindergarten five-day option. To learn more about our preschool, click here.
Kindergarten
St. Brigid of Kildare School offers three all-day kindergarten classes.
Our all-day program will offer developmentally appropriate opportunities for kindergarten children which will provide the foundation for spiritual, social and academic skill development. St. Brigid kindergarten students are active, participatory learners using exploration, play, investigation, creativity, and guided experiences across all domains of learning. Our program provides positive guidance, and a variety of learning contexts including whole group setting, small groups, learning centers and daily routines.
Our K-8 classes are embedded in a nurturing, encouraging, child-centered, individualized environment. A variety of instructional approaches and authentic, meaningful experiences encourage each student to reach his/her greatest potential. Our fully licensed, dedicated teachers balance tradition and innovation in instructional opportunities.
Saint Brigid of Kildare School is also pleased to offer:
- Physical education, art, and music classes in grades K-8
- Spanish instruction in grades K-8
- Wireless computer network with one-to-one devices for all K-8 students
- Smart TV technology in every classroom, with access to connect wirelessly from any device in the room
- Sound system in every classroom so that students can hear the teacher from any part of the room
- Speech and language pathologist
- Occupational therapist
- 4 intervention specialists
- Tutoring and guidance services
- School nurse and clinic aide
- Nutritious daily hot lunch program
- Free bus service from Dublin, Olentangy, and Hilliard Schools
- Latchkey program before and after school
- Wide range of extra-curricular activities
The History of Saint Brigid of Kildare School
Saint Brigid of Kildare School opened its doors on August 28, 1996 with 328 students in preschool through grade six, the first new school in the Diocese of Columbus in over 35 years. Built on hundreds of years of tradition in American Catholic education, Saint Brigid School began forging its own identity in the suburban community of Dublin, Ohio, where a school in the Catholic tradition had never previously existed.
Saint Brigid of Kildare Parish began to explore the possibility of a school in 1991. In the fall of 1992, a survey was taken to determine the level of interest in a parochial school. In early 1993, an Education Task force was established to plan for the educational future of the parish and to outline the implementation of that plan. A parish meeting was held in May of 1993 to involve the parishioners in the project. By September of 1993, the Education Task Force recommended the building of a Parish Education Center to the parish steering committee.
In the early fall of 1994, a building committee was formed. A capital campaign began in 1995 to generate the funds needed to pursue the planned education center. On August 27, 1995, as the campaign entered its final and crucial phase, a Day of Prayer brought parishioners together to focus their efforts and to draw the parish into deeper fellowship with God and with each other.
Sister Barbara Jinks, O.P. was hired in the summer of 1995 to oversee the building of the Parish Education Center, to gather necessary data for opening an elementary school, and to continue meeting with parishioners interested in the elementary school.
On October 1, 1995, Bishop James Griffin celebrated 11:30 Mass at Saint Brigid, followed by a solemn groundbreaking for the Parish Education Center. Exactly a year and a day after the Parish Day of Prayer, the doors of Saint Brigid of Kildare School opened to the strains of bagpipe music as the children entered their new school for the first time.
Twenty-two years later, Saint Brigid of Kildare School is now home to over 650 students in preschool through grade eight.
Seeking Grace and Wisdom
Our school’s tagline, Seeking Grace and Wisdom, works in unison with our mission statement and reminds us that, as a community of teachers and students, we all strive to seek grace and wisdom every single day. We seek grace when we live as disciples, when we act and speak in a holy way, and when we care for others. We seek grace when we work to use all of the gifts and talents God has given us. We seek grace when we remember to put others first. We seek grace when we try to copy the behavior of holy men and women. We seek grace when we participate in the sacraments. Very simply, we seek grace when we seek God.
Wisdom, as a gift of the Holy Spirit, is the knowledge of Divine things, and recognizes that the Holy Spirit is always at work in the world and in our lives. Wisdom helps us to see life from God’s point of view and to recognize the real value of people, events, and things. Rather than thinking we are worth what we own, we know that our worth comes from being made in the image and likeness of God. Wisdom then moves us to action, so that we can act in ways that show that we put God and His laws first in our lives. Wisdom is the power to love what is holy and what is of God, that in turn helps us to make “wise” decisions.
Accreditation and Awards
Saint Brigid of Kildare School is accredited by the Ohio Catholic Schools Accrediting Association. As an accredited school, Saint Brigid uses its continuous school improvement plan as a guide for professional development and school growth. Currently, a student learning goal dealing with student reflection and self-assessment and a Catholic identity goal addressing the discipleship and community are the focus of this work. Periodic progress reviews assist the administration in both fulfilling the requirements of the plan and assessing its effectiveness.
In the fall of 2008, Saint Brigid of Kildare School was named a 2008 United States Department of Education Blue Ribbon School, the only school in our diocese and in the county awarded this prestigious award at the time. This award recognizes our commitment to academic achievement, community service, instructional best practices, and professional development.
In February of 2012, our school was named a 2012 recipient of the Catholic Schools for Tomorrow Innovations in Education Award. The award annually honors schools that have led the way by implementing exemplary, innovative programs.
In the fall of 2014, Saint Brigid of Kildare School was named a National Blue Ribbon School for the second time. Saint Brigid of Kildare is the only school in the entire state of Ohio to receive a second nomination in the last ten years. Saint Brigid of Kildare has received the award in the high-performing schools category, which includes schools that have achieved among the highest scores in both reading and math as measured by state or national standardized tests in the most recent year tested, regardless of student demographics.
In 2019, Saint Brigid of Kildare earned its second Catholic Schools for Tomorrow Innovations in Catholic Education award for our work in promoting Catholic identity.
In the fall of 2021, Saint Brigid of Kildare School was honored to receive our third US Department of Education Blue Ribbon School Award for academic excellence. Saint Brigid is the only school in the state of Ohio to be honored with this award three times in the last 15 years.
Saint Brigid of Kildare School has 573 students enrolled in grades K through grade 8 as of October 31, 2023.