Cathedral Preparatory School

Cathedral Preparatory School is an all-male college prep school in Erie, Pennsylvania, run by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie and was established in 1921 by Archbishop John Mark Gannon. The school boasts a 98%-100% college acceptance rate among graduating classes.HistoryCathedral Prep was founded in 1921 as an all-boys Catholic high school by Archbishop John Mark Gannon of the Diocese of Erie. Archbishop Gannon’s vision was to provide a college preparatory, Catholic education for young men to strengthen the Catholic faith in Erie, and to act as a conduit for vocations. The school was originally located underneath St. Peter Cathedral in what is now the cafeteria. In 1953, an Auditorium and a three level classroom addition were constructed as enrollment grew. The last major addition was the 1964 science wing addition at the corner of 10th & Myrtle in order to accommodate the growth of the school.On January 8, 2009 Villa Maria Academy announced a merger with Cathedral Prep because of financial issues. The two schools are under the same management, but maintain their separate campuses and identities. Villa Maria was formerly a girls' school which became coeducational in 1989. With the merger, Villa Maria stopped accepting boys and returned to its single-sex roots. "Prep-Villa" is run by a single Board of Directors, whose members include the principals of the respective schools.AcademicsCathedral Prep is one of the most exclusive prep schools in the state of Pennsylvania. The school has 578 students, with an average college acceptance rate of 98%. Students are required to take courses in English, history, mathematics, religion, foreign languages, science and are also required to complete 100 hours community of service. Additionally, every student must take the SAT in order to graduate. Some colleges and universities attended by the graduates include Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, Yale, Cornell, Columbia, MIT, Notre Dame, and the United States Military, Naval and Air Force Academies. Acceptance to the freshman class at Cathedral Prep is based on the results of the mandatory Entrance Exam, elementary school transcripts, elementary school disciplinary record, and recommendations from the elementary school teachers and principal.