Admissions Protocol

St. Louis School will begin to accept applications for the 2025-2026 school year beginning November 1, 2024.

Policies and Procedures for K-8 Admissions

APPLICATION PRIORITY CRITERIA
The school sets registration procedures and admission policies. The availability of space and the order of preference for admission of applications received by the appropriate deadlines for first round of consideration is determined by the school according to the general criteria below. All applications received after the first round deadline will be considered in the order in which received regardless of priority criteria.

Children currently enrolled in the St. Louis Preschool (for Kindergarten)
Siblings of children currently enrolled in St. Louis Catholic School
Children from Saint Louis parish*
Children from other Catholic parishes and from recently relocated practicing Catholic, active duty military families
Children from inactive and non-Catholic families

*To be considered for this application priority status, families must be active members of Saint Louis parish for 6+ months prior to date of application submission as verified on the Parish Acknowledgement Form. Parishioner tuition rates are determined at the Pastor's discretion after acceptances.

APPLICATION PROCESS
All academically qualified students are welcome at St. Louis Catholic School regardless of race, creed, or ethnic origin. Only St. Louis Catholic School admissions packets will be accepted for consideration. To apply to multiple schools in the Diocese of Arlington, you may use the Diocesan enrollment portal. However, all applicants must complete and submit electronically the St. Louis Catholic School application in addition to the Diocesan application.

Please see below for application requirements specific to grade level.

Kindergarten Applicants

Age Eligibility: Children who will have reached the age of five years by September 30th of the year of enrollment may be eligible for the Kindergarten program.

Assessment: Readiness testing for each Kindergarten applicant will be scheduled in early February and may be used to determine, among other things, the developmentally appropriate placement in the Kindergarten program.*

Recommendation: Parents must submit the Prospective Student Evaluation Form Grades K and 1 to the child's current preschool or daycare provider to be completed and returned directly to St. Louis Catholic School (not to the parents).

Visit: All prospective local families are required to attend the October Open House or schedule a tour within the current admissions cycle (prior to February 3, 2025 for first round of consideration) as part of the admissions process. This requirement is waived for current St. Louis School sibling applicants.

Tuition Rate: According to parish and school policy, to qualify for a Catholic tuition rate, a copy of the child's Catholic Baptismal Certificate must be provided in addition to the Parish Acknowledgement Form.

*St. Louis Catholic School follows the Fairfax County Public Schools Inclement Weather policy. In the event of a delayed opening on a scheduled assessment date, the testing time will be pushed back as appropriate for the same day. In the event schools are closed, prospective families will be contacted to re-schedule.

Kindergarten Applicants from St. Louis Preschool

St. Louis Preschool students rising to Kindergarten will receive a Registration Packet in January and should NOT submit an application through the general admissions process.

1st-5th Grade Applicants

Assessment: Assessments for each 1st-5th Grade applicant will be scheduled once all student records and recommendation forms have been received.*

Recommendation: Parents must submit the appropriate Prospective Student Evaluation Form Grades K and 1 or Prospective Student Evaluation Form Grades 2-8 to the child's current school to be completed and returned directly to St. Louis Catholic School (not to the parents).

Visit: All prospective local families are required to attend the October Open House or schedule a tour within the current admissions cycle (prior to February 3, 2025 for first round of consideration) as part of the admissions process. This requirement is waived for current St. Louis School sibling applicants.

Tuition Rate: According to parish and school policy, to qualify for a Catholic tuition rate, a copy of the child's Catholic Baptismal Certificate must be provided in addition to the Parish Acknowledgement Form. Additional information confirming receipt of Reconciliation, First Eucharist, and Confirmation may be provided on the Application for Admission as appropriate.

*St. Louis Catholic School follows the Fairfax County Public Schools Inclement Weather policy. In the event of a delayed opening on a scheduled assessment date, the testing time will be pushed back as appropriate for the same day. In the event schools are closed, prospective families will be contacted to re-schedule.

Middle School Applicants

Eligibility: St. Louis Catholic School reserves any 8th Grade openings for those applicants who may be re-locating to the area. Local transfer students are not accepted for admissions into the 8th Grade class. Please contact the principal, Mrs. Calogero ([email protected]) before submitting applications.

Assessment: Assessments for each 6th-8th Grade applicant will be scheduled once all student records and recommendation forms have been received.*

Recommendation: Parents must submit the Prospective Student Evaluation Form Grades 2-8 to the child's current school to be completed and returned directly to St. Louis Catholic School (not to the parents).

Visit: All Middle School applicants are required to schedule a shadow day.

All local prospective families are required to attend the October Open House or schedule a tour within the current admissions cycle (prior to February 3, 2025 for first round of consideration) as part of the admissions process. This requirement is waived for current St. Louis School sibling applicants; however the shadow day is still required.

Tuition Rate: According to parish and school policy, to qualify for a Catholic tuition rate, a copy of the child's Catholic Baptismal Certificate must be provided in addition to the Parish Acknowledgement Form. Additional information confirming receipt of Reconciliation, First Eucharist, and Confirmation may be provided on the Application for Admission as appropriate.

*St. Louis Catholic School follows the Fairfax County Public Schools Inclement Weather policy. In the event of a delayed opening on a scheduled assessment date, the testing time will be pushed back as appropriate for the same day. In the event schools are closed, prospective families will be contacted to re-schedule.

Military Family Applicants

St. Louis Catholic School understands that military families may be awaiting confirmation of orders prior to applying, but do encourage military families to apply early if there is even a possibility of relocation to the Alexandria area as applications are considered within the order they are received by priority criteria, and wait pools at all grade levels are common. Military families are encouraged to tour our school; however, we understand that it may not always be possible. Please reach out to Mrs. Michael to discuss tour options.

Eligibility: To qualify for application priority, military families must be relocating to the area within 6 months of the start of school and provide a signed Parish Acknowledgement Form from their current parish. Student applicants must also be baptized and have received age-appropriate sacraments in the Catholic faith to be considered in the priority category.

Military families who have resided in the area and are considering a local school transfer will be considered within the appropriate application priority category - parishioner, Catholic or non-Catholic.

Assessments: Assessments and shadow days for applicants of military families who have not yet re-located to the area may be scheduled outside of the regular admissions timeline on a case-by-case basis.

Visit: All local prospective families are required to attend the October Open House or schedule a tour within the current admissions cycle (prior to February 3, 2025 for first round of consideration) as part of the admissions process.

Tuition Rate: According to parish and school policy, active duty military families, regardless of faith, may qualify for a Catholic tuition rate. Active duty military families will be required to provide proof of the active duty status of the military family member with the application and annually to maintain the tuition rate.

WAIT POOLS
St. Louis does not maintain wait pools beyond the currently accepted application year. Applicants may be placed in the wait pool for the current application year and will remain in the wait pool until the start of the school year for which the applicant applied. If at any time you wish to be removed from the wait pool, please contact the school registrar ([email protected]).

Applications do not carry over year to year. The start of the school year concludes the admissions cycle for that year. Prospective students remaining in the wait pool at the start of the school year will be removed. Should you remain interested in St. Louis Catholic School, you must re-apply for the following school year beginning with the start of the next admissions cycle in November.