Our Mission

As members of the Diocese of Paterson, we, the school community of St. Anthony, seek to prepare our students to live according to Catholic values as they strive toward academic excellence and spiritual growth. With the cooperative efforts of administration, faculty, parents and parish, we provide a moral foundation for our students by following Jesus’ example in implementing guiding principles of reason, religion and loving kindness. We are committed to providing our children with a solid educational background, the resources they need to achieve, and the confidence that will lead to their success.

Philosophy of St. Anthony School

St. Anthony School exists as an integral part of the parish of St. Anthony. We are a Catholic school community that provides our students with roots and wings: roots that are firmly planted in Catholic truths and values, and wings that will take them into a future of academic success and spiritual growth. We provide a solid groundwork of educational excellence within an environment of respect and responsibility that enables our students to meet the challenges of a changing world with intellectual, emotional, civic and spiritual conviction.

We follow Jesus as our model as we embrace our children’s individuality, developing their unique skills and personalities. We celebrate not only excellence, but also effort and dedication as we strive to create a legacy of “life learners” who will cultivate their own abilities. Basic skills are taught systematically according to the development of the students’ abilities. Student-centered lessons are the cornerstone of classroom instruction that focuses on developing critical thinkers.

The staff, parents, parish leaders and students work together to create a reassuring family environment that nurtures the individual child while fostering a spirit of service and community awareness. Thus, our children are encouraged to live according to Gospel principles through cooperation and mutual respect.

Beliefs and Goals

St. Anthony School, in accord with the Catholic Schools of the Paterson Diocese, believes that parents are the primary educators and we embrace our responsibility as co-educators. We believe all children are a sacred and shared trust. We believe that each child is a gift of God who must be treated with dignity, respect and care.

Based on these beliefs, we embrace the following goals:

• To integrate Gospel values and teachings into all areas of the curriculum, thus enabling students to make solid moral choices, to grow in faith and to share this faith with others.
• To provide academic excellence through a curriculum that generates 21st century skills: the ability to create, collaborate, and ethically act.
• To foster life-long learners who possess the knowledge, problem-solving skills and competencies to address multi-dimensional challenges inherent in a technological and global society.
• To provide an environment which enables students to appreciate and embrace creativity and beauty within and around them, as expressed in various disciplines, art forms and nature.
• To instill in our students the ability and determination to develop spiritually, intellectually, physically, morally and socially. By facilitating continual growth in their commitment to justice and their dedication to service, students make our Church, world, and one another better by their presence.