Sts. Mary-Alphonsus Catholic School

We have been an SMSA family for years!!!!...all four children enrolled and doing beautifully. With dedicated faculty and virtualy no staff turnover, we are at home. The environment is peaceful and caring. The faith education is top-notch and the academics are far more challenging than other schools. The best thing our family ever did was to move our children out of the local public schools and into SMSA.
--Submitted by a parent

Top-notch academics. Caring, attentive, experienced teachers. Felt I was sending my children to their second family every morning. Strong faith component. My children thrived there. One of best decisions I've made as a parent. Would do it all again in a heartbeat.
--Submitted by a parent

SMSA has gone down hill. The teachers are not qualified to teach, the turn over rate is high and many of them do not have teaching degree's. The administration is archaic in it's approach and has little understanding of what children need. The hypocrisy runs deep. They preach respect and faith but are not able to live up to their own words. There are ancient teachers at the school that hand out worksheets,talk about themselves and don't teach a thing. It is not the warm,caring environment they would like you to believe when you visit. Be aware, this is all lip service. It is all an act. They don't walk the walk and belittling students is the norm.
--Submitted by a parent

I was dissatisfied with St. Mary's School, the faculty do not adhere to a texting policy like most schools do and the school is insensitive about children with medical disabilites. Also, they do not want parents in the classroom. Even though the school is Catholic, the teachers are weak in their walk of faith.
--Submitted by a parent

SMSA is a gem. It consistently graduates 8th graders who go on to graduate in the top 1-2% of their public high school classes, excel in community leadership and athletics, and are accepted to Georgetown, Yale, Holy Cross, West Point, Fordham, Union, U of Rochester and other very competitive colleges. SMSA students routinely outscore their peers in the local public schools on standardized exams. SMSA is housed in a Natural Register of Historic Places building modeled after Westminster Abbey. The faculty is experienced, dedicated and stable. The principal has been there for more than 25 years, first as an English faculty member, and, as principal the last 10 years, has led the effort to deepen the SMSA curriculum, particularly in Junior High. Tuition can be challenging for large families, but assistance is available.
--Submitted by a parent

St. Mary's-St. Alphonsus can be summed up with the following words: Academic Excellence Positive Values Family Environment Fantastic Teachers Enjoyable Children Top Scoring 'School Report Cards' Affordable Tuition
--Submitted by a parent

St. Mary's is the best in the Capital Region. The building is beautiful, and the staff is excellent.
--Submitted by a parent

This school is one of the best in the area. There is a great deal of parent involvement and students are treated with respect and dignity. Learners are expected to do their very best and become the best people they can be...spiritually, academically and socially.
--Submitted by a parent

My son has attended St. Mary's/St. Alphonsus Regional Catholic School for the past 5 years. We originally sent him there because he is gifted in math and the public school wasn't going to do anything with him execpt possibly put him in an enrichment program. SMSA tested his math abilities and concluded that he already mastered the math skills for his current grade and let him take math with the next grade. Now that we've been there, other things we love are: the way the Catholic/Christian faith is interwoven in everything the students do; foreign language starts 4 years before the public schools; band starts 1 year before the public school; high academic test scores; small school setting where parents are welcome and encouraged to come in and spend some time; fantastic, caring teachers; uniforms ensure that students won't be wearing inappropriate or distracting clothing to school.
--Submitted by a parent