History

The origins of St. Mary Catholic Schools can be traced back to September of 1868 when German settlers opened a small, wooden school house adjacent to the newly constructed St. Mary Catholic Church on 2nd Street in the city of Menasha. During this period in our school's history, only elementary subjects were taught because few students intended to work for a higher education. Recognized as the second parochial grade school in the diocese of Green Bay, St. Mary continued to steadily increase in enrollment and by 1893 a new, three-story brick building was constructed at a cost of $15,000.

The year 1921 saw a growing need to expand once again; and, by the opening of the 2021-22 school year, a second three-story building was constructed near 3rd Street to handle the increase in enrollment. It wasn't until 1928 that St. Mary Catholic School established itself as a higher education facility with the first graduating class of 1929 consisting of 14 graduates.

During the post World War II years, St. Mary continued to see enrollment increases which resulted in expansion to its orginal campus in both 1952 and 1962.

Nearly seventy years after our first 14 graduates received their diplomas, St. Mary Catholic High School moved across town into its new, and current, facility in the fall of 1997. Conveniently located near Hwy 10 and County Rd. CB in Fox Crossing, our 87,000 square foot facility sits on 32 acres and features a modern fitness center, turfed athletic fields, and the beautiful Jane Bergstrom Fine Arts Education Center.

With the beginning of the 2015-16 school year, we proudly opened our brand-new, state-of-the-art middle school campus on the same grounds as our high school.