by Katie Vasquez
Fontbonne Hall academy’s mission has always been to help young women become the leaders of tomorrow, but now they are opening their doors to a new generation of girls.
The school is welcoming the students from Visitation Academy, a Bay Ridge catholic school that recently announced they will be closing at the end of the school year.
“We thought to ourselves, we need to do something here. This is a moment for us to make sure that all girl education, single sex education to the greatest extent possible, continues to thrive in Brooklyn,” said Fontbonne Hall Academy principal, Rocco Gentile.
Fontbonne is creating a new middle school program that will be starting in September,
and among those enrolling in the new classes will be around 31, 6th, 7th and 8th graders from Visitation.
The director of admissions at Fontbonne, Megan McCombs, says that since the program’s announcement she’s been flooded with calls.
“It sent shockwaves through the community. My phone was ringing off the hook with people interested in coming to find out and being a part of this program that we were taking on,” said McCombs.
The Bay Ridge high school says the new program will remember the work of the Visitation sisters.
“Those values will remain the same and we share those values. We are wholly devoted really to honoring the legacy of Visitation,” said Gentile.
They are not only keeping the same curriculum, but some of the faculty, and families will be charged around the same tuition.
“Keep the girls together if they wish, with their teachers. and currently, right now we are giving the priority to current Visitation students before we open up registration to outside students,” said McCombs.
Fontbonne says they have more than enough room for the new grades, and they can’t wait for the girls to bond together.
“We create a real sisterhood. and we’re looking to make sure that that sisterhood extends to the students that come in for a middle school program,” said Gentile.