Bishop Stang High School
Encyclopedia
- "Stang" redirects here
Mission Statement:
Bishop Stang High School is a private Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
located in North Dartmouth, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, in the New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
region of the United States. It was the first diocesan secondary school in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fall River
Roman Catholic Diocese of Fall River
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Fall River is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the New England region of the United States. It is led by the prelature of a bishop administering the diocese from the mother church St...
, which includes most of Southeastern Massachusetts, including Cape Cod and the Islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. It is named after William Stang
William Stang
William Stang was a German-born prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the first Bishop of Fall River from 1904 until his death in 1907.-Biography:...
, the first Bishop of the Diocese of Fall River, and has been coeducational since its founding.
Location
It is Located in the suburban town of Dartmouth, on the south coast of Massachusetts, Stang's 8 acres (32,374.9 m²) campus is 25 minutes west of the Cape Cod CanalCape Cod Canal
The Cape Cod Canal is an artificial waterway traversing the narrow neck of land that joins Cape Cod to mainland Massachusetts.Part of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, the canal is roughly 17.4 miles long and connects Cape Cod Bay in the north to Buzzards Bay in the south...
and 20 minutes east of the Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
border. Its 800-plus student body draws from more than 50 cities and towns in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Catholic secondary education in southeastern Massachusetts began in the early 20th century with local parochial schools affiliated with various Catholic parishes. Some of these, such as the now-closed Holy Family High School, located near St. Lawrence Church in New Bedford, had strong academic reputations and produced generations of prominent Catholic alumni in the region. While Stang was not the first Catholic secondary school in southeastern Massachusetts, it was the first regional, diocesan, coeducation
Coeducation
Mixed-sex education, also known as coeducation or co-education, is the integrated education of male and female persons in the same institution. It is the opposite of single-sex education...
al institution. Founded in 1959, Stang's original faculty included Sisters of Notre Dame
Sisters of Notre Dame
Sisters of Notre Dame may refer to:*Congregation of Notre Dame de Montreal*School Sisters of Notre Dame*Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur*Sisters of Notre Dame of Coesfeld...
in full religious habit. The new 8 acres (32,374.9 m²) campus across from the Country Club of New Bedford in then-pastoral Dartmouth drew students from cities and towns in a 60 miles (96.6 km) radius from Rhode Island to Cape Cod. In the years following the Second Vatican Council, the number of Sisters of Notre Dame decreased. By the 1970s the vast majority of faculty and administrators were lay men and women, and the remaining sisters dressed conservatively, but in lay clothing. Since its inception, Stang has had a large number of alumni return as teachers and administrators.
Academics
96% of Stang graduates continue their education, with over 91% going on to four-year colleges and universities.Courses are diverse and offered at four levels. Students are placed in levels according to their individual strengths and weaknesses.
Advanced Placement courses
Advanced placement courses are highly accelerated courses. They provide students the opportunity to pursue college level studies while in secondary school. AP courses are offered in Biology, Chemistry Physics, Math A/B, English, Psychology, and Modern European History. These mainly apply to Juniors and Seniors. Freshman and Sophomores are eligible for Advanced Math (which paves the way to AP Math) and Advanced Spanish—meanwhile these are not OFFICIAL AP courses
Honors level courses
Honors level courses are characterized by content which is more extensive and detailed than standard level and college preparatory level courses. They have greater depth requiring application, analysis, and evaluation of the material, the understanding and use of concepts as well as facts. Independent research, extensive use of resources and outside reading is also expected.
College Preparatory level courses
The majority of Stang students are in college preparatory courses. These courses are characterized by detailed content requiring application, analysis, and evaluation of the material presented. As of the 2011-2012 Cp classes have been re branded College preparatory A or Cp A classes.
Standard level courses
These courses are characterized by basic learning skills such as reading, note-taking, study skills, reinforcement of memory skills, organization and management of a student's time. Because of these built-in supports, more time is spent on developing these learning skills in specific content areas. As of the 2011-2012 standard classes have been re branded College Preparatory B, or Cp B classes
Athletics and activities
Bishop Stang offers over 11 varsity, junior varsity, and freshman interscholastic sports teams and more than 20 co-curricular activities. Stang also has a few activities that have not become official such as an Improvisation Group. Stang athletic teams have historically been a success in both men's and women's sports, including a 2005 championship football team that made it to the Massachusetts high school "Super Bowl". Earlier in 2005, the Spartan hockey team won the Southeastern Mass Championship.Each school year more than 80% of the student body participates in one or more co-curricular activities.
Bishop Stang boasts an impressive drama program and a library headed up by Jennifer Thomas. Thomas was awarded the Web Seal of Excellence from the Massachusetts School Library Association. The award recognizes excellence in a school library's use of web tools in areas such as web-pages, ning (an online platform for people to create their own social networks,) and blogs.