About

Our Mission:

The mission of Our Lady of Czestochowa (The OLC School) is to create a learning environment that encourages each child to grow as a spiritual, moral and intellectual individual, who will be able to embrace a global multicultural society of the 21st century.

As a Catholic school in a diverse community, we strive to develop virtues and values that foster the expression of a child’s potential.  We encourage life-long learning and creative problem-solving by providing a challenging and stimulating academic curriculum, while also allowing consideration for individual interests, abilities and needs.

School Philosophy:

The philosophy of Catholic education is to provide for the academic growth and development of the whole child while meeting the needs of the individual, with an atmosphere centered on Christ.  A child’s beliefs, attitudes, values and behavioral patterns are developed primarily by his/her parents, who are the child’s first educators.  The purpose of a Catholic school is to reaffirm and enhance the values taught at home.  The OLC School aims to provide the child with a climate where faith, trust, and love for God and others is encouraged, lived, and witnessed in his/her life.

History:

Our Lady of Czestochowa School first began in 1911. The current building at 248 Marin Blvd was erected in 1929, on the eve of the Great Depression at a cost of $225,000, by the Parish of Our Lady of Czestochowa Roman Catholic Church.  The orange brick school sits precisely on the former site of the old Congressional Tabernacle of the first Congressional church of Jersey City. 

 The Tabernacle was acquired and operated by the Elks until 1919 when the Parish of Our Lady of Czestochowa, responding to the needs of a growing Roman Catholic population, bought the property.  The original school (and convent) had been located at 79 Sussex Street, which was a small building.  However, because of the fast growth of the student body, there was much reason to find a larger space.  The school, relocated to the Tabernacle, but the old building’s poor condition made it necessary to tear it down and build anew.

 With the assistance of the Parish and community, the new parochial school complete with a one-of-a-kind “roof garden”, or rooftop playground, was born.  The second pastor of the church, Rev. Ignatus Szudrowicz, was instrumental in the campaign to expand the school.   In 1949, a new convent for the Felician nuns, who had been associated with the school since its inception, was built at 180 Grand Street, adjacent to Victory Hall.  In the 1950s, the OLC Jr. Baseball League Field, which sits directly across from the convent, was created for the students, and Victory Hall was repaired and redecorated. 

 Today, the school continues to welcome all who want a fine Christian education, regardless of race, color, and creed in a diverse society.

Objectives:

The objectives of The OLC School are to:

• Assist parents in fulfilling their responsibilities to their children as their primary teachers
• Provide a proper atmosphere for the building of a Faith-Based community
• Acquire an appreciation of the pursuit of academic excellence that gives students the opportunity to be successful in their educational experiences
• Guide the students to becoming responsible and accountable young men and women receptive to truth and creativity
• Develop a Christian understanding and appreciation of physical well-being based on the relationships with God, self and others
• Transmit faith in Christ to the students by our example and to teach the core values of the faith

Blue Ribbon: 

Recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education in 2015.

Accreditation:

Our Lady of Czestochowa/ Little Harbor Academy accredited by the Middle States Association of Schools and Colleges.