Test Over Three Decades of Catholic Formation in Dunedin

Our Lady of Lourdes School opened on September 4, 1962, with seventy-two students in Kindergarten through fourth grade. The following year grades five and six were added; grades seven and eight were added in the next two years. Because of space constraints and because the state of Florida didn't require Kindergarten attendance at this time, the Kindergarten program was dropped.

The founding parish pastor Monsignor William W. DuBois served as principal with a staff of lay teachers until August, 1965 when five Sisters of Notre Dame from Chardon, Ohio, arrived to help staff the school. There were 205 students at this time.

From 1965-1994, six Sisters of Notre Dame served as principals. In June, 1994, Our Lady of Lourdes had its first lay principal. The transition was smooth with the spirit and traditions of the school continuing as strongly as ever.

To accommodate the increased enrollment of the school, portable buildings and a trailer were purchased in 1965. The trailer was used as a library until 1977. Two of the portables, which were located on the site of the present grades 5-8 portion of the school building, were used for twelve years for grades 1-4; the other two portables were used for lavatories, a teacher work room, and an art room. The art room was converted to a science room in 1972 when a full time science teacher was hired.

When the new church was completed in 1977, grades 5-8 were moved into the new classrooms in the old church building and grades 1-4 were moved into the former 5-8 classrooms. The portable buildings were then used once again for art, which had been taught in the classrooms in recent years and for tutoring programs or as meeting rooms. Kindergarten was reintroduced to the program and held in one of the portables. In 1978, one of the portables was remodeled to be used as a library/media center while the trailer which had been purchased in 1965 for use as a library was remodeled for tutoring and for a gifted program called Alpine (Advanced Procedures in New Learning Endeavors).

In 1980, to accommodate construction for a new building which would house grades 5-8, lavatories, dressing rooms for P.E. , and a teachers' room, the portables were relocated to the site where our new office wing is now located. The corridor of the original building was closed in so that the new classrooms could be connected to the original building to form one unit. The vacated classrooms in the old church were converted to a large kitchen, a science room, a music room, and a media center.

In 1988, the music room was converted to a computer room. The portables were once again used for art and music. A resource teacher was added to the staff to head the Seton Center Program for the Learning Disabled and the Gifted. In addition to using the Alpine trailer, renamed Seton Center, the resource teacher used an area in the portables for small group work. Kindergarten remained in the portables. In 1992, an EC4 program was added and located in the portable that had once been the library.

A trailer that had been purchased in 1989 from the parish for a guidance office with a part-time guidance counselor was located with the Seton Center trailer on a walkway just outside the grades 7 and 8 entrance to the building.

The most recent programs added to OLL include a computerized library system, a cafeteria hot lunch program, an extended care program, and a computer network for the entire school.

The portables were torn down in 1995 to make way for the new office wing of the building which was joined to the School Hall/Cafeteria. The new office area includes a reception area, a conference room and offices for the administrative staff, guidance, and PE. Also included in this wing are Kindergarten, EC4, and art and music classrooms.

The history of OLL would not be complete without a look at the sports program which began in 1968 with the clearing of some property to provide for an athletic field and track. The Athletic Booster Club which was very active provided for a baseball diamond and a football field in 1969. The boosters also provided coaches and funds to hire physical education teachers. In 1976, the strip on the north side of the school was cleared and filled to enlarge the area to include soccer and baseball as we had lost a baseball diamond with the construction of the new church. Football was discontinued in the mid-70's. In 1988-89, the PFA sponsored the redesign and improvement of the play areas. A new developmental piece of equipment designed by USF was built by parent volunteers.

In July of 1997, the school converted the old school office building into a computer lab. Twenty computers were installed, and students go to the computer lab at least once a week for technology training. In addition to computers in the lab, in 2004 all teachers were issued their own laptop computer.

Our Lady of Lourdes School has been at the forefront of using technology for students, teachers, and parents. Our school was one of the first in the diocese to use the computer generated grade program Power School. The teachers from grades 4-8 put all grades on-line for parents to view: report cards from grades 4-8 are also computer generated. In 2005 the whole school went wireless for easy access throughout the building.

The Father Conmy Center was built in 2004 for the parish and school community. The large multi-purpose building is used for PE classes, classrooms when needed and sporting events after school. The parish uses the Center for parish meetings, social gatherings after masses, and Youth Group. The parish also rents the Center to the community for events such as plays and social gatherings.

In the spring of 2007, the school library underwent a complete renovation. New windows, ceiling, flooring, shelves, tables and chairs were added. The library is now a beautiful, tranquil place enjoyed by all.

With all the changes and improvements added to Our Lady of Lourdes, the things that have not changed are the caring and dedication of our pastors, principals, teachers and parents of our community. Our Lady of Lourdes a school that meets the challenge of new ideas and technologies, especially if it will help our students and make the school a better place.