Montessori-style Catholic school in Joliet ready to welcome more students

Naysayers didn’t think St. Joseph Academy would last one year, much less start its 14th school year, said Jan Novotny, who heads the school.

Organizers of the academy wanted to retain a Catholic influence of Joliet’s east side when the Diocese of Joliet closed St. Joseph Church School in 2010.

“As long as they want us around, we’ll be around,” Novotny said. “So we’re still here.”

The school, a private, tuition-based independent school in the Catholic and Montessori traditions, will hold an open house from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sunday at 403 N. Hickory St. in Joliet, the former parish school of St. John Church and the academy’s third location.

What makes this private school different?

Full-time Montessori teacher Kelly Webb leads the preschool-kindergarten for children ages 3 to 6, Novotny said. The curriculum includes hands-on language, math, geography, art and science.

It also teaches children respect for themselves and others and how to become “responsible and resourceful learners,” according to a news release from St. Joseph Academy, announcing the open house.

Carrie Lee and Novotny teach elementary and adolescent students. Subjects include a foundation in reading, writing and math, along with science, social studies, literature, research, Spanish, music, drama and art. Homework and testing are tools, not “ends in themselves,” according to the release.

Students also give oral presentations and work on independent projects. Specialists in the arts and other subjects occasionally share their expertise with the students, often on a volunteer basis, Novotny said. An after-school program is available, too.

However, every minute of the school schedule is not “carved into stone,” Novotny said.

“Because we have such a good relationship with the children, we can change on a moment’s notice,” Novotny said. “If it’s a beautiful day, we can do on a nature walk. … If we’re in the middle of a good discussion in history and we’re supposed to start math, we can go on with history and catch up with math. If the history lesson is done early, we can go right into math. We don’t live by bells.”

Novotny herself brings plenty of experience to the academy. She taught at the Cathedral of St. Raymond School from 1978 to 1989, coordinated the Youth College and Emeritus College at Joliet Junior College from 1990 to 2003 and was head of school at Joliet Montessori School from 2003 to 2021.

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The academy moved out of its first location at 51 W. Jackson St. after four years when the owner was selling its property. The academy then moved into the building with the former Friends for Community Public Art on 310 N. Ottawa St., Joliet, for four years. It moved to its present location five years ago.

“We like it here, and St. John’s Parish was very welcoming to us,” Novotny said. “So it worked out nicely.”

With its consistently small class size, St. Joseph is sometimes called “a multi-family,” homeschool, Novotny said. For instance, the academy began the school year in 2010 with 23 students and ended with 34. It graduated five.

“Last year on a good day we had close to 20 students,” Novotny said. “We would love to have 30.”

Some children attend only the preschool/kindergarten program and then move to a traditional school, Novotny said. Others stay through eighth-grade graduation and have since graduated college.

Benefits of small class size

Fewer students translates to more personalization of lessons to the students, which “is a blessing, really,” Novotny said. Because the school is Montessori-based, students have access to plenty of manipulatives, too.

“Each child learns in his own way,” Novotny said. “If they learn best by doing one-on-one, we can do that. If they learn best in small groups, we can do that. It’s not something that’s possible in a large, traditional school.”

The school day is 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. with daily Mass for children of all faiths at 8:30 a.m. Most of the students are Christian and many of them are Catholic, Novotny said. Children learn what constitutes a Mass, and even Novotny doesn’t understand Mass when it’s celebrated in Spanish.

“I don’t speak Spanish,” Novotny said.

Attending Mass has value even for students who aren’t Catholic, Novotny said. For instance, those who read during the Mass learn confidence and how to give oral presentations, she said.

“They learn lessons from the Bible, which don’t hurt anybody,” Novotny said. “They learn how to be kind to one another.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: St. Joseph Academy open house

WHEN: 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sunday

WHERE: 403 N. Hickory Street

ETC: Interested families can also schedule a private tour.

INFO: Call Jan Novotny, principal, at 815-723-4567.