School Choice Spotlight on Private Education

Ana, a mom to two sons, lives in the Northeast section of Philadelphia. Her youngest—awarded a four-year scholarship to a private academy in the Kensington/Port Richmond section of Philadelphia—is thriving!

“Boundless love” is the phrase Ana uses to convey the feeling of warmth that envelops students when they walk through the doors of Ligouri Academy.

Ana notes that her son chose Ligouri because he wanted a small school that provided academic opportunities. At first, Ana was hesitant because of the school’s location, but now she sees Ligouri as both a blessing to her son and the neighborhood at large. “They’ve been very good—not just to him—but to a lot of the kids in the neighborhood.” Ana adds, “Between the five-mile run or cleaning up the neighborhood, they include the community, and the community adopts them as a result.”

Ana’s son enjoys participating in Ligouri’s extracurricular activities like Falcon Tank—the school’s version of “Shark Tank” where students learned the intricacies of the marketplace by creating and selling a product. Ana’s son learned how to design shoes using 3D software and then market and sell his product—all while getting paid for his work.

Liguori stresses real-world experience for its students. Through its Career Cohorts program, Liguori leverages an extensive network of partners to connect students with internships and job-shadowing opportunities, providing them with industry-specific curriculum.

Meanwhile, Ana’s son received an invite to participate in a two-week summer course on engineering and robotics at Temple University. “At public schools, I don’t think a lot of the kids have these opportunities, and I would have worked three jobs, just so that he would not have to attend public schools, because public schools are extremely tough here in Philadelphia.”

Ana, with happy tears in her eyes, talks about how proud she is of her son. “He said, ‘Mom, I want to go to a good college, but I don’t want you to pay for it.’ So, he’s doing everything that he can in his power just to go after that [college] scholarship.”

If you would like to share your story in our School Choice Spotlight series, please fill out this form. Upfront, thank you!