FOUNDATION

In the fall of 1949, St. Anne Catholic Grade School opened to nearly 200 students.  The convent was also ready for Mother M. Lorenza and the other three Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary who comprised the first faculty.  Through the assistance of Mr. Oscar Hartsig and Dr. Paul Cousino, the parochial students were transported on the public school busses for gratis.

Mother Marie Irene became principal in 1956 and guided the school through a period of great growth.  The addition of 13 classrooms in 1960 (actually the fourth phase of the school building), completed the structure of the grade school building as we know it today.  In 1961, the enrollment swelled to 1,100, and seven years later, the parish entered into a shared-time program with the Warren Consolidated Schools.  With this arrangement, the public school took over half the building, provided about a dozen classroom teachers, and music, art, and physical education instructors--as well as a principal and a secretary.  The year before the program ended, Dr. Thom Engel became the first lay principal of the grammar school.  He was succeeded by Mr. Anthony Sahadi in September of 2007.