Dear Future Fighting Irish Student,

Greetings from Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy! Your interest in our school shows how much you value your education. The faculty and staff at Notre Dame, which serves boys and girls from age 3 through 12th grade, share that same value. With God we form Christian Persons, Upright Citizens and Academic Scholars.

No matter your current age or grade, the schools of Notre Dame are committed to preparing you for lifelong success. But with so many choices, how do you know Notre Dame is the right place for you? In other words, above all other schools in Metro Detroit and outlying communities, why Notre Dame?

Notre Dame because …

· you want to be unique. Notre Dame is the first and only Catholic school in the United States to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) program at all three levels. (Notre Dame is the only school—private or public—in the state of Michigan to offer all three levels of programming.)

· you want to get a head start on college. In addition to IB, Notre Dame offers 17 Advanced Placement classes that allow our students to earn college credit before ever leaving our campus. Many NDP students have entered college as sophomores after earning college credits in IB and AP courses.

· you want to be challenged. At Notre Dame, you will be instructed by teachers who aim to have their students working high above the standard at that grade level. In the Middle and Upper divisions, students are not bound to certain classes by their age or grade. In the Lower Division, students are assessed frequently and given higher-level tasks when appropriate. In all divisions, Notre Dame students are active and analytical participants in their education.

· you want opportunities. Maybe you’re an athlete. Maybe you’re a singer. Maybe you’re a photographer, or a horse rider, or a budding engineer. Notre Dame is big enough to offer multiple and varied opportunities for you to grow in sports, fine and performing arts, clubs and extra-curricular competitions, yet we are small enough for you to shine in whatever you choose to do.

· you want to serve your community. All our students, no matter their age or grade level, perform Christian service to a number of charities throughout the Metro Detroit area. High school students are expected to perform 15 hours of service per year, while middle school students are expected to perform 10 hours of service per year.

· you want to grow in faith. At Notre Dame you will begin each day with a reflection and prayer, and you also will receive religious instruction daily. Catholic students deepen their understanding of their faith, while non-Catholic students are introduced to the Church’s history, theology and moral teachings.

· you want choices. At Notre Dame you will be exposed to a wide variety of classes and subjects that will stimulate your mind. Consider this sampling: Accounting, Anatomy, Astronomy, Chinese, Computer Aided Design (CAD), Concert Chorale, Interior & Textile Design, Investigative History, Law, Morality, Pottery, Psychology, Spanish, Sports Medicine, Statistics, Symphony Band, and Web Design.

· you want to fit in. All are welcome at Notre Dame, where students go out of their way to make new classmates and visitors feel at home. A combination of diverse people exposed to diverse interests ensures the creation of well-rounded students who are not bound by traditional social boundaries and peer groups.

· you want to stand out. At Notre Dame you can be who you want to be, whether it’s president of the student body, star of the theatre production, Homecoming Queen, captain of a sports team, first chair in symphonic band, or editor of the newspaper. And more often than not, you can be more than one of those things. Whether you’re a scholar, an athlete, an artist or a musician, at Notre Dame you can blaze your own trail and watch people take notice.

· you want to have fun. Notre Dame provides a vibrant campus life. As a complement to our challenging academic environment, our students know how to celebrate their lives and friendships. School dances, concerts, talent shows, athletic contests, bowling nights and roller skating parties are some examples of activities you could experience as a student at Notre Dame.

· you want to be cool. Notre Dame is a traditional school in many senses, but we are very different in one respect: Students at Notre Dame find that the better they perform in school, the more positive recognition they receive. Simply put, at Notre Dame “it’s cool to be smart.”

If you want all these things, we want you. Be cool. Be you. Be Irish!