St. Mary School in Columbus’ German Village neighborhood conducted a groundbreaking ceremony on Monday, Oct. 17 for a combined addition and renovation that will increase the size of the building by 10,000 square feet and remodel 80 percent of the school. The ceremony was preceded by a Mass celebrated by Bishop Earl Fernandes.

A St. Mary German Village student prays during a Mass in the church that preceded the groundbreaking ceremony for the school expansion. Photo courtesy Abigail Pitones

“At St. Mary School, we believe every child deserves a high-quality education and that every child can achieve success,” school principal Gina Stull said. “Our reimagined campus will provide a modern learning environment where our students can thrive academically and spiritually and have their health needs met through our new health center.

“Thanks to everyone who has helped create a culture of academic excellence, inclusion and faith” at the school, she said, noting that all but two members of its 2022 eighth-grade class are attending Catholic high schools. The school, founded in 1865, has students from more than 30 ZIP codes.

Above: Bishop Fernandes blesses the dirt before the shovels are used for the ceremonial groundbreaking for the St. Mary School expansion.  Photos courtesy Abigail Pitones  

The enhanced campus will include improved teaching and learning spaces with the latest technology and systems; outdoor learning environments for the middle and elementary schools that invite exploration and wonder; Heritage Hall, a multipurpose space open to the parish, school and community; dedicated space for partners to deliver programs and services that meet the needs of students and their families; and access to primary and behavioral health care from a school-based health center operated in partnership with Nationwide Children’s Hospital, which is located near the school campus.

The school also will be the new home of the Dominican Learning Center, which since 1994 has been located in the former Corpus Christi School 2 miles from the St. Mary campus. The center has served thousands of adult learners through English as a Second Language and General Educational Development test programs and basic education courses.

Stull said the school is at its maximum capacity of 430 students this year and the expansion will allow that number to grow to 500. She expects the renovation to be completed in 2023 and the addition to be open the following year.   

Tim Robinson, chief executive officer of Nationwide Children’s, said the school’s new health center allows the hospital to become more a part of German Village and Columbus’ south side, noting that both the school and the hospital share the goal of holistically developing each student.

“Children don’t learn if they are missing school for health reasons, and young people who are better learners become healthy and productive adults,” he said.

“Nationwide Children’s is bringing health care to the place where young people need it – the schools. The new health center will be like a doctor at a school, providing regular checkups, visits for illness, immunizations and management of chronic conditions like asthma. For those without a regular health-care provider, this can make all the difference in the world.” 

The primary health care the center provides will be available to St. Mary students and the surrounding community.

Behavioral health services for St. Mary students also will be part of the center and will include prevention and therapy services, as well as individual and family counseling. 

In the elementary grades, a behavioral health consultant will assist teachers in administration of the PAX good behavior game. This prevention activity is credited with teaching students self-regulation and cooperation to create a more peaceful and productive classroom.

In the middle-school grades, behavioral health clinicians will teach the warning signs of suicide and how to seek help should teachers, parents or peers identify a student considering suicide. Families also will have access to Triple P (the Positive Parenting Program), which helps with common parenting concerns and challenging behavior.

Phase one of improvements to the school campus, completed in 2020, included purchase and renovation of the middle school and repairs to the elementary school gym and roof. 

St. Mary students show their enthusiasm at the groundbreaking ceremony in the gymnasium for the forthcoming additions to the school. Photos courtesy Abigail Pitones  

The school’s “Rooted in Faith, Education, and Community” campaign has raised more than $18.6 million of a $20 million goal, said Mo Meuse, co-chair of the campaign. Other chairs are her husband, David, and Mike and Peggy Hartshorn. About $18 million of the total is for the school improvements, with the rest creating an endowment fund for the school.

“We are humbled by the gifts and inspired by the stories we hear about how a St. Mary education changes lives,” Mo Meuse said at the groundbreaking ceremony. “We love walking down the halls, getting to know teachers and seeing how students light up when Father Vince (Nguyen, St. Mary Church pastor) greets them with a fist bump.

“We see how our school lives out its mission to love God, to teach as Christ taught and to love and serve as disciples to our communities and to each other.”

For more information on the campaign, go to www.itsrooted.org.



Above: Bishop Fernandes smiles during the groundbreaking. Below: Father Vince Nguyen, pastor at St. Mary Church in German Village, addresses the gathering in the school gym during the ceremony. Photos courtesy Abigail Pitones