St. Aloysius School Celebrates Historical Moment at National Blue Ribbon Awards Ceremony

St. Aloysius School in Baton Rouge representatives celebrated the school’s successes and built momentum to achieve more in future at the 2024 National Blue Ribbon Awards Ceremony.

The Nov. 11 event, held in Washington, D.C., brought more than 1,000 educators and leaders together to recognize 356 public and private schools receiving the award.

During the event, participants heard from guest speakers, networked, attended workshops, and joined their peers in the presentation of awards.

SAS was one of only 33 Catholic schools in the nation and the only Catholic school in Louisiana to be recognized at the Blue Ribbon Awards Ceremony. This is St. Aloysius’ second time to win the award, with the first time being in 2015.

Erin Candilora, SAS principal, said, “It was super fun and a great opportunity to collaborate with other Blue Ribbon School winners from our state as well as across the nation.”

Conference speakers encouraged attendees to sustain their level of excellence until they are eligible to apply again in five more years and share ideas on how to celebrate their accomplishments all year.  

Candilora credited assistant principal Stacey Keaton for playing a vital role in the application process during both times SAS won the Blue Ribbon Award.

 Top right photo: Pictured at the National Blue Ribbon Ceremony at Washington, D.C. are, from left, Father Randy Cuevas, former pastor of St. Aloysius Church in Baton Rouge, Erin Candilora, principal of St. Aloysius School, and Dr. Pattie Davis, Superintendent of School of the Diocese of Baton Rouge. Photos provided by Erin Candilora
Above Photo: A children’s choir performs during the National Blue Ribbon CeremonyKeaton said the application process began with determining if St. Aloysius’ standardized test scores met the Blue Ribbon requirement of being in the 15 percent of the nation.

SAS applied for the award with assistance from the Center for American Private Education (CAPE). This included compiling statistics about how many students attend the school, student demographics, how many may have learning issues, etc. In the application SAS included such things as their school’s curriculum, how they engage with families, and develop their staff.

“The hardest part was taking the great things we do at the school and ‘whittling it down’ to fit it within the specified number of words for each section,” said Keaton.

SAS submitted their application in December 2023 and discovered they had received the award in July, according to Candilora. The school secretly planned for the surprise announcement to faculty and students, on Sept. 23, which was made in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Education’s announcement.

Candilora and Keaton attended the ceremony with Michelle Dozier, co-SAS assistant principal, Dr. Pattie Davis, superintendent of Catholic Schools for the Diocese of Baton Rouge, and Father Randy Cuevas, former pastor of St. Aloysius Church.

“On behalf of Bishop Duca and the Catholic Schools Office, we are incredibly proud of St. Aloysius School for being named a 2024 National Blue Ribbon School,” said Davis. “This prestigious honor recognizes St. Aloysius Catholic School’s dedication to faith, academic excellence, and student success. St. Aloysius stands out as a model of rigorous education and holistic development.

“This achievement highlights the hard work and partnership of the pastor, principal, faculty, staff, students, and families who together create an exceptional environment for faith and academics, nurturing the whole child.”

Candilora expressed her gratitude for the support of Father Randy Cuevas, former pastor of St. Aloysius Church, current pastor Father Michael Alello, and the school’s benefactors.

“It’s an honor to have been pastor when the application for this year’s recognition was submitted, and to have spent the last nine years of my active ministry at my alma mater,” said Father Cuevas. “I’m very proud to be an alumnus, having attended St. Aloysius from Kindergarten through eighth grade myself. It’s a great recognition of our Aloysius faculty and students, but also …. really for all the Catholic schools of our diocese.

“I think it says that the choice of Catholic education is a good choice to equip one’s children for future success in life and academic pursuits. It’s an incentive that continues to challenge our students and teachers to excel, and an achievement that says we are consistent in our efforts to always ‘raise the bar’ for our students to use their God-given gifts and abilities to be all that they can be.”

Father Alello expressed how proud he was of SAS for its distinction.

“St. Aloysius has a long history of academic excellence. We are blessed by a faculty and staff committed to forming our students, helping them excel across the board,” said Father Alello. “Receiving two national blue ribbons is something to be celebrated by our entire community.”

Candilora agreed.

“It’s a community award. It’s everyone working together. And the fact that we have sustained this level of excellence since 2015 was very special to us,” said Candilora.

She said the students, especially, are the “stars of the show.”

“They work so hard; they want to please their teachers. They’re curious learners. They are ‘all in’ on any activity that we are doing,” stated Candilora.

Until SAS applies for Blue Ribbon status in another five years, the school will continue its commitment to excellence and grow from its successes.

The school meets those needs through its STREAM lab, dyslexia lab, reading and math resource labs, and other services, according to Candilora.

SAS will continue its rigorous coursework and show their relevance by connecting students to real life problems. Third graders, for example, have a project in which they plant seeds. The following year they visit the Bonnet Carré Spillway and plant their seedlings and learn about how their plants stop soil erosion.

Students have tested waters from the LSU Lakes to learn what it needs to be a sustainable lake system.

With the school’s commitment to “educating the whole child,” Candilora said SAS works hard to make sure students have a spiritual foundation.

“We give them the spiritual foundation so they can become the saints that they're called to be,” Candilora said. “Getting their souls to heaven and helping them be the saints that they're called to be is the main goal. All the rigor and the coursework and the curriculum is wonderful. But if they don't have that strong faith foundation, then nothing else matters.”