High School Formation
A four-year school built to form mind, body, work ethic, and faith.
Saint Carlo Acutis High School
A blueprint for a modern education.
An all-male work-study school built around scholarship, daily training, and spiritual formation.
Core Structure
- Four-year high school
- All-male student body
- School four days a week
- Internship one day a week
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Confident student group
Add a strong opening image of students standing with unity and discipline.
The Foundation
Education here forms the whole person.
All-Male Environment
A focused brotherhood with clear standards, shared discipline, and strong accountability.
Work-Study Model
Students attend school four days a week and complete internships one day a week.
Independent Scholarship
Students learn actively through study, exams, presentations, and discussion.
WhyThe research behind this
Following one quarter of the 1958 British birth cohort, single-sex schooling showed no penalty in later labour market outcomes and was linked to stronger performance in subjects usually stereotyped for the other sex.
Sullivan, A., Joshi, H., & Leonard, D. (2011). Oxford Review of Education.
A study of US secondary schools found single-sex schooling associated with higher test scores, with the clearest gains for students who were already academically engaged.
Billger, S. M. (2006). IZA Discussion Paper No. 2037.
Counterpoint we take seriously
The largest meta-analysis on this question - 184 studies, 1.6 million students - found that once selection effects are controlled, single-sex schooling shows no reliable academic advantage over coeducation. We accept that finding. It does not trouble us, because test scores are not what we are optimising for - see The Measure.
Pahlke, E., Hyde, J. S., & Allison, C. M. (2014). Psychological Bulletin, 140(4).
The Measure
We do not measure this school in test scores.
A school can post excellent numbers and still graduate young men who are anxious, isolated, medicated, or dead. Those numbers are not the point. We measure ourselves by whether our graduates are alive, sober, anchored, and able to carry weight - and we build the day around the things that most reliably protect a young man from losing those.
Brotherhood Over Isolation
A small cohort where every student is known by name by adults who do not rotate out. Isolation is the risk we design hardest against.
Faith as an Anchor
Daily Mass, confession, and chaplaincy give a student somewhere to put despair other than inward.
A Body That Is Trained
Physical training every morning, not as a sport for the talented few, but as daily maintenance of a young man's mind.
Work That Is Real
An internship where adults depend on him. A boy who is needed somewhere is harder to lose.
If you or a young man you know is struggling, call or text 988 in the United States to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, any hour of any day.
WhyThe research behind this
Following a national US cohort from adolescence into adulthood (ages 24-32), students who felt connected at school and at home had 48 to 66 percent lower odds of suicidal ideation as adults, and significantly lower odds of prescription drug misuse, other illicit drug use, and emotional distress.
Steiner, R. J., Sheremenko, G., Lesesne, C., Dittus, P. J., Sieving, R. E., & Ethier, K. A. (2019). Pediatrics, 144(1).
Students who reported a natural mentor - a trusted, non-parental adult already present in their lives - showed better psychological, academic, and behavioural outcomes across 30 studies. The effect held strongest for youth facing the most adversity.
Van Dam, L., Smit, D., Wildschut, B., Branje, S. J. T., Rhodes, J. E., Assink, M., & Stams, G. J. J. M. (2018). American Journal of Community Psychology, 62(1-2).
In a prospective study of adolescents, each additional hour of weekly physical activity predicted lower depressive symptoms, with the association holding after adjusting for prior mental health and social background.
Rothon, C., Edwards, P., Bhui, K., Viner, R. M., Taylor, S., & Stansfeld, S. A. (2010). BMC Medicine, 8(32).
Following roughly 7,000 American adolescents for 8 to 14 years, those who attended religious services at least weekly reported greater life satisfaction, more positive affect, a stronger sense of mission, and lower rates of drug use and early sexual initiation as young adults. Notably, weekly attendance did not significantly reduce depressive symptoms - but private prayer did. Communal worship and silent prayer appear to protect different things, which is why we keep both Mass and confession in the daily order.
Chen, Y., & VanderWeele, T. J. (2018). American Journal of Epidemiology, 187(11).
Across 43,141 men followed for 26 years, those attending religious services at least weekly had a 48 percent lower rate of death by suicide (HR 0.52) and a 33 percent lower rate of death from suicide, drugs, or alcohol combined. This is the single largest effect we have found on the outcome we care most about.
Chen, Y., Koh, H. K., Kawachi, I., Botticelli, M., & VanderWeele, T. J. (2020). JAMA Psychiatry, 77(7).
School connectedness continued to predict better adolescent mental health even when students were physically separated during remote learning - evidence that the protective factor is the relationship, not the building.
Perkins, K. N., Carey, K., Lincoln, E., et al. (2021). The Journal of Primary Prevention, 42.
Counterpoint we take seriously
None of this is proof. These are observational studies: they show that connected, active, mentored, believing young men fare better, not that a school built this way causes that outcome. One gap matters most to us. These studies measured young men who chose to attend, or whose families did. Nobody has measured required attendance, and a boy compelled to a faith he does not hold may get none of this benefit. That is an argument for winning genuine assent rather than counting heads at the door.
A note on what this evidence can and cannot carry (2026). Our reading of the literature above.
Daily Rhythm
A demanding schedule with order and purpose.
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Discipline, training, or study
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5:20-5:30Arrival
5:30-6:30Physical Education
6:30-7:30Hygiene
7:00-7:55Breakfast
7:30-8:00Confession
7:30-17:00Internship Day Schedule
8:00-9:00Daily Mass
9:00-12:00Classroom Time
12:00-13:00Lunch
13:00-15:30Classroom Time
The internship block shows the work-study day. The class blocks show the four academic days.
WhyThe research behind this
A systematic review of physical activity interventions in schools found significant improvement in academic achievement versus controls, with the strongest and most consistent effects in mathematics.
Loturco, I., Montoya, N. P., Ferraz, M. B., Berbat, V., & Pereira, L. A. (2022). Education Sciences, 12(8).
Counterpoint we take seriously
Adolescent sleep research is the strongest argument against our 5:20 arrival. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends secondary schools start no earlier than 8:30 a.m., and teens need 8-10 hours of sleep. An early rise only works if the day also ends early enough to protect that sleep.
American Academy of Pediatrics, Adolescent Sleep Working Group (2014). Pediatrics, 134(3).
Work-Study
Learning is tested in real work.
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Professional or practical setting
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One day each week is reserved for internships that build punctuality, communication, and judgment.
What Makes Us Different
- We are not a traditional school model.
- Physical and spiritual health are central to daily life here.
- Our staff are tutors and moderators, not conventional teachers.
- Students prove mastery through exams and presentations.
- Each student keeps a journal and writes about his four-year experience.
WhyThe research behind this
Using admissions lotteries across 16 stand-alone technical high schools, this study found that students admitted to a work-integrated technical high school were more likely to graduate, and earned roughly 31 percent more in the years after school, than comparable students who were not admitted.
Brunner, E. J., Dougherty, S. M., & Ross, S. L. (2021). Annenberg EdWorkingPaper No. 19-112.
Learning Model
Students carry the weight of their own formation.
Independent Learning
Students study with intention and build habits for lifelong learning.
Public Demonstration
Mastery is shown through exams, presentations, and discussion.
Written Reflection
Each student keeps a journal and writes a record of his four years.
WhyThe research behind this
A systematic review of 50 classroom studies found that retrieval practice - having students recall material rather than review it - improved learning in 57 percent of experiments, across grade levels, subjects, and student populations.
Agarwal, P. K., Nunes, L. D., & Blunt, J. R. (2021). Educational Psychology Review, 33.
A decade-long review of retrieval-based learning research: the act of reconstructing knowledge from memory, through testing and public demonstration, produces more durable learning than rereading or reviewing notes.
Karpicke, J. D. (2017). Learning and Memory: A Comprehensive Reference.
Financials
A serious school runs on a serious plan.
Our financials are built to sustain the mission — covering campus operations, tuition support, and long-term stability.
Campus & Facilities
Our campus includes dedicated classrooms, a chapel, athletic facilities, and operational reserves to sustain the mission.
Tuition & Support
Tuition is supported through donors, scholarships, and internship partnerships that keep the school accessible.
Staff Directory
Our adults are formators.
Our staff includes tutors, moderators, chaplains, and coordinators — each chosen for their role in shaping young men.
Tutors
Tutors guide study, prepare students for exams, and support mastery across every subject.
Moderators
Moderators lead discipline, culture, order, and daily formation throughout the school day.
Curriculum
Our curriculum builds judgment and mastery.
Our academic structure is built around proof of learning — not seat time.
Core Studies
Scripture, theology, literature, history, math, science, writing, and rhetoric form the backbone of our academic program.
Mastery
Students prove learning through exams, presentations, and written work — not grades alone.
Athletics
Athletics build courage and endurance.
Our program includes team sports, conditioning, and competitive standards that serve the school's larger mission.
Competition
Athletics build courage, teamwork, endurance, and composure through organized competition.
Discipline
Sports reinforce the larger mission of strength, stamina, and self-command in every student.
Cafeteria
Meals support health and order.
Our cafeteria reinforces routine, nutrition, and the culture of shared meals among brothers.
Ordered Meals
Meals are structured to reinforce gratitude, routine, health, and brotherhood at the table.
Nutrition
Food is simple, healthy, and built to fuel long, demanding days of study and training.
Physical Education
Physical education is daily and serious.
Training is not optional — it is part of the school's core rhythm, woven into every morning.
Morning Training
Physical education opens every school day with effort, order, and disciplined conditioning.
Lifelong Strength
Students build lasting habits of training, recovery, posture, and physical self-command.
Community Service
Service is part of what we do.
Our students give back to the community as an expression of their faith and formation — not as a requirement to check off, but as a way of life.
Local Partnerships
Students serve alongside parishes, food banks, and community organizations throughout the academic year.
Works of Mercy
Service is rooted in the corporal and spiritual works of mercy, shaping men who give rather than consume.
WhyThe research behind this
A study of high school service-learning found that structured, sustained programs - not one-off volunteering - produced measurable gains in civic knowledge, civic engagement, and students' sense of responsibility to their community.
Billig, S., Root, S., & Jesse, D. (2005). CIRCLE Working Paper 33.
Graduate Profile
We graduate men with tested character.
Our graduates leave with discipline, faith, practical experience, and the habits needed to lead and serve.
Man of Discipline
Our graduates are prayerful, capable, dependable, and self-directed — formed through four years of demanding formation.
Man of Substance
Each graduate leaves with knowledge, real work experience, and a tested character ready for responsibility.
WhyThe research behind this
Character skills - perseverance, self-control, conscientiousness - predict later earnings, health, and civic outcomes as strongly as measured intelligence, and they remain malleable through the adolescent years when cognitive scores have largely stabilized.
Kautz, T., Heckman, J. J., Diris, R., ter Weel, B., & Borghans, L. (2014). NBER Working Paper No. 20749.
Noncognitive ability has effects on wages, schooling attainment, and social behavior comparable in size to cognitive ability - evidence that what a school forms in a young man matters as much as what it teaches him.
Heckman, J. J., Stixrud, J., & Urzua, S. (2006). NBER Working Paper No. 12006.
Our Mission
To graduate men with discipline, faith, stamina, and practical experience.
Saint Carlo Acutis High School prepares young men for responsibility, leadership, and meaningful work.