Augustinian Education

Augustinian educators are engaged in the search for God through the pursuit of truth.  They seek union with God through love and union with God and others in the school faith community.

We regard our purpose in the Christian formation and education of students as an essentially pastoral activity.  We teach the truth with love, and students acquire, along with a human and scientific culture, a knowledge of the world, of life, and of humanity that is enlightened by faith.  We see education as being about the whole person and done in a community context.

​Rev. John Merkelis, O.S.A. was appointed President of Providence Catholic High School in 2018

​Rev. John Merkelis, O.S.A. was appointed President of Providence Catholic High School in 2018

Headmaster Rev. Phillip Cook, O.S.A. with Students at Cascia Hall Preparatory Academy

​Mass celebrated at the St. Rita of Cascia High School Shrine Chapel in Chicago, Illinois

​Mass celebrated at the St. Rita of Cascia High School Shrine Chapel in Chicago, Illinois

The Augustinians in the Midwest Province of Our Mother of Good Counsel are present at five high schools at the current time:

  • Austin Catholic High School in Ray, Michigan,

  • Cascia Hall Preparatory School of Tulsa, Oklahoma,

  • Providence Catholic High School of New Lenox, Illinois,

  • St. Rita of Cascia High School of Chicago, Illinois, and

  • St. Thomas of Villanova College in King City, Ontario.

The Augustinian high schools provide quality education in the Augustinian tradition to the next generation of students. Just as was done in the past, we emphasize our values of Truth, Unity, and Love, and provide eight full semesters in Catholic Theology for all high school students. In order to keep in touch and coordinate our work, the Midwest Province Education Commission meets twice a year on a rotating basis at each school. A big change in modern times is, of course, the transition to lay leadership which sooner or later will probably occur in every one of our schools. Augustinians are designated as Director of Augustinian Mission to help safeguard the Catholic nature and the Augustinian charism in schools where there is lay leadership.

In these difficult economic times, all of our schools have worked hard to provide as much need-­based aid to their families and students as possible.