St. Rita School for the Deaf

St. Rita School for the Deaf is an independent Roman Catholic^[2] school located in the village of Evendale, near Cincinnati, Ohio.

History

Challenged by Archbishop Henry Moeller, Father Henry J. Waldhaus, with the help of the Knights of De l'Epee and the Saints Mary and Joseph Society, was able to raise the funds necessary to purchase the land for St. Rita School. The school opened in 1915 and became the first accredited high school for the deaf in Ohio. In 2016, Sr. Marianne Van Verst SC was named as interim Executive Director of the school.

Approach and languages used

Currently, their philosophy is "comprehensive communication" — essentially Total Communication with a different name. The school's deaf and hearing teachers use ASL as a method of instruction, but the majority use is Simultaneous Communication.

Academics and programs

While based in the Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati, St. Rita School works to meet the needs of hard of hearing and deaf children along with any student with communication challenges in the community.

St. Rita's is one of the first schools in the country to develop a program for dyspraxic children, sometimes referred to as "global" apraxia. The program teaches to the students communication disabilities (oral-buccofacial apraxia) and encompasses each student's global dyspraxic apraxia disabilities that affect the student's fine and gross motor skills with their motor planning; sequencing and motor- processing abilities (which include but is not limited to ideomotor, ideation, limb-kinetic and ocular motor apraxias).

The school's LOFT program (Language Opportunities for Tots) is designed to meet the development needs of hearing and deaf children, from birth to 3 years of age. The school also features a Montessori preschool, elementary, high school, and vocational programs.

Athletics

St. Rita's competes with area schools in basketball and volleyball. In 1962, the high school division petitioned the Greater Catholic League to compete in football at the reserve level.^[3] Later, the high school became a member of the Girls Greater Cincinnati League.^[4]

Fundraising

Like many Greater Cincinnati Catholic parishes, major funding comes from annual festivals. The St. Rita Fest began in 1916 and is one of the area's largest. While the school holds multiple events, including the annual Halloween St. Rita Haunted House and scholarship benefit dinner, the yearly festival is the school's biggest fundraisers.^[5]

References

External links

• Official website

Archdiocese of Cincinnati
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