Principal's Welcome
St. Raphael School is the product of extensive research of best practices in the world of education. After we received permission from the Archdiocese of Washington to expand our early-childhood tradition—a thriving program since 1969—and open St. Raphael School, we visited numerous schools and incorporated the best of the best in putting together our programs. Today, parents often tell us this is the school they wish they had attended when they were children.
From kindergarten through eighth grade, our emphasis on educating the whole child—supported by pillars of Catholic identity, academic excellence, small-group instruction, and student engagement—has served our students well. Brain research strongly supports the movement we weave in throughout our day. The back-to-basics skill set we build on in math and reading offers students the chance to make their thinking visible, to wonder, to hypothesize, to revise, and to grow.
We graduated our first class in 2014 and have placed alumni in local Catholic high schools, including Gonzaga, Holy Cross, Prep, Visitation, DeMatha, Good Counsel, St. John's, Stone Ridge, and St. Anselm's, as well as in Montgomery County Public Schools. When our graduates come home, it is with success stories. They share that they are well prepared for the challenges they meet in high school.
We are excited about our 21st century learners and are proud of the program we have built. And while we don't do what we do because of awards, we are also proud to be named a National Blue Ribbon School in 2019—the first year we were eligible. If you’d like to learn more about St. Raphael School, I encourage you to schedule a tour. I think you’ll like what you see.
~ Teri Dwyer
Principal, St. Raphael School
