Does our family have to be members of Saint Francis Xavier Catholic Church to attend this school? No. Most of our families are members, but not all, with some attending other area Catholic parishes or not being Catholic.
Does our family have to be Catholic to attend this school? No. Families of all faith traditions are welcome to attend, but must be respectful of our Catholic faith and traditions.
Where do students that attend Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School live? While most of our students live in Middleton or Cross Plains, Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School also draws families from many surrounding communities, including Mount Horeb, Black Earth, Mazomanie, and Verona.
Where do Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School graduates go to high school? Saint Francis Xavier graduates go on to attend area high schools, including Middleton, Wisconsin Heights, Mount Horeb, Edgewood, and Saint Ambrose Academy.
Does Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School offer transportation? Busing is provided according to the guidelines set by the school district in the community where the student resides. Middleton/Cross Plains and Wisconsin Heights School Districts provide bus transportation to Saint Francis Xavier for families that live within their allotted boundaries.
How many students are in each class? Saint Francis Xavier has one section of each grade level (4K through 8th grade). Classes are limited to 18-24 students (depending on the grade level).
What extracurricular activities are available? Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School provides a wide variety of extracurricular activities that allow students to discover and explore their God-given talents. These include, but are not limited to, the following:
Instrumental Band (Grades 4-8) and Honors Band
Children’s Choir
National Junior Honor Society
Forensics
Piano Lessons
Robotics Club
Ski Club
Math Meets
Oratorical and Essay Contests
Art Club
Does Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School offer Athletics? "The Saints" - our school teams - participate in several school-sponsored athletic teams. We are a member of MAISL (the Madison Area Independent Sports League) and participate in their Boy and Girl Volleyball and Basketball programs. The league consists of parochial and private schools from the greater Madison area. We also offer co-ed Track & Field in the spring and Football in the fall. For more information, please click here.
Do you have school uniforms or a dress code? Although we do not have standardized uniforms that all student must wear 5 days a week, students are expected to follow the basic school dress code, which allows for some individuality but helps us to maintain the standards of cleanliness, neatness, and modesty that is necessary for a Christian educational environment. For more information, please see the parent-student handbook.
Does Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School offer Hot Lunch? Yes. Culinary Creations Catering (i.e., The Catholic Multicultural Center) caters our hot lunch entrees Tuesday through Thursday. Our onsite food service team also prepares two homemade soups and a fresh and healthy salad bar each day. On Mondays and “Farm to School Fridays” the hot lunch entree is made fresh at school with locally sourced ingredients from Hillside Harvests, in Black Earth, WI.
Is Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School accredited? Yes. Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School is fully accredited through WRISA (the Wisconsin Religious and Independent Schools Accreditation). Additionally, our school is a member of the NCEA (National Catholic Educational Association), the NEA (National Education Association), and the ASCD (Association of School Curriculum Development). Many of our teachers are also members of specific associations related to their subject area.
Do teachers at Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School have to be Catholic? All homeroom teachers at Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School must be practicing Catholics. Teachers of "specials" (Phy Ed, Art, Music, etc.) do not have to be Catholic. All teachers receive religious education certification through the Diocese of Madison.
How often do the students attend Holy Mass? Students attend Holy Mass weekly, usually on Tuesday mornings. Students' spiritual lives are also nourished through daily prayer, regular Adoration and Confession opportunities, the celebration of the liturgical seasons and holy days, and retreats, among other things.
Do you offer "wrap-around care"? Students may be dropped off as early as 7:30am with supervision. After school care is available from 11:00am until 5:30pm for 4K students, and from 2:50pm until 5:30pm for students in grades 5K - 5. For more information please see the parent-student handbook and/or the After School Program page.
What technology will my student be using? Each of our classrooms is equipped with interactive flat-panel LEDs. Students in grades 4K - 4 also have access to Chromebooks and iPads as needed/directed by their teachers. Students in grades 5- 8 are issued a personal device that is used for school work.
What “special classes” do you offer? Music, Library, Art, Technology, Spanish and Physical Education classes are included in our curriculum for all grades. 6th - 8th grade students also participate in semester-long elective classes. Some of the electives that we offer on a rotational basis include:
3D Printing
Animation
Career Exploration
Computer Science
Design
Desktop Publishing
Engineering
Forensics
Game Design
Guitar
Needlepoint
Nutrition/Culinary Arts
Personal finance
Photography
Programming
Robotics
Theater Arts
What is the cost of attending Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School? Do you offer any tuition assistance? On average, it costs us about $7,500 per year per student. Due to the generous support of Saint Francis Xavier Catholic Church, tuition is already partially subsidized and reduced for all students. Our present tuition rates can be found here.
If you are in need of further financial assistance to help with tuition, please click here to complete the required tuition assistance application. Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School is committed to providing a Catholic education to as many families as possible, regardless of financial circumstances. As such, we will try to do all that we can to assist families that demonstrate a financial need.
What types of fundraising activities do you do? We work hard to limit sale-based fundraisers. Instead, we focus our fundraising efforts on community-building activities, such as our annual Golf Outing. Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School also participates in the RaiseRight Gift Card Program, which allows us to sell gift cards to places that families already shop (gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants, travel destinations, etc.), while receiving a percentage back to our school to fund school-wide trips and extraordinary classroom experiences.
How can parents be involved at Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School? Parents are involved in many ways at Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School, including through the Home & School Association, School Education Committee, athletics, volunteering in the classrooms, and helping out with special events. Saint Francis Xavier Catholic School also requires that all families assist with playground supervision twice per year.
NON-DISCRIMINATION POLICY Saint Francis Xavier School admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and financial aid programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.