WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — It was just one year ago that Chesterton Academy was announced, aiming to bring a high school Catholic education back to the area.

“We’ve seen that in other places in the country when other schools are failing or falling behind when they’ve switched to this classical model, they’ve really grown,” Chesterton Academy Wichita Falls co-founder Jacob Morath said.

From the information presentation, to now the inaugural Chesterton Gala, the school is one step closer to opening the doors.

“Goal really is to form young men and women into disciples of Christ, to help the to understand that they are truly beautiful wonderful creations of God,” Chesterton Academy of Wichita Falls School Board President Jesse Gorley said.

Chesterton Academy will be a classical high school. With an emphasis on humanities such as history, literature, theology, and more. Kids will get a different curriculum compared to other schools.

“The academics are not going to be parallel in the area. The opportunities for truly growth in logical thinking, critical thinking skills, the ability to read full texts, have discussions about these texts,” Gorley said.

Classes will be held in Burkburnett for the first year at St. Jude Thaddeus Catholic Church.

“We would love for people to come and visit with us. We’re happy to have any students come attend that can make it to our campus. We’re hoping to attract hopefully some students from the Oklahoma area as well as Wichita Falls,” Gorley said.

Though the current year hasn’t ended just yet, Gorley and the rest of the board is excited to bring a Catholic high school education to the area for the 2023-2024 academic year.

“We started actually back in February of 2022 on this journey to open this new school. We’ve gotten a lot of great guidance and support through the Chesterton’s schools network,” Gorley said.

They hope to be in this community for years to come.

Click here for more information on Chesterton Academy.