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Information & Latest News
Villa Teresa Catholic School in Oklahoma City will close in July
After almost eight decades, Villa Teresa Catholic School will close. In a letter to the students' parents, leaders of the Carmelite Sisters of St. Therese cite rising costs as the reason.
Links
County Assessor Record (http://www.oklahomacounty.org/assessor/Searches/AN-R.asp?ACCOUNTNO=R045800950)
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Dont think I have ever heard of it...while I am not Catholic, one would think for something that has been around for almost 8 decades...in any case, sorry for those that do know and have sent their kids there.

I have relatives that sent their kids there and they really seemed to value the education and values received.

That's really awful. I was hoping to use them for childcare eventually as my office is right across the street.

http://www.lowbird.com/data/images/2011/08/029.gif

Perhaps these guys can be called up for a real-life "mission from God" to save the school?

This is sad news indeed. I have fond memories of the school especially the beautiful grounds/pool.

if i'm not mistaken, villa theresa has an old school on a large parcel of land for sale at sw 134th & western. i'm pretty sure it's been on the market for over a year. -M

mmm, you are absolutely right. VT closed that site at least a year ago, maybe two. Think they've been having increasing financial pressure for some time, and it just finally became too much...

http://newsok.com/villa-teresa-catholic-school-in-oklahoma-city-will-close-in-july/article/3656384

...the Moore location has been closed for a year. The letter to parents cites rising costs such as health insurance and salaries, and major renovation and repairs needed for buildings as reasons for the closing. An aging population of nuns has meant fewer working outside the convent, earning income.

We too were planning to send our child there in a couple of years. I have known a few former students and teachers from there and all have fond memories. It will be a loss for sure.

I don't have any kind of personal history with that school, but I do think it's a major blow to Midtown. A lot of people still don't have unwavering optimism about the Oklahoma City public school system. This has been a good, vibrant neighborhood option for those families who have chosen to plant a stake in the urban core of OKC. Not to mention its history. Eight decades - an institution, to be sure. Sorry to see it go. While I'm not Catholic, I do know from my experience in St. Louis that healthy Catholic schools contribute immesurably to stemming the tide of urban flight. Sigh.

Hearing the news of closing last Friday absolutely made my heart sink such an awful thing to happen to such a horrible thing to happen to such a great school and loving caring staff who are like family my daughter attend pre k at villa Teresa and absolutely loves it. I pray that the building on school grounds do not get run down or vandalized after almost 8 decades it's trully historic

My son graduated from VT last year and my daughter will be part of the last graduating class this year. It's really sad as the school is great, it's a very good, loving, learning environment. While it is a Catholic school, I would guess at least half of the kids that go there are non-Catholic. I know many parents send their children there because it's convenient to downtown and their work. Lots of kids of St. Anthony employees go there.

Looks like speculation has already begun on future uses for that location.

http://newsok.com/villa-teresa-school-seen-as-a-desirable-redevelopment-prospect/article/3657715

They might want to take the "now enrolling" banner down (in the article gallery pics). Interesting campus. Can easily see it being repurposed into something else and hopefully not bulldozed.

Here's a map of their properties and an article by Steve discussing redevelopment possibilities:

http://newsok.com/villa-teresa-school-seen-as-a-desirable-redevelopment-prospect/article/3657715

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/villateresa.jpg

This is very sad and a big blow to MidTown. I wish someone with the means would step up and try to save it. Special place.

very sad, my nephew goes there

I don't think it's a big blow to Mid-town just because it is such prime real estate, BUT that said, I am sad to see the school go. The Villa Teresa School was a neighborhood anchor and it along with the churches backing up to it provided some neighborhood balance in my opinion. That's a lot of tradition to lose...

Spartan-I do hear you about the prime real estate. I'm sure the site can be redeveloped (although there's still a lot of vacant land around there waiting for a renewal). My contention that it's a blow to the area is in line with your neighborhood balance comment. A healthy neighborhood has to be more than restaurants and businesses. Again I'm not Catholic, but I do know that Catholic schools take Catholic students first and then "fill in" with others if they can't "fill up" with their parishioners. Fewer schools in Midtown will likely mean fewer options for those families that do try to stay in the area once children are of school age.

What I meant was that if the Catholic population is now funneled into fewer schools it will make it harder for non-Catholic families to enroll students. (if OKC is anything like STL). Then the options for those parents narrows to public schools or the more expensive private ones like Westminster (if they want to stay in the area).

For all those that liked the aspect of the localized and affordable private school this is a blow. Public schools in OKC will not replace what is lost here. And one of the things that drives populations and development is the availability of good schooling...particularly at the lower grades. The rabid "ubanists" will be happy I suppose as this is a chance to lose low density and add some more apartments. Sigh.

Downtown middle school site?

Downtown middle school site?

This might be an optimistic possibility....if the OKC school system knew how to run a quality school. Trading down is never good.

Who will be running the downtown elementary school?

What I meant was that if the Catholic population is now funneled into fewer schools it will make it harder for non-Catholic families to enroll students. (if OKC is anything like STL). Then the options for those parents narrows to public schools or the more expensive private ones like Westminster (if they want to stay in the area).

You are right. In fact this has filled up most of the others. I have a kid at Villa Teresa. We found out on Friday night that they were closing. I got one of the last two Pre-K spots at John Carroll. They are now full with the exception of 5th grade. I am just glad that Villa Teresa is going to continue throughout the summer.

This might be an optimistic possibility....if the OKC school system knew how to run a quality school. Trading down is never good.

Classen SAS and Harding are nearby and are better than any suburban school. There are also PLENTY OF GREAT ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IN OKCPS. As for middle schools, you better get your kids into Harding, Classen, or another private school because there really are no viable alternatives in OKC.

Who will be running the downtown elementary school?

That's a fight that's going on right now. People who understand what they're doing favor the charter school model (a la Classen, Harding) but now the teacher unions are getting involved and throwing a fight over it. Really, they look pretty out of touch, and obviously they don't understand the downtown residential picture if they think a regular school district model is best for the school.

Classen SAS and Harding are nearby and are better than any suburban school. There are also PLENTY OF GREAT ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IN OKCPS. As for middle schools, you better get your kids into Harding, Classen, or another private school because there really are no viable alternatives in OKC.

Actually, that just isn't true...especially for elementry schools. The closest one rated in top level is at 45th street. Only one OKC piblic school shows up in the top ten in the state. I love OKC but the school system is way underperforming. Thats why many young families go to Edmond , Norman, and now Moore. Losing a very good private elem school in the core of the city is not good at all.

I will give you the Classen School of Advanced Studies, but that is high school and jr. High.

Where is the source for the ratings?

I think there are a lot more than just 10 good elementary schools in this state, or at least, I would like to think so..

Wilson Elementary in Mesta Park / HH has an API comparable to any Edmond school and there are about 4-5 others in the district that can say the same.

Public schools are tied very closely to the socio-economics of their surrounding neighborhoods; it's very little to do with the district itself.

A few years ago USA Today ranked elementary public schools in the U.S. and Wilson Elem was in the top 100 for the entire U.S. Wilson was also the only elementary school listed for the entire state of Oklahoma. There were no schools listed in Edmond, Moore, Norman, Tulsa, etc.

According to the grade data for proficiency

Top Ten Best School Systems in OK
NAME
1 Edmond
2 Luther
3 Jenks
4 Owasso
5 Kingfisher
6 Valley Park
7 Moore
8 Norman
9 Yukon
10 Devol

TO think the OKC school system is doing a good job isn't reality. They underperform in a state that underperforms educationally. To think losing VT isn't a real loss is just not true. Denial just means perpetuation.

Actually, that just isn't true...especially for elementry schools. The closest one rated in top level is at 45th street. Only one OKC piblic school shows up in the top ten in the state. I love OKC but the school system is way underperforming. Thats why many young families go to Edmond , Norman, and now Moore. Losing a very good private elem school in the core of the city is not good at all.

I will give you the Classen School of Advanced Studies, but that is high school and jr. High.

I thought we were discussing Okc elementary schools, and specific schools not entire school districts.

Rover's list is for overall performance, not individual schools. There are several high quality elementary schools in OKC that would stack up very well with their suburban counterparts, which he does not address.

Again, the performance of a school and district is almost completely determined by the socio-demographics of the neighborhoods they serve.

If you want to improve city schools, improve the neighborhoods around them. And this means primarily having some regulation over unbridled sprawl, otherwise people will keep moving further out and leaving previously good neighborhoods and schools to rot.

Just track what were considered the best public HS's in each decade: Northwest Classen in the 60's, Putnam City in the 70's, Putnam North in the 80's, Edmond Memorial in the 90's, Edmond North in the 00's, and now it's looking like the trend is towards Deer Creek (and more and more private schools).

These shifts were all completely due to the upper middle class moving further and further out. It's not like the teachers and administrators in Putnam City schools suddenly lost competency.

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Great pictures, VT holds a special place with me as both my kids went to school there. My daughter was in the last graduating class. I hope that spot ends up being something amazing. For those unfamiliar with VT, those pictures are not of the school. Although it's next door to the school buildings, this is the convent which is still in use by the Carmelite Sisters as far as I know.

http://www.okctalk.com/attachments/development-buildings/6945d1394486474-villa-teresa-vt031014e.jpg



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Looks much better than the completely run down school in Moore on Western. Not sure why that nasty thing hasn't been completely demolished. Huge eyesore.

Beautiful pics......
Thanks!

My former house in Gatewood was previously owned by the Carmelite Sisters. It was donated by an estate, and they lived in it. I'm not sure if it was overflow or what the deal was. But it was a beautiful G.A. Nichols home, and they chopped it up like a dormitory. Maybe it was the bad nuns..?

Anyway it was sold after a number of years and eventually restored by subsequent owners including me. One of the previous owners, who I contacted by phone before buying, had a letter from the Sisters to the Archdiocese asking if it would be acceptable to sell it to non-Catholics, and offered to send me a copy for framing. Totally illegal of course, but I found it charming.

The previous owner also asked if my (now ex-) wife and I were Catholics and/or had lots of kids and seemed sweetly disappointed when the answers came back "no." Same question asked by multiple other neighbors over the years I lived there. I guess a lot of people would be offended by to question, but somehow it made the neighborhood feel traditional and cozy to me. I still miss Gatewood.

What I REALLY miss most right now is the property appreciation I would be getting owning a house a block north of Plaza.

^

Where do you live now??

I'm in a townhouse at The Aberdeen. On thing I don't miss: mowing a corner lot. Haven't mowed (mown?) a yard in 9 years. Two big wheels on the weekend are WAY better than four tiny ones.

I hear you... I just spent almost a week hacking down and hacking up ONE large shrub in my yard.

I try not to think about all the other things I could have done with that time and energy, although part of it is certainly therapeutic. And the real estate market out here has really picked up which means I should get a nice payday when it comes time to sell.

Still, I'm leaning heavily towards going much smaller in my next move.

I definitely want to own again, but I sincerely doubt it will be a 3K sq ft house built in the twenties with a detached garage with overhead apartment (rented), leaky basement, bad sewer line, leaky 75 year old clay barrel tile roof, dozens of trees including nine oaks fronting the street, cracked sidewalks and driveways, etc. etc... ...that my friend is WORK. Especially when you know how to do most home repair and hate to pay people to do things you can do yourself.

Next time: condo. Or loft. Or shipping container. Or something else that still lets me ride on weekends. Although I still want David Wanzer to build a house for me, so who knows...

David Wanzer has some land on 4th St. that's interesting. I'm wondering what he plans to do with it.

I remember Villa Teresa in the 60's and 70's. I remember watching the kids
playing on a really cool cement playground, I mean it. I really thought it was
cool. And the uniforms were fab. White tops and blue bottoms. It was a
couple blocks west of my Dad's lab.

Looks much better than the completely run down school in Moore on Western. Not sure why that nasty thing hasn't been completely demolished. Huge eyesore.

That's not in Moore. It's in Oklahoma City.

Just uploaded a bunch more photos to the article at the top of the page.

Here is a sample:



http://www.okctalk.com/attachments/development-buildings/6955d1394537258-villa-teresa-vt031014k.jpg



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I really wonder what's going to happen with this campus. It's absolutely beautiful.

It's such a gem; like a little historic college.

I'm hoping they leave it largely intact and incorporate housing, office and/or a bed and breakfast.

I really wonder what's going to happen with this campus. It's absolutely beautiful.
It will be demolished

:D

It will be demolished

:D

That would just suck.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8ByCS2ru-w

Thank you, UnFrSaKn.

Steve said in his chat today that he expects this property to officially go on the market this summer and hinted that the Midtown Renaissance group may be interested.

My kids went there. Sister Veronica was such a wonderful lady. For them to close is really sad. The Carmelite Sisters are such beautiful souls.

I have noticed the sisters talking to men in suits on the grounds several times in the last few weeks as I drive by. Thought something must be up. I just hope the building are renovated and not torn down.

I'm pretty confident almost all the original buildings will be kept in tact but structured parking and a couple of infill structures would be easily accomplished.

I hope at least part of whatever happens there involves housing.