About St. Edward

1941 - Students in Library

Mission

Rooted in Catholic faith and community since 1941, we are a Christ-centered high school serving the Fox Valley area and forming compassionate, service-driven leaders.  In partnership with families, we educate the whole person mind, body, and soul while building lifelong connections.

Vision

To Form the next generation of joyful servant leaders, scholars, and saints, who enrich the world with faith, reason, and justice rooted in the mission of Jesus Christ.

Core Values

Worship: We embrace every task, assignment, and competition as an opportunity to worship God through our hard work.

Achievement: We set high goals and expectations, embrace challenges, and work with a growth mindset.
Virtue: We exemplify virtues including honesty, compassion, generosity, patience, and fortitude, while recognizing those who serve as role models, in virtue.
Evangelization: We engage in outreach and service opportunities to lead others through action to the way of salvation through Christ Jesus.

Fight Song

Green Wave, Green Wave, hats off to thee,
Fight, fight, fight for our victory.
Shout to the skies our Green Wave war cry,
The bravest will defy.

Hold that line for old Green and Gold,
We will win today.
So fight, Green Wave, fight and
We will win this game!

Our History

On September 8, 1941 St. Edward High School opened its doors to 42 freshmen and 40 sophomore men and women for the first time.

The Rockford Diocese acquired the G. P. Lord School in 1941, which was originally built in 1877 as a public grade school. St. Edward High School opened later that year with eight classrooms and a cafeteria. The school was named St. Edward in honor of the patron saint of Bishop Edward Hoban and dedicated on the eve of the Feast of St. Edward, October 12, 1941. Four sisters of the order of St. Dominic from Adrian, Michigan provided the faculty for the school. Tuition was five dollars a month.
Since those early days, classrooms have been added, along with science laboratories, computer labs, lunchrooms, a sports field, and two gyms. Since its humble beginnings St. Edward students have won awards in every academic area from speech to science. They have excelled on sports teams as well. St. Edward students have volunteered their services to a great variety of charitable and service organizations. As alumni they can be found in business, professional, teaching, religious life and entertainment fields. They are testimony to the value of a liberal arts education within a religious context.
St. Edward Central Catholic High school celebrates over 80 years of providing Excellence in Education in a Christ-centered faith community. St. Edward will maintain its offer to students of a progressive curriculum designed to prepare today’s student for tomorrow’s realities.

St. Edward Fun Facts

  • In 1955, St. Edward HS was the first school in Elgin to offer Driver's Education.
  • The uniform skirt our young ladies wear was adopted in 1962.
  • Greg True Field was dedicated on October 28, 1968.
  • The first school newspaper was called the Ed-Hi Line, and began publication in 1950.
  • The first Prom was held in the Baker Hotel in Elgin, but by 1950 it had moved to the school gym.
  • Early football games were held at Abbot Field, and basketball games were held at St. Mary School.
  • Our Booster club began in 1943, and the Mother's club began in 1941.

Accreditations

Western Catholic Education Association and Cognia

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Recognition

Illinois State Board of Education and National Catholic Education Association

Annual Report

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