ATLANTA—Hal Plummer, superintendent of Catholic schools for the Archdiocese of Atlanta, announced May 13 that the new consolidated school on the southside of Atlanta will be called St. Mary’s Academy.

The new preK-12 school, a consolidation of Our Lady of Victory Catholic School in Tyrone and Our Lady of Mercy Catholic High School (OLM) Fayetteville, is scheduled to open in the fall of 2022 on the OLM campus. Archbishop Gregory Hartmayer, OFM Conv., has approved the name.

“It’s going to be called St. Mary’s Academy because the two schools we are bringing together are named after the Blessed Virgin Mary, so it seemed appropriate to continue to place the schools under her maternal care,” explained Plummer.

“We are very excited about the future of St. Mary’s Academy and all that it has to offer. We are deeply grateful to Archbishop Hartmayer for giving this new school his enthusiastic blessing and support. And although the school will not open for another year, plans are already underway for a STEM-based preK-12 curriculum and initiating projects that will enhance the campus such as replacing the building’s HVAC system, building a new multi-use stadium for soccer, track, football and a variety of other sports and putting in two playgrounds, to name a few.”

Coordinating the curriculum across the preK-12 spectrum will position the school to offer a strong educational as well as spiritual and social/emotional culture. According to Plummer, community support will be vital to the success of the new school. “Beginning this fall we will be holding meetings with OLV and OLM families about the new school, listening to their hopes and sharing our ideas. We hope to also engage the area’s Catholic parishes in this process,” said Plummer.

The consolidation, announced in January, will allow families to have their children all under one roof for the school day and after-care, and the students will “reap the benefits of having a more natural transition from elementary to middle school, and from middle school to high school,” said Plummer.

The model will allow teachers and coaches to coordinate efforts across the entire educational journey. St. Mary’s Academy will be the first archdiocesan-sponsored preK-12 Catholic school.