Unvarnished opinions sought from current Catholic K-8 parents in Bethesda/Rockville
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Anonymous
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We are interested in a Catholic education for our young daughter who will be entering kindergarten.
We are evaluating the following schools and would like to hear parent opinions, and feedback on these schools, which make the most sense given their proximity to our work and home locations. We live right on the border between Potomac and Rockville and both work in Bethesda. Currently, we do not attend church at any of these, but would become parishioners at the school or local parish. Schools we are considering St. Elizabeth’s Little Flower Bethesda St. Jane de Chantal Our Lady of Mercy St. Raphael Are there are others not mentioned we should be willing to consider? I’d be interested in parent feedback on the school culture and openness to new families as well as how well they accommodate two working parents, aftercare is a must have. Thank you very much |
Anonymous
| Our Lady of Lourdes in Bethesda is another option. |
Anonymous
Thank you, I unintentionally overlooked this one. I will check it out |
Anonymous
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St. Jude in Rockville is another option.
Great school culture, strong academics, solid Catholic foundation. Very welcoming to new families. Most students at St Jude have two working parents. They offer before care and aftercare. |
Anonymous
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St. E is the largest school in the archdiocese, so that automatically differentiates it from the others, for good or bad.
If you are looking at K in 2026, you might be too late for some of these schools. I think st. raphael already has a waiting list. |
Anonymous
| Most (all?) of these will prioritize active parishioners, so you’ll want to apply fairly widely anyway, as there’s no guarantee you’ll get in if you aren’t already a parish member, even if you make it clear you plan to join. |
Anonymous
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Go to mass to the parish school closest to your house and see if you like it then visit the three next closest for mass. You need to pick a community because your child will get priority for kindergarten if you are a parish member.
Pick a school by your house not by your work. Once your child is enrolled you should be taking her to mass every week if you are Catholic. |
Anonymous
| Woods Academy is another option |
Anonymous
| There are also different vibes from the parishes associated with the schools you mentioned. |
Anonymous
This. |
Anonymous
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If you’re not already an active parishioner (defined by attendance, which is measured in weekly giving, but also sometimes by relationships) then you may need to apply widely and see where you get lucky.
But ultimately the magic of Catholic schools is in the community, so you want to live (not work) near the school. Though you’re correct to sus out the community’s attitude to working moms as well as a deal breaker. |
Anonymous
| We’ve been happy at St Bartholomew School as working parents. They have before and after care and are close to the beltway and 270. It’s a very lovely, warm, and caring community and the teachers are excellent. |
Anonymous
Should probably google the principal before enrolling. |
Anonymous
I disagree with this. Parochial schools are private they aren't your local public school so you should ABSOLUTELY pick the one that has the culture that fits you best! If it ends up being the closest one to you that's definitely a win but no you don't need to go to the closest one. You might have second priority in admissions until you become a parishioner. We pass our closest parochial school and drive an extra 13 minutes to get to ours because it's a) a better school with an amazing principal b) a two track school so our kids have more options for friends and less cliqueness c) there are more resources! There are many kids in our school that also are on the same boat! |
Anonymous
| You should check out Little Holy Cross. Excellent principal. |