Cathedral Preparatory School

Cathedral Preparatory School (often referred to simply as Prep) is an all-male college prep school in Erie, Pennsylvania, run by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie and was established in 1921 by Archbishop John Mark Gannon. The school boasts a 98%-100% college acceptance rate among graduating classes.

History

Cathedral Prep was founded in 1921 as an all-boys Catholic high school by Archbishop John Mark Gannon of the Diocese of Erie. Archbishop Gannon’s vision was to provide a college preparatory, Catholic education for young men to strengthen the Catholic faith in Erie, and to act as a conduit for vocations. The school was originally located underneath St. Peter Cathedral in what is now the cafeteria. In 1953, an Auditorium and a three level classroom addition were constructed as enrollment grew. The last major addition was the 1964 science wing addition at the corner of 10th & Myrtle in order to accommodate the growth of the school.

On January 8, 2009 Villa Maria Academy announced a merger with Cathedral Prep because of financial issues. The two schools are under the same management, but maintain their separate campuses and identities. Villa Maria was formerly a girls' school which became coeducational in 1989. With the merger, Villa Maria stopped accepting boys and returned to its single-sex roots. "Villa-Prep" is run by a single Board of Directors, whose members include the principals of the respective schools.