Diocese of Allentown plans addiction recovery high school

The Dicoese of Allentown has announced it will open a high school for students who are in recovery from addiction.

Kolbe Academy will be the first faith-based recovery high school in the United States, according to a news release from the Diocese.

The school will open in September 2019 at the former St. Francis Academy in Hanover Township, Northampton County.

It will be open to students in grades 9-12 from all faiths within the five counties of the diocese: Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton and Schuylkill.

St. Maximilian Kolbe is named for the patron saint of students with addiction.

There are 60 recognized recovery high schools nationwide, according to the Diocese, but none of them are faith-based.

“This school follows the model of our other high schools and offers a specialized curriculum for students in recovery. This is the next natural step for our Diocese to give high school students in this region the education and support they need to succeed,” said Dr. Brooke C. Tesche, Deputy Superintendent for Secondary and Special Education for the diocese.

The full news release from the Diocese is below:

Recognizing the critical need to provide spiritual, academic and emotional development for students who are in recovery from addiction, the Diocese of Allentown will open the nation’s first faith-based recovery high school next year.

Kolbe Academy will open at the former St. Francis Academy in Hanover Township, Pa., in September 2019. It will welcome students in need from all faiths from all five counties of the Diocese: Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton and Schuylkill, and beyond.

“Our existing high schools, which are based on our strong Catholic values, are well known for academic excellence and ongoing formation of every student’s intellectual, spiritual, social, cultural and emotional gifts,” said Dr. Brooke C. Tesche, Deputy Superintendent for Secondary and Special Education.

“This school follows the model of our other high schools and offers a specialized curriculum for students in recovery. This is the next natural step for our Diocese to give high school students in this region the education and support they need to succeed.”

The Diocese’s Department of Education is working with the Sisters of St. Francis to open the high school in Mullen Hall, the site of the former Saint Francis Academy. The school will be guided by a board of directors, led by a principal, and supported through the Diocese of Allentown.

Tesche said, “At the 60 secular recovery schools recognized nationally, research shows significant success rates with 85 percent of students who attend a recovery high school after treatment maintaining their sobriety.”

Kolbe Academy will be the seventh Diocesan high school serving students in 9th through 12th grade. The Diocese has a total of 40 elementary and high schools in its five-county area.

Kolbe Academy is named after St. Maximilian Kolbe, the patron saint of those with addiction.

For more information regarding Kolbe Academy, please contact the Office of Education at 610-866-0581.