Bishop David W. Bacon felt a great need for assistance in his missionary work in the Diocese of Portland. At the time of his installation as Bishop of Portland in 1855, parishes were flourishing and the population of Catholics was increasing due to the growth of mill towns throughout Maine. Bishop Bacon focused much of his attention and the Diocese's resources on his growing concern for the educational needs of the children of Maine.
At Bishop Bacon's request, the Sisters of the Congregation of Notre Dame came to Portland from Montreal in 1864 to open an academy near the Cathedral. With the opening of St. Aloysius School, now known as Cathedral Grammar School, the Diocese of Portland officially began its educational ministry through the founding of a Catholic School. This endeavor began 44 years after the recognition of Maine's statehood. St. Aloysius, a two-story wooden building with four classrooms and a hall which also served as a Chapel, became the "mother school" of Maine's Parochial School System. The Notre Dame sisters did not have time to develop a teaching tradition in Portland. Hardly had they overcome the obstacles of establishing themselves in a new city when the Great Fire of 1866 destroyed their convent and school and forced them to return to Canada. The Sisters of Mercy replaced the Notre Dame Sisters at both the rebuilt St. Aloysius and at St. Dominic, thus becoming a powerful force in the life and ministry of the Diocese of Portland.
Classes at Cathedral Grammar School are presently held in what is an expanded version of the original Kavanagh School, which was built in 1876. This building was made possible by a gift from Winifred Kavanagh, a member of a very prominent Catholic family of Maine.
Cathedral School presently serves students in grades pre-kindergarten through grade eight. As in its early days of teaching the immigrant populations of Ireland, Italy and Poland, today Cathedral School proudly reaches out to our refugee populations from Russia, Viet Nam, Sudan and Ethiopia as well as to all of the children of our Peninsula Parishes and surrounding neighborhoods. Strong academic curriculum focused on the basics of reading, writing, mathematics and the social sciences are enhanced through today's computer technology and experiental sharing in the arts and humanities. Students from pre-kindergarten through grade 8 participate in all programs of learning and development from reading readiness and an introduction to French with our pre-kindergarten 4-year old students through the study of Latin and completion of spreadsheets and resumes with our 8th graders.
To be a "Beacon of Learning" for all who enter our school is truly the goal and driving force of Cathedral School. As we treasure our rich heritage, we are mindful of the awesome responsibility that is ours as stated in the words of Catherine McAuley, Foundress of the Sisters of Mercy, "There is no greater ministry than the Catholic Education of youth."