The Catholic Academy of Sunnyvale

I am a student at Catholic Academy of Sunnyvale, and if I could, I would have rated this amazing school 10 stars. You may have noticed that several of the reviews have been extremely negative to our school and some contain downright lies. That was during an especially hard time, when we students didn’t know if we would ever graduate as phoenixes from the ashes of St. Cyprian and St. Martin. Coming from St. Martin, I know what is is like to leave a school that you love, and I didn’t want that to happen again. Thankfully, we pulled through, and since then, we have grown together as a strong, loving, caring, and learning community. We have excellent teachers who strive to help us do and act or best, preparing us for the future, and challenges to come.
* this review was written by the 12 year old daughter of the Unilocal account owner.

Our daughter has had a great experience at the Catholic Academy of Sunnyvale. The classes are small and the teachers work at helping each of the students be successful. Our daughter has commented that the teachers know her and she has gotten to know them.

My son has been at Catholic Academy since 2008. The small classes, blended learning, and character/​leadership building have helped my son flourish as a student. The faith community provides a great environment for my son to learn good citizenship and grow his self confidence. I recommend this school to anyone looking to improve the schooling situation for their children.

TL; DR: Awesome supportive teachers whose approach is a holistic character-​building environment without sacrificing Silicon Valley high academic standards. The new principal seeks to expand academic enrichment and experience for the children while minimizing the stress.
My kids have been attending Catholic Academy of Sunnyvale since it was St. Cyprian through the merger of the schools and now with the new principal. This school has gone through highs and lows; I will describe our experience from the start and transition to what it is today and what potential it has with the new administration.
As St. Cyprian, there was very strong community and close knit of families that would volunteer generously. The kids knew each other from preschool-​8^th grade, and the older kids were helpful, played, and entertained the little kid at the extended care. The teachers were great had a true interest in the child as a whole. The teachers were supportive would go the extra mile to help improve or give tips on to help the child succeed. Was it perfect; no but it was a very good environment that would help shape the character of your child to have integrity and be academically successful. My youngest was part of the inaugural preschool class, we understood there would be kinks and sometimes rocky, but the school feels like a second home as the relationship with teachers from such a young age have been cultivated in a familiar place. This was a stable faith-​based environment for my kids with tons of support for them.
The school had financial problems, which is why it had to merge with St. Martin’s school, forming Catholic Academy of Sunnyvale. The first principal was socially awkward and took several missteps alienating the St. Cyprian families in the process of trying to make the St Martin’s and new families feel welcome. As this was her first time as a Principal, she was inexperienced, had no plan therefore overwhelmed, and had a difficult time accepting help. Although, it was rocky, my kids still had most of the same great teachers as before supporting them and it was a familiar environment. My oldest at this point thrived in the new environment. However, the community feel was gone as before. Nevertheless, we still tried to stay as active as possible. My kids were resilient in the transition and it may not have been the best possible experience, however, but it was stable and familiar so they could concentrate on academics without the added challenge of adjusting to a new school and friends. But since the teachers my kids had were still very good and for the most part the same as the previous incarnation of the school, we shielded them from the politics of the administration as much as possible and concentrated in giving them the best environment possible for both academics and character. Although, during this period we relied more on non-​school related extracurricular activities to enrich their experiences for character and confidence.
Now Catholic Academy has a new principal, who is very experienced. She is very warm, open, intelligent, and has a vision on how best to serve the kids for them to be lifelong learners. The environment is focused on the kids experience and enrichment. Again the teachers have been amazing through this whole process. My kids have been happy and are instilled with values the will produce kids with great integrity.

We live in Palo Alto, and did not feel the district was right for our rising 6^th grader. Her school work is strong, but she is very self-​critical. We wanted to find a school that would meet her needs academically, but also focus on the whole child, paying attention to her value as a person, not just a test-​taker or future tech millionaire.
Since she began 6^th grade at C.A.S. this August, we’ve seen her confidence rise, her stress fall, and her sense of humor return. She has stopped expecting the worst at every moment, and is noticing that her school work is often interesting, rather than feeling it’s a ten-​ton weight hanging over her head. Most of all, we no longer need a crowbar and a fight to get her out the door every morning, and she comes home feeling she can tackle what she needs to accomplish, then get on with having some fun.
The icing on the cake has been finding a warm, welcoming and energetic community. The Super-​Moon viewing party – with S’mores and telescope! – was great fun. We are grateful and happy with the choice.

Both of my kids have attended CAS since 2009. One is in 8^th and one is in 5^th. Both Kids love the school. As parents, my wife and I feel the kids are getting a great education in a calm, safe, and Christian environment. The school is STEM based with excellent teachers, many of which are second career teachers.
The cost of tuition is half the other private schools around here, about 13k for both Kids.
Eighth graders for the last several years have all got into catholic high schools.

4 months into it and so far so good… I am a little concerned about previous posts so I will be even more mindful moving forward especially regarding comments about the principal. My daughter enjoys her teachers and her program. And they have been very professional and collaborative. Hoping the rest of the school year continues towards a positive path.

My family is a newbie at Catholic Academy this year and we have had nothing but positive feelings. I was not part of St. Martin or St. Cyprian so I have no past history, but the teachers and the principle are very caring and provide my kids with the individual attention that is needed for their success. With every school, you have to decide what’s important to you and then pick what’s right for your family. Faith, love, and academics are important to us and my kids get all three there. The teachers are seasoned teachers who provide detailed feedback about my kids. Also, I couldn’t say enough praise about Mrs. Rabago. She listens, she cares, she is inspiring, she is good with the kids. She is a leader I would like my kids to follow and I take the principle position very seriously.

After reading some of these reviews I felt I needed to set some things straight.
The school is not in dire financial straights. Unlike they way it was at Saint Martin, CAS is funded directly by the Diocese, meaning it is stable and predictable.
As for not being Catholic, that is ridiculous. What has ended is the wholesale funding of deadbeats who don’t want to pay full tuition. One of the things that cratered Saint Martin was the fact that 70% of the families had subsidized tuition. If you call this being «Catholic» so be it but let’s be honest with each other.
Yes, CAS depends heavily on volunteers. This is a double-​edged sword. If you want to roll up your sleeves and make the school better, no one is going to stand in your way. Likewise, there is no big brother magically fixing everything.
I have found the director to be very supportive to any and all ideas, even if she can’t support every one of them. I did not like the way the transition was handled either but I will say this — the school needed to change radically or die. It changed radically and survived. That change is still happening daily and it scares some people.
Yes, there is a lot of room for improvement but that improvement is happening and it’s happening steadily.

Anyone reading these reviews should realize that the four reviews at the bottom were actually for Saint Cyprian, a wonderful school, now taken over by the Catholic Academy of Sunnyvale, in the Saint Cyprian campus. They should not be taken as the same school.
It is true that the new administration has faced many challenges, falling short on most of them. It is not taking it personally, or refusing to adjust to change, to clearly see that the «new» school does not have the same academic excellence, does not have the same dedication to religion, and the new principal respects only those parents that are her «cheerleaders».
All prospective parents should be made aware of the fact that the school is in dire financial straits, even after merging the two schools (Saint Cyprian & Saint Martin), and does not have enough students to warrant individual classes, rather will be combining 1^st & 2^nd, and 3^rd & 4^th.
The good teachers that are left there are not accorded much respect, and other teachers are getting away with humiliating students, calling students by offensive names, showing inappropriate and offensive videos without parent permission, and having the new administration cover for them, lie for them, and even applaud them.
School masses are cancelled without notice. School assemblies no longer take place in the church. Inappropriate subjects are discussed during «Religion» class. It seems they have taken the Catholic out of Catholic school.
The new administration has single-​handedly driven good families out of the school, offended even more, lied about members of the parish, refused help from members of the parish and destroyed the close-​knit community we once enjoyed.
The new administration cannot be trusted to tell you the true status of the school, but will willingly take your money. There is a constant need for fundraisers, and asking for money, with no accountability, nor State of the School meetings. The administration has not guaranteed more than one more year of the school even being open.
Catholic schools have long since been chosen as a safe environment for our children. In the hands of this administration, this no longer holds true.
These are not assumptions or groundless accusations. These are facts, based on personal experience, and the actions of the school’s administration. Before pointing fingers at the parents, who are the ones that pay the tuition, look to the head of the organization, and ask why so many parents are reacting the same way.
Be very careful before sending your child to this school, or any of the other financially strapped schools in the Diocese, as once you are enrolled, you will not be allowed to move your child to another Catholic school of your choice within the Diocese of San Jose.
The Diocese has removed your right to choose a school for your own children, as we have experienced personally, since the Diocese has forbidden other Catholic schools from accepting our children. They want to keep us at this school solely for our money, not for any benefit to our children.
I am sad about moving my children to another school, but really think they will do better elsewhere, and may have a more caring environment.

I brought my daughter to Catholic Academy of Sunnyvale after attending another private school in the area for the prior three years. While the school and Mrs. Rabago (principal) have faced many challenges this year, as the result of two schools combining, the principal has done a remarkable job in showing her dedication and passion for the school, children and families, who are here.
My daughter started at the school not knowing anyone and she has grown by leaps and bounds, her math and reading skills have skyrocketed and she has grown both socially and emotionally.
Our first few weeks at the school, there were some students who had apparently been talking «down» at each other, as being from «this» school or «that» school. Mrs. Rabago made an announcement at assembly that «from here on out,» she did not want to hear those comments, we are one school and this would «stop now.» This seemed a turning point for the students, who I have watched grow to be friends and become ONE school. It is largely unfortunate that some parents have been unable to do the same, take a hard look at the well rounded education their child is receiving and instead have taken the change very personal. While change is difficult, those are the times it is best to take a step back, gather ALL of the facts, instead of making assumptions and accusations. Change is sometimes necessary because if you continue doing the same thing, you cannot expect results to change… which one of the results prior were two schools not thriving on their own.
The extra events the school and PTG host: Math Night, Science Night, Auction Dinner, among many others, have provided opportunities for families to get to know one another and continue to grow, in support of their child (s) school.
I have always felt at ease in approaching Mrs. Rabago for a meeting, where she has been willing to answer my questions and sometimes, when she did not have the answer, would say so and get back to me. She has been a huge factor in balancing all of the opportunities and challenges, having to make some tough decisions, over the past year. Despite the difficulties any new business or school faces, Mrs. Rabago has done an amazing job of building a strong foundation this school year and from all accounts, Catholic Academy will continue to grow in an upward and onward direction.

I couldn’t be happier about our experiences this year at Catholic Academy of Sunnyvale.
I have three children at this school. My youngest child had a wonderful year in Kindergarten, and he has developed beyond my expectations over the course of this year. Mrs McGaugh was a wonderful teacher who maintained control of the class masterfully and was always on-​task. The learning environment was very well structured and I received daily feedback about his performance. Part of the STEM experience at this school includes use of a Blended Learning model which, in part, incorporates the use of educational apps on the iPads (in all grades) in the classroom. My son had so much fun using the iPads, and his progress because of it was really remarkable. The teacher’s aid, Mrs. «T», was very loving and caring toward my son — seeing him run to her for a big hug after school simply warms my heart. He was very happy and excited to go to school every day!
My second child had a bumpy start in 2^nd grade. She missed her friends from her old school, was having attention problems during class, and was falling behind grade level in some of her work. Mrs. Pierron listened to my concerns and worked throughout the year to make my daughter’s experience better. She met with me as often as I requested and really showed great concern for my daughter. She constantly moved seats around to help my daughter find friends and student mentors in the classroom, and gave me continual feedback on her performance academically and socially. She started working with my daughter twice a week after school for one-​on-​one tutoring, and has even offered to continue her tutoring sessions over the summer. I cannot imagine a more selfless and dedicated approach to teaching.
My oldest daughter had the most wonderful 5^th grade teacher I could hope for. Despite pining for her old school and some of its familiar faces, by mid-​year she had already proclaimed that this was her favorite teacher yet. Mrs. Young is techno-​savvy and showed great dedication to the STEM curriculum. She used the iPads and SmartBoard in the classroom to their fullest extent, and really challenged the kids with in-​depth classroom projects without bogging down the families with hours and hours of homework every night. She keeps tight reigns on the class but manages to be well-​loved by her current and former students at the same time. She is a treasure to the school and any child would be lucky to have her as a teacher.
Despite the tremendous challenges the Principal faced blending two schools together, Mrs. Rabago is doing a remarkable job and has accomplished some amazing things for this school already during its first year. She is always soliciting feedback from parents and takes all comments to heart. I find her very easy to approach, and any concerns I had throughout the year were listened to thoughtfully, and addressed immediately. There is a real sense that she cares about my children (and our family) as individuals, and she balances this artfully with the overall needs of the school and the other families that attend. Her enthusiasm is contagious and I have high hopes for the future of this school.

This used to be two different schools, St. Martin and St. Cyprian prior for them merging them together into what it is called today Catholic Academy. I was happy with my child being in St. Martin, the teachers were great and indeed have the faith and believe in their children. The Goal was to always help every student as much as they possible and guide them trough the right path. After the school merged, there was indeed a new Director, Mrs Robago and new teachers were assigned and some old teachers were kept. The school started to implement a new program STEM, and at this point my personal opinion, the faith, caring and helping our kids was placed as secondary.
Now, if I want to address the religous side of this Catholic school. Jesus was crucified because he didn’t «fit in.» If we «fit in» neatly, place material success at the center of our lives, neglect the poor and ignore the truth when it is convenient to do so, we no longer follow Jesus. He forgave us and was always ready to help those in need the most. My child needeed additional help, caring, asssitance from the teacher and support from Mrs Robago, all which was not fully there, instead, the result was medication to make the teachers life easier. We all have challanges in our lives, and it is or should be the job of any teacher to face them the best way possible. To neglect a child does not make it better. A teacher should love teaching, children overall, this is what can make a great teacher, person, human being.
This new Director, does not care about our children but instead this is nothing but a job for her. She has no compassion, and even care about what we parents think. She is not willing to adjust for the best of the children as a whole. Does it make sense to have a student participate in an activity or extracular activity for which s/​he already master well, as suppose to allow that time in something which can benefit them more.
If, on the other hand, we follow Jesus and live by his commands, we enter into solidarity with others who love deeply and faithfully and who can never be just part of the crowd.“
I believe a good institution where the children are involved should make every effort to help, enrich and make a star out of every child. This can bring a lifetime success.

My Grandaughter goes to the Pre-​school program here at Catholic Academy. She is in the bumble bee class :) She loves her teachers, one name I can’t really pronounce, Ms. Christina, and Ms. Olivia. So far, I have not actually been to the school but I have heard great amazing things from my grand daughter. They pay attention to their kids. You can tell she has a close relationship to all of the teachers who are in the classroom. She talks daily about her friends, whats new, what shes learning. She knows more Spanish then me! I do know its a bit pricey. (totally worth it!) I would definitely recommend this school to anyone who cares about your childrens education, and how they are treated through out the day. I know all about elementary schools since I’m a secretary at one! My daughter in law is talking about putting her youngest into the toddler program, I’m sure she will love it too! They also give children information about God, kind of like an introduction to religion. I’m so glad my grandchildren will be attending their elementary years here. I’m very excited for their future.

Disclaimer: This is based on our experience from a tour we received. Not necessarily of the curriculum.
My girlfriend and I toured the school last week to see if we wanted to send her 4 year old daughter there for kindergarten next year. Our experience was horrible. We showed up 5 minutes before our appointment and while the lady at the front told the principal, Diane Rabago, that we arrived, she wasn’t friendly at all. She didn’t offer us to have a seat while we waited, or asked why we were there in the first place.
Once she came out to meet us, Ms. Rabago, said she had to address the school and we waited while they prayed, did the pledge of allegiance and went through announcements. That was fine, we got to observe the morning assembly, but once that was done, she quickly handed us over to another woman who would actually be giving us the tour.
This normally wouldn’t be a big deal, but she was relatively new at St. Cyprian (she was from St. Martin, which merged with St. Cyprian). She couldn’t answer all the questions we had and, understandably, had to direct us to the website. She wasn’t knowledgeable and we were dumbfounded as to why the principal chose this person to give us the tour.
Once we got back to the office, the same lady at the front had the same short attitude when we asked about tuition fees and application forms.
If you want the parent of a prospective student to consider your school, you shouldn’t treat them this way. The school has a low enrollment and it’s not hard to see why.
If anyone at St. Cyprian reads this, please feel free to contact me.

Very disappointing experience in 2012. Promoted as Montessori based /​inspired pre-​school and as we were moving into the area from out-​of-​state, we read their literature on their website and after conversation with them, we signed on. Our first day experience was quite the opposite. We realized that after one day that they are not a Montessori-​based school but a glorified day care. That was fine but then they refused to return our first month payment plus deposits of over $ 1200 dollars despite our protests about misleading information. As parents seeking financial aid, you can imagine the distress that caused… Talk about lack of Christian, Catholic and compassionate values…
In summary, unless this is the kind of school and catholic leadership values you want to have your child exposed too, this school is not the right choice

Saint Cyprian School is a small intimate preK-​8^th grade Catholic school in Sunnyvale. There are 200 students. Tuition is $ 8.5K ($ 6.5K for parish families). Class sizes are small and would work well for anyone wanting a more intimate and friendly school for their kids. The school community is tied pretty tightly with the parish so it helps if you’re involved in both.

It’s our home away from home. Great school, great parish, great community!

What makes this church great is its strong sense of community. It’s part of a K-​8 school so there is already a large following of members that are made up of students, parents and faculty. But, the warm welcoming feeling is what I think attracts outsiders, such as myself. I’m not a complete outsider since my brother and cousins coach the sports teams of the St. Cyprian school, but I knew I wanted to volunteer as a lector since I can’t volunteer at my original church, Our Lady of Peace.
The services are very family friendly. Choir does a wonderful job always. Fr. Art and other priests are always so welcoming and give such insightful homilies that I find most of us can find a way to connect to.
Many times, you can find an event after mass, whether that be coffee and donuts at the gym or some sort of festival fundraiser sponsored by the school. First Sunday of each month 11 am mass is usually sponsored by a class at the school with a class performance. During that mass on the first Sunday of the month, there is also a children’s liturgy, so the young children go to a separate room to learn about God’s word.
I’d also like to plug the church/school’s annual Spaghetti dinner fundraiser which is normally held at the beginning of every February. I attended the dinner last night. It’s a fundraiser for the church’s 8^th grade Confirmation class, which is made up of students from both St. Cyprian and the local junior high schools. This is a great event every year and the spaghetti, salad, garlic bread and brownie ice cream sundaes are all very tasty for the price of $ 8/​adult. Keep in mind this is a fundraiser for the Confirmation students, so I have no problems chipping in for the children. Wine is also on sale for $ 2/​glass. I was bummed because this year they didn’t have margaritas, which they had last year. The students also sell raffle tickets for $ 1 and if you win, you get your pick of any wrapped up gift item up for grabs! The school’s gymnasium is the venue and the parents/​staff/​students do a nice job of setting up the tables and decorations to give you that «Italy» feel. If you’re a part of the St. Cyprian community, this is a perfect way to meet and catch up with all your friends!

Okay this is a 2 part review one for the Church and the other for the School.
Church: Nice comfy church and its not overly crowded, the congregation is a mixed crowd filled with families and the elderly. Most of the students who live near by and attend the school go to mass at the 10 am masses as the noon mass is in spanish. The church is simple in design. I was an altar boy during teh years I attended St. Cyprian and luckily the priests were a man of God and stayed that way. The atmosphere is welcoming as they also accomodate the children during the gospel and teach them the gospel in a separate room in a way they can uderstand it better. So those with young children, its agood idea to take your kids to the 10 am mass as you will have a great conversation with your kids regarding the gospel.
St. Cyprian the school si a great environment (when I used to attend). The teachers were sincere in educating their students. The school had many amenities that was just right for such a small community. The sports program is great as I am the boys and girls basketball coach along with Marlo E. The 7^th grade boys made it all the way to the championship but came up short by a couple of points. So they have a very respectable sports program. The computer labs and library are decent and up to date. So overall the school is great and I would definitely invite everyone to check it out during their open houses.