Aquinas High School (New York)


Aquinas High School is a 9-12 all-girls, private, Roman Catholic high school in the Belmont section of the Bronx, New York, United States. It is located within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York.

Background

In the late nineteenth century the Dominican Sisters of Sparkill purchased the Frederick Grote estate, which consisted of an entire city block from East 182 Street to East 183 Street. Frederick Grote was a partner in the firm "F. Grote & Co.", manufacturers of ivory goods. The business was located on 14th Street in Manhattan. Mr. Grote died October 22, 1886. In 1900, a day school was established in the three-story frame servants' house for children of the Parish of St. Martin of Tours. It was called St. Martin's Academy and only served Grades 1-6. As enrollment increased, the Academy was moved to the brick Victorian Grote mansion.
When the parish decided to establish a parochial school, in 1923, the sisters converted the Academy into "Aquinas Hall", a two-year business school for young women. A second building was added in 1929. In the mid-1930s, it was determined that the students would be better served by a four year high school curriculum. A 4-year high school was established in 1939.
Aquinas High School provides a Catholic college preparatory education. For the past couple of years the AHS Band has placed in the NYC annual St. Patrick's Day Parade. The school's varsity basketball team was 2006 Class B New York State Federation Champions. On September 11, 2002, First Lady Laura Bush visited Aquinas High School.
In June 2020, the school announced that it would close following the 2020-2021 school year due to declining enrollment. While originally designed for 800 students, there were only 200 at the time the closing was announced.
Accredited by:
Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York
Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools

Awards and recognition