Cardinal Mooney was founded in 1956 and is run by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Youngstown. In the early 1950s, the Diocese of Youngstown recognized the need to expand Ursuline High School and to build a new parochial high school on the southside. In 1953, Bishop Emmet M. Walsh obtained the present site of Cardinal Mooney High School from the Youngstown Parks Department and began the organization of a high school fundraising committee. Ground was broken in 1954, and in the fall of 1955 the first freshman class was organized and began attending classes at the old Glenmary convent. Construction of Cardinal Mooney was completed in time for the first day of school in September 1956. A total of 610 students were enrolled as freshmen or sophomores. The school was named after Cardinal Edward Mooney, a former southsider, who was the Archbishop of Detroit. He had distinguished himself as a scholar and Vatican diplomat. Father William Anthony Hughes, later the Bishop of Covington, Kentucky, was named the school's first principal. Red and Gold were selected as the school colors. They symbolized the blood of the martyrs, and the responsibility of all Christians to accept suffering and the Blessed Sacrament. The initial faculty included sisters from the Ursuline, Dominican, Notre Dame and Vincentian communities, two priests and five lay teachers. In June 1959 the first graduating class celebrated Baccalaureate Mass at St. Columba Cathedral, and on June 7 graduation ceremonies were held at Stambaugh Auditorium. Enrollments grew rapidly in the early '60's. By 1960 an addition to Cardinal Mooney was being planned and an overflow of students were once again attending classes at the old Glenmary Convent. The addition opened in 1961. It included an auditorium, seven classrooms and a physics laboratory. In early 2000, Cardinal Mooney came into possession of the two military annex buildings adjacent to the school grounds. Shortly after obtaining this real estate, construction of the high school's new sports complex was underway. Completed in late 2001, the Cardinal Mooney sports complex yields a well rounded athletic training facility where official OHSAA athletic contests can be hosted. The complex includes a regulation football field, two adjacent practice fields, two tennis courts, a practice putting green, a practice soccer field, two practice baseball fields, a small batting cage, a training pool, and a full length, rubberized track encircling the main football field. The U.S. Army and U.S. Navy annex buildings were left standing during construction, but Rush Boulevard was filled in with top soil and cut off from the rear lot. The buildings, now referred to as the Cardinal Mooney Industrial Arts Center, have since been converted to garages where shop classes can work on vehicles and driving classes can be taught during the summer breaks.
2013 relocation
On September 3, 2013, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Youngstown, George Murry, approved the relocation of the high school from Youngstown's south side to the suburbs of Mahoning County. However, his approval was met with stipulations that included proof of sufficient financial support for both a new high school building as well as an endowment fund to provide scholarships for students who face poverty and other social constraints. A study released in April 2013 determined that the school would sustain a better enrollment and for a longer period of time if it relocated. Bishop Murry originally opposed the move, stating that a large factor in this decision was that it would be cheaper to make renovations than to build a new building. In addition, he said in his statement, it is important for the diocese to be good stewards of their finances. The diocesan superintendent of Catholic schools echoed Murry's original stance and acknowledged the plans that can be put into effect for the future of the school at its present location. The topic has been one of controversy among parents and alumni since discussion of the move began in 2013. For the 2015 school year, renovations on the current location began, therefore making relocation unlikely. The school has been at its current site on Erie Street since 1956.
