Colegio San Bartolomé La Merced


Colegio San Bartolomé La Merced is an elite, private, jesuit, bilingual and co-educational school. The school is affiliated with the Society of Jesus of the Roman Catholic Church and is often known as "San Bartolo". The school campus, founded in 1941 by Jesuits, is located in the traditional neighborhood of "La Merced" in downtown Bogotá.
The school is considered one of the most traditional and prestigious schools in the country. The education has been recognized for taking a humanistic and social approach. Since its foundation, the school has been ranked among the has reached high job positions in Colombian politics, including former presidents, congressmen, ministers, and ambassadors. Others have become scientists, journalists, academics, artists and entrepreneurs.

History

In the 1930s the Society of Jesus was facing serious financial challenges because of political pressure from the government, about their existing contract with it for the management of the National School of San Bartolomé, currently called ":es:Colegio Mayor de San Bartolomé |Mayor de San Bartolomé". The Society of Jesus started the construction of the building for the school at the farm La Merced in 1941.
Until 1997 the school was an all-boys boarding school. The school later entered into a modernization process, turning into a co-educational and bilingual school. The school operates under the guidelines and directions of and the school is run according to the General Education Colombian Act 115 of 1994. The school is a founding member of .

Academics

The school offers pre-school, preparatory, secondary, and high school education within the same campus. All-year programs provide basic liberal arts education and electives. In addition, the school partner with other institutions to offer English as a second language programs overseas. Previous destinations have included the United States, Canada, England, and New Zealand.

Some Prominent Alumni