St. Peter Catholic – A Career and Technical High School breaks ground

St. Peter Catholic – A Career and Technical High School officially broke ground March 7 at the 10-acre campus in Houston. Participating in the ceremony are: (left to right) St. Peter board of trustees chair Mark Letsos Jr., principal Dr. Marc Martinez, Catholic Schools Superintendent Dr. Debra Haney, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, Bishop Italo Dell’Oro, CRS, St. Peter pastor Father Evaristus Chukwu and incoming school freshmen. (Photo courtesy of Brookstone Construction)

HOUSTON — Celebrating the creation of Houston’s first Catholic career and technical school, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo welcomed the first admitted students to the school along with donors and members of the school’s board of trustees March 7.

“We are historic. Everyone is watching us so no pressure,” Cardinal DiNardo told the crowd attending the groundbreaking ceremony at St. Peter Catholic – A Career and Technical High School. “But it will succeed in relation to how much we are investing in our youth and Catholic community.”

The 10-acre campus at 6220 La Salette St. and Old Spanish Trail is taking applications for the first class of incoming freshmen to start August 2023 and graduate as the Class of 2027, said the founding principal Dr. Marc Martinez. The school has already accepted 16 new students so far with a goal of starting with 50 or more students.

“We are combining the Archdiocese’s academic excellence with the latest in technological trends to prepare students both academically and for the workforce,” Dr. Martinez said.

Catholic School Superintendent Dr. Debra Haney said she visited the only other four-year co-educational Catholic vocation high school in the U.S., Mercy Career & Technical School in Philadelphia, as part of the strategic plan for the local business model.

“Since January 2022, we have raised $9.3 million so far and have a little ways to go to raise an additional $2 million as part of our goal,” Haney said. “With God behind us and the Holy Spirit, we know we will make it.”

The Archdiocesan Catholic School Office has been working with the St. Peter Board of Trustees to raise up to $11 million to renovate, furnish and equip the former St. Peter the Apostle Catholic School. The former elementary and middle school shuttered in 2019.

Several donors attended the groundbreaking, including Larry Massey, director of the Scanlan Foundation, members of the Macrini Foundation and officials from Shea Homes, a national home build construction company.

Once renovated, the two-story, state-of-the-art school will focus on information technology and web development; business, marketing, and finance; architecture and construction; education and training; and other major subjects.

The school is designed to accommodate up to 200 students during Phase 1, beginning with an incoming freshman class of 50 students. As enrollment grows, Phase 2 would add a transportation, distribution and logistics career path. Phase 3 would add health, science and pharmacy technology.

Project-based and hands-on learning with current software and technology will help students be professionally competent in their careers, said St. Peter school board chair Mark Letsos.

Students can go on to associate degree programs, four-year colleges, or they move directly into the workforce with certifications to do jobs that are needed by industry, said Letsos, owner and president of Lambda Specialties, a commercial equipment company.

Three eighth graders from St. Christopher Catholic School, who are among the first students accepted to St. Peter Catholic, participated in the high school’s groundbreaking.

Arturo Alonso, 14 years old, said he plans to study Architecture & Construction and wants to earn a certification in HVAC. Logan Whitley and Daniel Achuo, both 13, are interested in the business, marketing, and finance career path.

“I want to be an accountant and own my own business,” Whitley said.

Future business partnerships can offer internships to students, allowing companies to train students with their own specialized instructors.
St. Peter Catholic — A Career and Technical High School was designed by the Archdiocese and community partners to be affordable to all students and families who are seeking a Catholic secondary education. The school will serve Houston’s Catholic community students and be open to all seeking an alternative to public high school, high-cost private school, or charter school.

For more information, including how to apply, visit www.stpeterhs.org.