According to the National Association of Independent Schools, "students in coeducational settings learn better because they learn from both boys and girls. They are better critical thinkers and are more likely to be innovators in their professional lives."
"The case for coeducation might begin," notes education writer Pamela Haag, writing for The Washington Post, "as it does for single-sex education, with a mission. At its heart, 'coeducation' does not simply denote a mix of males and females. It denotes a philosophy about schooling, learning and equality."
At Father Ryan, we believe boys and girls learn better because they learn together. They succeed together. They lead together.
Excelling in the Classroom
In the last nine years, half of our Valedictorians and Salutatorians have been girls and half have been boys. That includes graduates such as Candice Chen, our 2017 Valedictorian who is currently studying linguistics and math at Harvard; and Matthew Canonico, Valedictorian in 2016, who is pursuing work in Mathematics, with a minor in Italian, at the University of Notre Dame.
Leading on Campus
The co-leaders in 2018 of Father Ryan’s hugely-successful, record-breaking and student-run Relay for Life were Maggie Eidt and Drew Sloan, who organized the event with a coeducational committee of 34 classmates.
The fundraiser for the American Cancer Society raised more than $203,000 in 2018 alone, and perhaps more impressively, Father Ryan surpassed the $1,000,000 total for money raised since the school’s first Relay for Life in 2009.
In addition to Relay for Life, students are leading together in a number of other on-campus initiatives, including Student Council, Peer Mentors, Student Ambassadors, and more.
The fundraiser for the American Cancer Society raised more than $203,000 in 2018 alone, and perhaps more impressively, Father Ryan surpassed the $1,000,000 total for money raised since the school’s first Relay for Life in 2009.
In addition to Relay for Life, students are leading together in a number of other on-campus initiatives, including Student Council, Peer Mentors, Student Ambassadors, and more.
Serving Others Together
Boys and girls at Father Ryan share the unique opportunity to serve others on a wide variety of service and mission trips and alternative spring breaks, coordinated through Campus Ministry. In addition, we are proud to have many partnerships throughout Nashville with charities and non-profits that aim to make our city a better place to live for all. The Special Olympics, Bethlehem Farms, Catholic Heart Work Camp, The Little Pantry that Could and Room in the Inn are just a few examples of the organizations we're humbled to work with.
For the past 10 years, Father Ryan Students have been serving at Mepkin Abbey in South Carolina, where the Father Ryan contingent spends a week over spring break assisting the monks in making renovations to the property, as well as learning valuable life lessons and growing closer in their faith together.
Better Prepared for College
Studies show that coeducational experience prepares students better for college. Many of the top 46 national universities – MIT, Harvard, UNC, Ohio State, Notre Dame and Boston College – know how prepared our boys and girls are. That’s why 39 girls and 35 boys from the class of 2018 were accepted to these outstanding institutions.
