The Baumert Family Says Skutt Catholic is The Best Decision

This week, 8th graders across the Omaha metro are preparing to take the 8th grade entrance exam and choose a Catholic high school. Current parents Shelly and Paul Baumert shared how they made the decision to send their children to Skutt Catholic rather than their local public school system they had gone to for elementary and middle school.

FROM PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO SKUTT CATHOLIC

Paul and I both grew up Catholic, but went to public high schools. Living in Elkhorn, we knew about our local public school system, and thought that was a good decision for our four children in elementary and middle school. We sent our kids to religious formation after school at our parish.

We thought our kids would all attend the large high school in our district, until our oldest, Claire ‘21, let us know when she was in eighth grade that she wanted to attend Skutt Catholic. She was a competitive dancer and really wanted to be part of the well-established program at Skutt Catholic, as well as go to a school with diverse academic offerings. We looked into it further, and agreed with her decision.

BEST DECISION

That has turned out to be the best decision we’ve ever allowed a middle school student to make. We were very pleased with the experience our oldest had at Skutt Catholic. We loved the friends she was able to meet from a variety of different backgrounds. The academics, academic advising, and college preparation were outstanding, and we think the individual attention she received at this smaller school prepared her very well for college. She received a number of scholarships from schools all over the country, and she is now thriving in college.

COVID EDUCATION AS CLOSE TO ‘NORMAL’ AS POSSIBLE

The COVID-19 pandemic happened while Claire was in high school. While that entailed disruptions for her high school experience, we found that Skutt Catholic was able to be more nimble and flexible about the decisions they were making for students.

While the kids of our friends and neighbors in public high schools were missing out on more in-person instruction or the regular activities that are so important to the high school environment, Skutt Catholic was taking steps to allow them to have an experience that was safe but as close to ‘normal’ as possible. The private school environment has more flexibility to make decisions like that, breaking with the decision all the public school districts are making when it is in the best interests of students.

TWO NEW BAUMERTS IN THE BUILDING

At this point, we have twin freshmen girls at Skutt Catholic. They have found Skutt Catholic to be a welcoming environment, and have found it easy to make new friends. Both girls are very happy to have made the change to Skutt Catholic, and they have not doubted that decision at all.

PARENTS JOIN THE SKYHAWK FAMILY TOO!

Paul and I have both been involved in the Skutt Catholic community. We appreciate the smaller environment as parents, and the ability to be involved from the very beginning. Paul has been on the finance committee, and is currently serving on the school board.

-Shelly Baumert