St. Mary's Academy (Cherry Hills Village)

Infobox School
name = St. Mary's Academy


imagesize =
caption =
motto = The Premier Academy of the West
established = 1864
type = private, Roman Catholic
affiliation = Independent of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Denver, Sisters of Loretto
district =
grades = Pre K-12
president = Deirdre Cryor
principals = Mary Jane Frederick, Martha Ashley, Kathryn MacNamee
head of school =
dean =
faculty =
staff =
students =
enrollment = 750
athletics =
conference =
colors = Navy Blue, White
mascot = Wildcat
campus type = Urban
campus size =
free_label = It is the only all-girls school in the state of Colorado.
free_text =
free_label2 =
free_text2 =
free_label3 =
free_text3 =
location = Cherry Hills Village, Colorado
country = United States
coordinates =
website = http://www.smanet.org/

St. Mary's Academy (SMA) is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Cherry Hills Village, Colorado. It is independently run in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Denver.

It was founded in 1864 by the Sisters of Loretto. SMA bestowed the first high school diploma in the Colorado Territory in 1875. It has three times been honored by the U.S. Department of Education as a School of Excellence also known as a Blue Ribbon School. It was also featured #7 in 5280 Magazine's list of "Denver's Top High Schools."

SMA is organized into three divisions: Lower School (co-ed kindergarten through grade 5), Middle School (co-ed grades 6-8), and High School (all girls, grades 9-12). It is dedicated to a legacy of pioneering, risk-taking, and service to others. The graduates of St. Mary's Academy matriculate to many of the best colleges and universities in the world. A member of the St. Mary's Class of 2008 even scored a perfect 2400 on the SAT in 2007. [http://www.smanet.org//about.glance.htm] Its former mascot was the Spirits which was changed to the Wildcats in 1995.

Notable alumnae

*Jesse Forshee, first graduate, received first diploma in Colorado territory
* Condoleezza Rice, U.S. Secretary of State
* Jill Sobule, Singer/Songwriter
* Ollie Blevins Marie-Victoire, California Supreme Court Judge

External links

* [http://www.smanet.org/ St. Mary's Academy official website]