History

On February 13, 1949, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Mission broke ground on West 70th Street and Detroit Avenue to build the future church and school combination.  It had taken twenty-three years for these parishioners to construct their own school since their little chapel opened on West 69th Street on March 26, 1926. Established to meet the needs of the growing Italian community, Our Lady of Mount Carmel was a mission of Saint Rocco’s parish. In 1966 the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cleveland erected Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish.

September 6th, 1949, marked the opening of the doors of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic School to fifty-three boys and girls for first and second grade under the direction of Father Vincent Caruso and Trinitarian Sisters. On April 23, 1953, the new church opened and renovations immediately began for the additional four grades. 

After 46 years, the Sisters of the Most Holy Trinity withdrew from the school due to a lack of vocations. Mercedarian Pastor, Fr. Richard Rasch turned to the Mercedarian Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for assistance. In 1997, four Mercedarian Sisters arrived under the direction of Sister M. Rosario Vega, HMSS. The Mercedarian Sisters shield, a monstrance above the Mercedarian shield, became the official logo for Our Lady of Mount Carmel School in August 1998. The fact that Our Lady of Mount Carmel is served by the same religious family in both the parish and the school has strengthened the spirituality of this community.

During the 1998-1999 school year, the school day was prolonged fifty minutes a day. A new daily uniform color and style were in transition for this school year as well. School colors went back to their original gold and blue.

The Early Childhood building, also housing the Kindergarten class, was completed on March 7, 2003. The highlight of this building is the indoor playground. The library moved into the former Kindergarten room and shares space with the present Computer Lab, originally opened in August 1997, to create a Media and Technology Center.  The Clinic and Atrium Entrance renovations were completed during the summer of 2007.  

In the 2017-18 school year, under the direction of principal Shelly Schenek, the media and technology center was renovated into a STREAM Lab, one of the first of its kind at a Catholic inner-city elementary school.   During the 2018-19 school year, Fr. Joseph Eddy became the new pastor of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish. The school continued to build its STREAM and fine arts programs, and the preschool program was awarded Four Stars from the rigorous Step Up to Quality designation process. 

In the 2019-20 school year, the school continues to build upon its fine arts program, with the implementation of the CARE program and a new partnership with the Cleveland Playhouse. Students receive theater and drama courses each week with a teacher in residence from the Cleveland Playhouse. CARE is a theatre education program that draws on lessons from social-emotional learning theories, trauma-informed care, and evidence-based literacy learning for students in grades K-8. It uses theatre techniques and exercises to help students develop empathy and broaden their understanding of each other and the world around them, empowering them with valuable tools that can be applied throughout their lives.  CARE helps students improve English Language Arts achievement through an engaging curriculum that is aligned with the Common Core and focused on both individual and collective exploration of emotions through dramatic texts, video, and computer apps.