History of Our Lady of Sorrows School

The Parish at Our Lady of Sorrows was established in 1887.  A few years later, on June 21, 1891, the parish dedicated their first school on Academy Street.  An important feature of the new school was a “first class hall” over the classrooms, for the holding of parish fairs and entertainments.

The Bulletin of the time commended local Catholics “for their spirit of enterprise and independence in arranging to erect a hall for the purpose of holding their entertainments.” 

To the editor of the Bulletin the parish auditorium pointed up the fact that “this village is at present without any well appointed public hall, and that so long as it does not possess that which is a feature and pride of every well regulated and enterprising community, South Orange will be voted slow and behind the times….”

For nearly 120 years, Our Lady of Sorrows School has served the community of South Orange.  From the invention of the automobile to the invention of the Segway, OLS has thrived on the “spirit of enterprise” first noted in the Bulletin of 1891. 

The Great Depression, two World Wars, Ike, JFK, the Eagle landing on the moon, Vietnam, Watergate, Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush again, and now Obama:  OLS has been there through it all. 

And always with the same mission:  to provide quality education and guidance for the children entrusted to its care.  Literally thousands of students have passed through its doors on the way to outstanding high schools, colleges, and careers. 

Our Pre-K, Kindergarten, and Grade School are well-known for fostering academic achievement, service, and the three R’s: Respect for yourself, Respect for others, and Responsibility for your actions.

Now, recognizing the need in our community for quality infant and toddler care for working parents, once again, this “spirit of enterprise” is alive in the OLS family.

The Nursery, an infant and toddler child care center, will open in the former Convent on the campus of Our Lady of Sorrows School.  This historic building, constructed in 1926, has been painstakingly restored and modernized.  The homey atmosphere of the former residence combines with state of the art computer technology to create a new-fashioned center with old-fashioned values.

Hours

We are open fropm 7am until 7pm  Monday thorugh Friday. We are open year round, only closing for major holidays.

Classrooms

We have two classrooms.

Infant Room

 Capacity 16 (4 groups of 4)

Ratio 1:4

Toddler Room

Capacity 18 (3 groups of 6)

Ratio 1:6

In many instances our ratios are much lower than stated.

Staff 

All of our staff members:

• Are trained in CPR/First Aid within first six months of starting

• Take a Child Abuse awarness course

• Have a fingerprint background check

• Participate in semi annual training

Accepting Enrollments Now for Infants and Toddlers