Le Mans Academy
Encyclopedia
Founded in 1955 as Sacred Heart Military Academy in Rolling Prairie, Indiana
, LeMans Academy was a private boarding
middle school
(grades 5-9) for boys located 90 minutes east of Chicago, Illinois near La Porte, Indiana
on 700 acres (2.8 km²) of land. It was sponsored by the Brothers of Holy Cross
from the University of Notre Dame
.
The last class consisted mostly of boys from the Milwaukee and Chicago areas with a few from Mexico. Student activities included military drills, a rifle range, a large gym, soccer, track, baseball and other sports. The school also had a slot car track and recreation room. The students wore military uniforms every day and a special dress uniform on Sunday. Boys held different ranks and received demerits for bad behavior. Demerits had to be worked off with calisthenics and stress positions like bending at the waist with hands clasped behind the head. Offenses like fighting earned the use of "the paddle" (Not True) they just had detention, no recreation time for a period of time. Students were not allowed to carry money or to leave the campus. Study halls were held every evening but Sunday for two hours. Daily life was very regimented, classes were held Monday through Friday as well as Saturday morning, and students had only about two hours to themselves every day. Brother John Driscal was headmaster for many years. replaced by Brother Carroll Posey. On May 26, 1968, SHMA graduated its last class of 35 eighth grade students. About 700 people attended.http://www.watertownhistory.org/Articles/SacredHeart.htm SHMA had only grades 5-8. The campus is now Maranatha Baptist Bible College.http://www.watertownhistory.org/Articles/SacredHeart.htm
With its highest enrollment in years--more than 115 boarding students from across the U.S., Mexico, South Korea, and other nations--Le Mans Academy closed its doors in the spring of 2003 because the Catholic religious order which founded and sponsored the school--the Brothers of Holy Cross, Midwest Province--needed to liquidate an available asset (the Academy's campus was sold and its endowment claimed) to help meet the rising cost of health care for its aging population of religious Brothers. The first lay Headmaster in the Academy's history--Mr. Steven Cash--was also the last Headmaster.
The Campus was purchased by the Legionaries of Christ to open an apostolic school
Rolling Prairie, Indiana
Rolling Prairie is an unincorporated town in Kankakee Township, LaPorte County, Indiana.-History:The first cabin was built here in 1831 by Ezekiel Provolt. More settlers arrived, built cabins and named the settlement Nauvoo. On November 26, 1853, the village was platted by W.J. Walker and named...
, LeMans Academy was a private boarding
Boarding
Boarding may refer to:*Temporarily residing somewhere, as in a boarding school or boarding house*Boarding , a naval term for the forcible attempt at capturing another naval vessel*Boarding , customs, coastguard etc...
middle school
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
(grades 5-9) for boys located 90 minutes east of Chicago, Illinois near La Porte, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
on 700 acres (2.8 km²) of land. It was sponsored by the Brothers of Holy Cross
Congregation of Holy Cross
The Congregation of Holy Cross or Congregatio a Sancta Cruce is a Catholic congregation of priests and brothers founded in 1837 by Blessed Father Basil Anthony-Marie Moreau, CSC, in Le Mans, France....
from the University of Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
.
History
Sacred Heart Military Academy (called SHMA by the students) operated in Watertown Wisconsin until the summer of 1968. After graduating its last class the school was moved to Rolling Prairie, Indiana. The name was changed, in part, because the brothers in Watertown kept receiving applications from the parents of girls.The last class consisted mostly of boys from the Milwaukee and Chicago areas with a few from Mexico. Student activities included military drills, a rifle range, a large gym, soccer, track, baseball and other sports. The school also had a slot car track and recreation room. The students wore military uniforms every day and a special dress uniform on Sunday. Boys held different ranks and received demerits for bad behavior. Demerits had to be worked off with calisthenics and stress positions like bending at the waist with hands clasped behind the head. Offenses like fighting earned the use of "the paddle" (Not True) they just had detention, no recreation time for a period of time. Students were not allowed to carry money or to leave the campus. Study halls were held every evening but Sunday for two hours. Daily life was very regimented, classes were held Monday through Friday as well as Saturday morning, and students had only about two hours to themselves every day. Brother John Driscal was headmaster for many years. replaced by Brother Carroll Posey. On May 26, 1968, SHMA graduated its last class of 35 eighth grade students. About 700 people attended.http://www.watertownhistory.org/Articles/SacredHeart.htm SHMA had only grades 5-8. The campus is now Maranatha Baptist Bible College.http://www.watertownhistory.org/Articles/SacredHeart.htm
With its highest enrollment in years--more than 115 boarding students from across the U.S., Mexico, South Korea, and other nations--Le Mans Academy closed its doors in the spring of 2003 because the Catholic religious order which founded and sponsored the school--the Brothers of Holy Cross, Midwest Province--needed to liquidate an available asset (the Academy's campus was sold and its endowment claimed) to help meet the rising cost of health care for its aging population of religious Brothers. The first lay Headmaster in the Academy's history--Mr. Steven Cash--was also the last Headmaster.
The Campus was purchased by the Legionaries of Christ to open an apostolic school
Apostolic school
An apostolic school is a missionary college of the Roman Catholic Church, having for its object to cultivate vocations for foreign missions.-History:...