St. John the Baptist Catholic School of South Bend

📚✨ Registration for the 2026-2027 School Year is Now Open! ✨📚

Are you looking for a faith-filled, academically strong, and family-centered education for your child? At Saint John the Baptist Catholic School, we are committed to helping students grow in faith, knowledge, and character while providing a nurturing environment where every child can thrive.

From Preschool through 8th Grade, our dedicated teachers, strong Catholic values, and engaging learning opportunities help students become confident leaders and lifelong learners.

✅ Faith-Based Education
✅ Caring and Dedicated Staff
✅ Academic Excellence
✅ Preschool through 8th Grade
✅ Small Class Sizes
✅ Safe and Supportive School Community

Now is the perfect time to secure your child’s spot for the upcoming school year!

📞 574-232-9849
📧 [email protected]
🌐 stjohnspartans.com/become-a-spartan

Come see what it means to be a Spartan! ❤️🤍🖤

☀️🌴 Summer Office Hours at Saint John the Baptist Catholic School! 🌴☀️

As we begin summer break, our school office will remain open to assist families with enrollment, records requests, tuition questions, and any other school needs.

📅 Summer Office Hours
🗓 June 8 – July 17
⏰ Monday – Friday
📍 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM

🚪 Please note that the school office will be closed July 20 – July 24.

Whether you’re registering a new student, preparing for the upcoming school year, or have questions about school programs, we’re here to help!

☀️ We wish all of our St. John families a safe, fun, and faith-filled summer, and we look forward to welcoming everyone back for another wonderful school year! ♥️🤍🖤

‼️ Important ‼️

Welcome Father Patrick Ernst!

✨Welcome, Father Patrick Ernst!✨

With gratitude and joy, we are delighted to welcome Father Patrick Ernst to Saint John the Baptist Parish this summer while Father Augustine is away!

Father Patrick Ernst was recently ordained to the priesthood and is no stranger to our parish and school community. Many may recognize him from his years as a seminarian, as well as his time as a student at Marian High School. His connection to our local Catholic community runs deep, and we are excited to welcome him to Saint John the Baptist this summer as he begins this new chapter of priestly ministry!

As Father Patrick Ernst begins his ministry with us this summer, we invite our parish and school families to extend a warm Saint John’s welcome. We look forward to praying with him, learning from him, and sharing in the many blessings that God has in store for our community during his time here.

Please join us in welcoming Father Patrick Ernst in the comments and keeping him in your prayers as he begins this exciting new chapter of priestly ministry! 🙏💙

🌟 The Kind of Teacher You Never Forget 🌟

This year, our St. John family is saying goodbye to someone whose presence has meant more than words can hold … Ms. Stiglitz, our beloved second‑grade teacher. As she prepares to begin a new chapter in Florida, our hearts are full of gratitude for the four beautiful years she spent loving, guiding, and lifting up our children.

After our End‑of‑Year Awards Ceremony, we gathered to celebrate her, and the stories shared said everything. Students spoke about feeling encouraged, believed in, and truly seen. Parents remembered the comfort of knowing their child was in the hands of someone who loved them like her own. Her classroom wasn’t just a place to learn it was a place where hearts were nurtured, confidence was built, and every child felt safe.

Ms.Stiglitz was so well loved she was the St. John the Baptist School’s 2025 Christ The Teacher Award Winner, a recognition that reflects what we’ve always known: she pours her whole heart into her students. But her impact goes far beyond any award. She taught kindness, compassion, faith, and the quiet, powerful beauty of caring for others. Her smile, her patience, her gentle way of making every child feel important those are the gifts we’ll carry with us.

Saying goodbye is never easy, but we trust that God is opening a new door for her. We pray for safe travels, for peace as she settles into her new home, and for the community that is about to be blessed by her presence. They don’t yet know how lucky they are.

Ms. Stiglitz, thank you for every lesson, every laugh, every prayer, every moment you made a child feel loved. Thank you for the friendships you built, the joy you brought, and the way you helped shape the heart of our school. We are better because you were here. And we will always be grateful that, for four unforgettable years, you were ours.

‼️ Help us celebrate Ms. Stiglitz journey by sharing your students favorite memories of their time with her, or share blessings for her next chapter in the comments. Let’s send her off wrapped in the same love she gave so freely!

🏫Celebrating the Heart of Our School: Staff Recognition & Appreciation👩🏻‍🏫

As we wrapped up our end-of-year awards celebration, we also took time to recognize and honor the incredible dedication of our staff who go above and beyond each and every day for our students!

We are especially proud to celebrate Mrs. Tobin, who was recently featured in Marian University’s Literacy Connection. As both a veteran teacher and a new literacy coach, she continues to pursue meaningful professional learning opportunities that strengthen her practice and support student success across our school. Her commitment to literacy, growth, and excellence in education is truly inspiring, and we are so grateful for this well-deserved recognition.

We also want to give a very special recognition to Miss G for her outstanding leadership in planning and organizing Field Day. From start to finish, she thoughtfully prepared an experience filled with joy, teamwork, and school spirit for our students. Her creativity, energy, and dedication helped make the day a huge success, and we are incredibly grateful for the heart she brings to our school community. 💛

We are endlessly grateful for the dedication, passion, and heart our staff bring to St. John’s each and every day. Whether it is through professional growth, leadership, or the countless behind-the-scenes moments that make our school thrive, their impact is felt in every classroom and every student success story. ♥️🤍🖤

🎓 Celebrating a Year of Growth, Achievement, and Heart 🎓

As another incredible school year comes to a close, we gathered together to celebrate the many accomplishments of our students during our End-of-Year Awards Ceremony!

From Math and Reading Awards recognizing academic growth and perseverance, to Title I recognition highlighting dedication and growth in learning, to our Saint in the Making celebrating students who are growing in faith, kindness, and character, each award reflected the values we strive to nurture every day at Saint John the Baptist School. We also introduced our newest “That’s How We Do It” Award, given to students who demonstrate outstanding reverence, participation, and joy during Mass, reminding us that faith is lived out not just in words, but in actions.

One of the most meaningful moments of the morning was recognizing a student whose impact reaches far beyond the classroom. During our ceremony, we shared a special message from our Next Steps teachers, who expressed how much this student means to them and how their kindness, positivity, and genuine spirit make them love coming to Saint John’s each day. It was a beautiful reminder that some of life’s greatest achievements are not measured by grades or awards, but by the way we make others feel and the light we bring to those around us!

We want to extend a special Congratulations to all of our award recipients. Each honor given reflects more than achievement alone it reflects effort, growth, faith, and the character we see developing in our students every day.

Thank you all our students for making this year one filled with learning, service, joy, and countless reasons to celebrate. We are so proud of all that you have accomplished and even more excited for all that is still to come. ♥️🤍🖤

✨ From A to Z, Look How Much We’ve Grown! 🎓

Yesterday at mass we had the special privilege of honoring our kindergarten graduates! This amazing group has worked so hard all year long, growing in so many ways. From learning to read and write to building sentences, developing confidence, and discovering a true love for learning! We are incredibly proud of each and every one of them and the growth they’ve shown throughout the year!

One of the cutest parts of the ceremony was their A–Z reflection, where students shared everything they learned this year. With Mrs.Popielski’s support and encouragement, each child proudly read their page, giving families a glimpse into just how much they have grown since the first day of school. It was a beautiful reminder that even the smallest learners can achieve big things. To finish the celebration, each student received a special award recognizing what makes them unique, along with their kindergarten diploma. It was a joyful day filled with such proud smiles!

To our kindergarten class, thank you for filling our days with laughter, curiosity, imagination, and joy. Thank you for working hard, asking questions, showing kindness to one another, and reminding us every day how wonderful it is to see the world through your eyes. Watching you grow this year has been a privilege and a gift. While we’ll miss your smiling faces over the summer, we are so excited to see all the incredible things that await you as you take your next big step forward.♥️