Even with growth, Bishop Fenwick’s focus remains on creating a family atmosphere
Bishop Fenwick High School, located at 4855 state Route 122 in Franklin, has developed a reputation for academic excellence in an environment in which students are challenged to reach their potential. The curriculum, spiritual guidance and extra/co-curricular activities provide a well-rounded education that prepares Fenwick students for future successes.
“To know Bishop Fenwick High School is to know our students and graduates: young men and women of faith, knowledge and character, learning and living with purpose, and serving others as bold Christian leaders in the world,” Blane M. Collison, principal/CEO of the school, says. “We are the Fenwick family. Fenwick is built with purpose. Built to learn. Built to lead. Built to love.”
From its start as a small, community-based high school to its expansion to a regional high school, Bishop Fenwick has maintained its family atmosphere. The opportunities to build such family culture have changed through the years, but the values of family and community have remained, and they continue to be one of the first points of emphasis cited by students and families when they reference their decisions to attend the school. The school has second and third generations of family members who have attended; the Class of 2021 had four third-generation graduates.
“Fenwick is a community built on lifelong connections,” JP Gregory, director of advancement at Fenwick, says. “That’s why we commonly use the term ‘Fenwick Family’ to describe our school. We have 5,000-plus alumni spread all throughout the country and world. We have current students representing 30-plus ZIP codes, and we have teachers and coaches who have been committed to Fenwick for over 40 years. Our ability to offer programs inspiring our students to learn, to lead and to love propels our young men and women to thrive, creating a lifelong connection and commitment to Fenwick.”
Fenwick provides a holistic education to an academically diverse population. The school offers a highly successful intervention program and a wide range of Advanced Placement and College Credit Plus courses. Fenwick provides opportunities for all students to find something they enjoy and in which they excel: career and college exploration, athletics, arts, service and STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics). The school’s counselors operate in concert with the practicum of the American School Counselor Association.
The school offers more than 30 clubs, including a newly formed Robotics Club, which finished in second place in the state last year. Fenwick’s new Business Professionals of America club competes in the largest region in the state alongside schools such as Springboro, Lebanon, Fairfield, Warren County Career Center and Butler Tech career-tech center.
Bishop Fenwick is competitive in athletics as a member of the Greater Catholic League Co-Ed. Fenwick has more than 20 sports programs, and 81% of the school’s students participated in at least one sport in 2020-21.
One of the school’s guiding principles is service. During the 2020-21 school year, Fenwick students performed more than 7,000 service hours. Fenwick is fortunate to have partnerships with more than 40 service organizations throughout the region. Fenwick’s commitment to service extends from downtown Dayton to Cincinnati.
