History

History Sts. Peter and Paul School is located on a ten-acre tract of land between Southwest 12 Ave. and 26 Road. It forms part of the parish of Sts. Peter and Paul which was established on December 25, 1939 to serve the spiritual needs of the areas between 8th Street and Coral Way and from 3rd Avenue to 37th Avenue. The school opened on September 15, 1941 in a newly constructed building consisting of eleven classrooms, office facilities, a fully equipped cafeteria, a library and a music room. Reverend Father Robert Brennan, the Pastor, obtained the services of the Sisters of St. Joseph of St. Augustine to staff the school, with Sister St. John, S.S.J., as its first Principal. The school opened with an enrollment of three hundred students in grades one through nine. Eight Sisters comprised the pioneer faculty. By September 1945, the enrollment had reached 650 students in grades one through 12. In 1956 Central Catholic High Schools were built, thus terminating the necessity for Sts. Peter and Paul to continue as a High School. The Cuban crisis has been an important factor in the development of the school thereafter. Four new classrooms were built to accommodate the students from Cuba and South America. The school had double sessions for four years with the enrollment totaling 1, 200 in 1962. The double sessions were discontinued in 1966 when a conscious effort was made to confine classroom enrollment to 35 students. As a result of the self-study in 1977 and directives from the Department of Schools, Sts. Peter and Paul School class size has been reduced to 35 students per class. Throughout the eighties, there were three classes of grades 5, 6, 7, 8. In 1991, the extra class in each of these grades was discontinued. Three classrooms were added to accommodate a second Kindergarten and two Pre-Kindergarten (4) classrooms. Student accomplishments are recognized throughout the community for their achievements in all academic, athletic and artistic areas. Day-by-day, the history of Sts. Peter and Paul continues to grow based on the firm foundation of services to others. In 2001, Sister Mary Eleanor, SSJ, retired and the Sisters of St. Joseph of St. Agustine could no longer staff the school. The convent was closed. Thus, Carlota E. Morales, Ed.D. became the first lay principal of the school during the school year 2001-2002.  In 2019, Carlota E. Morales, Ed.D. retired leaving a lasting impression on Sts. Peter and Paul Cathoic school. The school year of 2018-2019 ended with 416 students in grades Pre-K 3 through 8th grade.  Technology has been a part of Sts. Peter and Paul having ipad carts and new computers with large screen tv’s or SMART interactive boards in each classroom. In 2019, Jocelyn Zlatkin, Ed.S. became the first alumni to become principal of Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic School.