At a Glance
A Small Catholic Elementary in Ridgewood Where Faith Meets Community
Families seeking a faith-based elementary education in a small, community-oriented setting. It's a good fit for parents who value Catholic values and want their children in a neighborhood school where they'll know most of their classmates by name. Families should be comfortable with larger class sizes and daily religious instruction. Parents who want extensive extracurricular offerings or highly competitive academics may want to look at larger private schools.
- Small school size creates a tight-knit community feel
- Roman Catholic identity with daily prayer and religious instruction
- Serves pre-kindergarten through 5th grade in one location
- Located in Ridgewood — a more affordable Queens neighborhood with strong community ties
- Student-teacher ratio of 18.8:1
- The 18.8:1 student-teacher ratio is higher than many NYC private schools — expect larger class sizes
- The school is relatively small (237 students total), which means limited extracurricular options compared to larger schools
- As a Catholic school, there is daily religious instruction — families should be comfortable with this component
- Transportation may be a factor if you're coming from other parts of Queens or Brooklyn
- Academic outcomes and specialized programs are not publicly reported
Notre Dame Catholic Academy is a coed, Roman Catholic elementary school serving pre-kindergarten through 5th grade. With 237 students spread across nine grade levels, it's a small school with a traditional parish school feel.
The student body is predominantly white (62%) with a substantial Hispanic population (32%). This reflects the broader Ridgewood neighborhood, which has historic Irish and Italian Catholic roots alongside a growing Latino community. The diversity index of 0.56 indicates moderate diversity — more diverse than some suburban Catholic schools, but less so than many NYC public schools.
Ridgewood sits on the Queens-Brooklyn border and has a gritty, authentic character that many families appreciate. It's known for its strong sense of community, affordable(ish) housing for NYC, and a mix of long-time residents with newer young families. The area has some restaurants and local shops, but it's not a destination neighborhood — it's a place where people live.
Ridgewood is a walkable neighborhood with some shops and restaurants along Myrtle Avenue and Fresh Pond Road, though most daily errands will require a short drive or subway ride to other areas.
Notable Programs
What Parents Are Saying
Mixed reviews; parents praise dedicated teachers, high test scores, and strong academic programs, but some express concerns about pre-K classroom management, outdated facilities, and occasional communication issues
Synthesized from public parent reviews · Apr 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is NOTRE DAME CATHOLIC ACADEMY a good school?
- Published quality ratings aren't available for NOTRE DAME CATHOLIC ACADEMY yet on Motley. It's a private school serving grades Pre-K to 5 in Ridgewood.
- What grades does NOTRE DAME CATHOLIC ACADEMY serve?
- NOTRE DAME CATHOLIC ACADEMY serves grades Pre-K to 5.
- How do students get into NOTRE DAME CATHOLIC ACADEMY?
- NOTRE DAME CATHOLIC ACADEMY runs its own private admissions process — typically an application, a visit, and sometimes testing.
- Is NOTRE DAME CATHOLIC ACADEMY public, charter, or private?
- NOTRE DAME CATHOLIC ACADEMY is a private school.
- What neighborhood is NOTRE DAME CATHOLIC ACADEMY in?
- NOTRE DAME CATHOLIC ACADEMY is in Ridgewood, Queens.
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