At a Glance
A small, affordable Catholic parish school where community and faith shape the elementary years
Best suited for
Catholic or faith-friendly families in upper Manhattan looking for a small, affordable, community-centered elementary school for their young children — especially those who value teacher relationships, parent involvement, and a parish-school feel over a sprawling campus or competitive private-school prestige.
What stands out
- Affordable Manhattan private school — $6,150-$6,350 is well below market for most Catholic or independent elementary options
- Very small enrollment (140 students) with a roughly 12:1 student-teacher ratio, meaning real teacher familiarity with each child
- 1:1 Chromebook program and a dedicated Learning Support Center — unusual offerings for a parish school at this price point
- Spanish instruction and music enrichment round out a more contemporary academic menu than the typical parish elementary
- Rolling admissions give families flexibility on timing within the cycle
Things to consider
- Catholic identity is central — families should want, or be genuinely open to, a faith-based education with religious instruction
- The school caps at Grade 5, so another middle-school transition is on the horizon in three to four years
- Demographic skew toward White families may not match the integration many NYC parents are hoping for
- Small size limits extracurricular breadth — the same community feel parents praise can mean fewer electives or specialty teachers than larger schools offer
- Pre-K through Grade 5 means families with older siblings will need a separate middle and high school plan
Identity
Catholic parish elementary school (PK-5) operating at a small scale — about 140 students total, with 11.8 FTE teachers. Religious affiliation is Roman Catholic, and the school frames itself around Christian development, dignity, academic excellence, and social justice and service.
Community
At 140 students across PK-5, this is a genuinely small school where most families end up knowing each other — annual events and parent involvement are a recurring theme in reviews. The demographic picture is about 69% White, 14% Hispanic, 10% multiracial, with smaller Black and Asian representation, and a diversity index of 0.563.
Neighborhood
Hamilton Heights-Sugar Hill is an upper Manhattan neighborhood where median household income sits around $65,619 and roughly 22.7% of residents live below the poverty line — meaningfully more working-class than Manhattan as a whole, though the area has shifted noticeably over the past decade. The 40.9% bachelor's-or-higher rate reflects a mix of long-time residents and newer arrivals.
Three subway lines sit within a roughly 5-minute walk — the 1 at 145 St, plus the B/D and A/C also at 145 St — giving families easy access uptown, into the Bronx, and down through Manhattan. For commuting families on the A/C in particular, the location is genuinely convenient.
Notable Programs
What Parents Are Saying
Highly positive - parents praise dedicated teachers, strong community feel, excellent afterschool programs, and active parent involvement. Rated 4.56 and 3.9 out of 5 in parent reviews.
Synthesized from public parent reviews · Apr 2026
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Frequently Asked Questions
- Is OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL a good school?
- Published quality ratings aren't available for OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL yet on Motley. It's a private school serving grades Pre-K to 5 in Hamilton Heights-Sugar Hill.
- What grades does OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL serve?
- OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL serves grades Pre-K to 5.
- How do students get into OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL?
- OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL runs its own private admissions process — typically an application, a visit, and sometimes testing.
- Is OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL public, charter, or private?
- OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL is a private school.
- What neighborhood is OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL in?
- OUR LADY OF LOURDES SCHOOL is in Hamilton Heights-Sugar Hill, Manhattan.