The roots of Catholic School education in the Diocese of Youngstown can be traced back to the same location at which the First Sacred Liturgy was celebrated in 1812.  The remote Community of St. Paul a mile or so from where the town of Dungannon developed was the site of Daniel McAllister’s cabin, the gathering place for the early Catholic immigrants to attend a mass offered by Father Edward Fenwick.  Those same immigrants eventually constructed a small church on the site and named it for St. Paul.  By the time Dungannon village had been plotted out and the cornerstone of St. Philip Neri had been laid (1846) the St. Paul congregation had already begun making bricks for the construction of a Catholic School.  They were so committed to the idea of Catholic School Education that, as they ceased operation of the old St. Paul site and migrated up to Dungannon and St. Philip Neri, they hauled the bricks with them.  Even though the bricks were deteriorated the hope of a Catholic School was not diminished.

As it happened, by persistence of the St. Paul/St. Philip Neri congregation, a Catholic School opened 1855.  St. Philip Neri however is not listed as the first Catholic School in the Youngstown Diocese.  That honor belongs to St. Joseph Randolph, established in 1832.  St. John, Canton (1845) and St. Mary Massillon (1848) must also be recognized among the earliest of Diocesan Catholic Schools.  This cluster of parish schools share a distinction of having been founded prior to the decrees of the 1852 Plenary Council at Baltimore.  Flowing from Baltimore was the national wave of Catholic School establishments that came in conformity to the directions of Chapter 9 of those first decrees that declared that every parish should build a Catholic School. 

The early parishes and pastoral leadership of the Diocese of Youngstown, especially the community in which the first liturgy was celebrated in that log cabin, deserve credit for their vision, diligence and dedication to the Idea of Catholic School Education.   Nearly two centuries have passed since the Community of St. Paul started making bricks but their labor lives on in the children and families of the schools of the Diocese of Youngstown.

It is certain that Catholic School Education in the Youngstown Diocese will move into its third century keeping true to its theological, philosophical and professional foundations.  Just as certain is that our Catholic Schools will embrace the challenges and opportunities of changing governance models, cooperative initiatives,  technology and advancements in the art and science of instruction. The heritage, parental and pastoral dedication, and perseverance in the name of Catholic School Education will continue to serve our Church in the Youngstown Diocese.