100 Years of Promise and Purpose

Decades before its opening, the spirit of Oak Knoll took root in England when Cornelia Connelly founded the Society of the Holy Child Jesus.

Six Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus and seven lay teachers cross the Atlantic and arrive in Towanda, PA, where they establish the first Holy Child Network school and convent in the United States.

The American Province of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus acquires Summit’s Larned Estate, which is transformed into Oak Knoll School of the Holy Child.

The Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus’s dedication to “Simplicity, Humility, and Charity” begins with the inaugural first day of school at Oak Knoll with the education of 17 boarding and day students.

Oak Knoll holds its first commencement ceremony with three graduates.

The Society of the Holy Child Jesus acquires the Watermeyer estate, which is today known as Mulcahy Hall and was formerly known as Prospect Street House.

Bonaventura Hall was constructed for the elementary grades and named after Bonaventura Devine, who, along with her husband Christopher, financed the construction of the building.

The barn/cottage, described by Carol Mulvihill White ’59 as a “large, brown barn-like structure atop the hill,” is demolished to make way for the new Senior School, known today as Connelly Hall.

The renovations to the Convent (now Grace Hall) are completed, including the addition of administrative offices and creative arts spaces.

Sister Jean O'Meara, SHCJ, is named Oak Knoll's first Head of School.

Aquila, the Upper School yearbook, is published for the first time. 
 

Sister Geraldine Kelly, SHCJ, is appointed as the second Head of School. 

The Lower School established its Liturgical Ministries Program, which prepares students to minister in on-campus liturgies to this day.

Sister Cynthia Vives, SHCJ, is appointed as the third Head of School.

Oak Knoll formally establishes a local chapter of the Cum Laude Society to honor academic excellence. 

The Convent is Re-Dedicated as Grace Hall. 

Oak Knoll changed its school nickname from The Bombers to The Royals.

Tisdall Hall is dedicated, culminating in a more than two-year process to upgrade the school’s athletic facilities. 

Renovations are completed on the old gym, becoming the Mother Campion Center for the Performing Arts.

Tina Hummerstone is appointed as the fourth Head of School.

Upper School Community comes together in service in response to the September 11, 2001 tragedy. 

Oak Knoll opens a 13-acre athletic complex in Chatham.

Timothy J. Saburn is Named the Fifth Head of Oak Knoll School and its first male head. 

The Prospect Street House is re-christened as Mulcahy Hall in honor of John Mulcahy. 

Oak Knoll launches the Little Acorns Pre-Kindergarten program at the Lower School. 

Jennifer G. Landis is named the sixth Head of Oak Knoll School.

The Oak Knoll Community gathered for a Centennial Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark. 

The entire Oak Knoll community gathered on the Grace Hall front lawn before Field Day to bury a time capsule, which is tentatively set to be exhumed in 2124!