Our story

Founded in 1891 as the first Catholic school in Pierce County, Holy Rosary School and parish were for many years staffed by the Benedictine priests and sisters. In its original Tacoma location, Holy Rosary thrived as a parish school, and then a dual language immersion school. With many demographic changes over recent years, Holy Rosary moved to its current location in Fife and transitioned to a bilingual education model, becoming the parish school of St. Martin of Tours. Holy Rosary Bilingual Academy serves students in grades Pre-K (3yrs.) through 8th grade.

Our Mission

Founded to serve any family committed to Catholic Education, Holy Rosary Bilingual Academy educates every child in a Christ-centered environment providing both an excellent education and a strong moral foundation in a culturally diverse Catholic community. We are committed to diversity, accessibility and excellence by providing an innovative Catholic bilingual education.

“Dual language is about so much more than language learning. The real power of dual language education is that it makes a true difference by developing empathetic, compassionate learners and human beings, which is the foundation of our Catholic faith.”

LETICIA OSEGUERA, SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, DIOCESE OF SAN DIEGO

Bilingual Education

What is bilingual Education?

Bilingual education refers to the use of two or more languages as medium for instruction. Bilingual models in schools may vary due to many factors. At Holy Rosary Bilingual Academy, our goal is for students to graduate with the ability to read, write, speak and comprehend in both Spanish and English. 


What is Holy Rosary's model for bilingual education?

Our Pre-K program is a full immersion class with 90% or more of the instruction in Spanish. As the students progress to kindergarten, 70% of the instruction is in Spanish. Reading foundations are taught in English, as is religion. 

In first through eighth grades, classroom instruction is primarily in English, with the students participating in an immersive Spanish language class every day. Conversational Spanish is also integrated throughout the school day.  


What are the benefits of bilingual education?

Many research studies have been conducted to demonstrate the benefits of bilingual education. The article below nicely summarizes some of these studies .

Benefits of Bilingual Education


My child does not speak Spanish. Will they be able to keep up?

Yes! We have students join our school at all grade levels and all levels of Spanish proficiency. Students in Pre-K and Kindergarten are able to quickly learn Spanish through immersion, while students in grades 1-8 are placed in Spanish class based on their proficiency. 


My child does not speak English. Is this a good school for learning English?

Yes! Because instructors are fluent in both English and Spanish, and instruction is given in both languages, Holy Rosary Bilingual Academy provides an excellent education for learning English and continuing to build literacy in the Spanish language.