“Blessed be God.”

These familiar words of the late Pope John Paul II are spoken often by the students, parents, faculty and staff in the hallways of John Paul II School in Sacramento.

The three words are spoken in greeting with joy and sincerity. And for many, with deep gratitude — because many children at the school are receiving an education their parents could only dream about a few years ago.

Located in south Sacramento, John Paul II draws students from the higher-income neighborhoods of Tahoe Park and east Sacramento and from the less affluent neighborhoods of Fruitridge Manor, Oak Park, Colonial Village and other underserved areas. The challenge was to find a way for every family desiring a Catholic education for its children to obtain one.

To that end the school — which is the result of the merging of All Hallows and St. Peter schools in 2005 — established a tuition assistance program that officially began last August.

Qualified applicants include parishioners from All Hallows and St. Peter parishes, non-parishioners with a student current enrolled at Cristo Rey High School, and children of non-parishioner faculty and staff members of Cristo Rey. Individual families pay tuition based on their ability to pay. Once enrolled in the program, families agree to support the school through contributing up to 40 volunteer hours to the parish and the school each academic year.

Families also agree to keep the amount of aid they receive confidential and to participate in parish and school life to the best of their abilities and talents — including weekly attendance at Sunday Mass.

Student enrollment has increased by about 70 students, according to school officials.

“We are a new model for urban Catholic education,” said Christopher Bakes, director of the All Hallows Parish Tuition Assistance Program and senior counsel for the Panattoni Law Firm in Sacramento. “We pursue the twin attributes of total accessibility and excellence in our programs.”

Families attending the school say they appreciate the diversity that the school offers as well as its academic excellence. A major capital campaign is underway to build additional funding. By all early tallies, the tuition assistance program appears to be successful.

“In fact, we have waiting lists for the upper grades,” Bakes said. “Our hope is to hire additional faculty. The majority of our families pay full tuition, and a significant minority pay tuition based on a sliding scale that is based on income.”

Interim principal Marsha Cornelius, who is filling in for Sister Servant of the Blessed Sacrament Maryanne Beeler, who has served as principal since 2005 and is on medical leave, said three Sisters Servants of the Blessed Sacrament teach at John Paul II. “The sisters, who are also bilingual, and our multicultural faculty and staff are things that really set us apart,” Cornelius noted.

“We’re traditional, but we’re also modern,” said Maria Victorio, a staff member at John Paul II, who cited as an example the school’s accelerated reading program. The teacher-student testing program improves reading and comprehension skills on an individual basis. The children read a book, then test on a computer. “They love it,” Victorio said. “They want to read now. We’re also traditional in that we have eucharistic adoration every week.”

Fonda McClendon, a single mom, never believed that a Catholic education could be possible for her young daughter, who attended kindergarten in a local public school before she came to John Paul II. “It never occurred to me honestly,” said McClendon, a All Hallows parishioner and a college student pursuing a double major in nursing and business administration.

Father Rodolfo Llamas, pastor of All Hallows and St. Peter parishes, baptized McClendon’s daughter. “I figured that going to the parish school just wasn’t possible for us,” she said. “Then I was sitting in church one day and Chris Bakes was speaking about the school’s tuition assistance program. So I went up to speak with him afterwards. He recommended that I speak to the principal, Sister Maryanne.”

McClendon’s daughter is a bright child but was unhappy with school because she was bored. As a result, she was fidgety and active. Teachers at the public school had warned McClendon that her child might have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, which concerned her tremendously.

“When I met with Sister Maryanne, I told her all the things the teachers had been saying to me,” she said. “Sister Maryanne just looked at me and said, ‘It sounds to me like you just have a normal kindergartener.’ My daughter started school the next day, halfway through kindergarten.”

Almost at once, her daughter’s behavior changed for the better. Because the teachers at John Paul II were able to engage her interest, she was no longer bored. And other children did not look at her strangely when she prayed before eating her lunch. The youngster is now in first grade. For McClendon, this is a dream come true.

“It used to be, ‘I don’t want to go to school,’” McClendon said. “Now, it’s ‘Oh, you’re here to get me so soon?’ My daughter is really into what she’s doing with the other students. I am too. In some schools, it’s a bit different to be an involved parent, but not here. At John Paul II, all the parents get to be involved. I’m just blessed to have my daughter there. I enjoy the staff and the other parents and I enjoy working with everyone.”

Most of all, McClendon appreciates the Catholic values that are embraced at the school and the opportunity that has been granted to her family.

“We pray at home. My grandmother taught me how to pray. We are a praying family,” she said. “If my daughter gets the religious education now, it will strengthen her in the future. I like that the students start each day with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance. It brings what we do at home full circle.”

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