Villa Maria College and Nardin Academy have entered into a partnership to create a new home for the academy’s athletic programs. For the duration of the three-year agreement, Nardin will be the primary tenant of the Villa Maria College Athletic Center on Doat Street. The center includes a full-size gymnasium, pool, locker rooms, and training facilities.
Both institutions see this as a harmonious opportunity for their students, and as a way to strengthen ties between Catholic education institutions in the Buffalo area.
“We’re excited to have one of Buffalo’s most outstanding independent Catholic schools partnering with us,” said Brian Emerson, Vice President of Enrollment Management and Student Services. “It will bring additional energy and activity to our bustling campus.”
After the closure of Villa Maria Academy in 2006, ownership of the high school’s Athletic Center was transferred to the college. Since then, the college has searched for a partner that could take full advantage of the space while staying true to its mission.
Nardin Academy faced a lack of space at their Elmwood Village campus for their growing athletic programs. The partnership to use the facilities at Villa will allow the academy to locate their competitive athletics programs—for girls and boys in 5-8 grades, and girls in 9-12—at one easily accessible spot.
“Nardin Academy is proud to move forward with this partnership,” said Leslie Johnson and Rebecca Reeder, Nardin Academy’s interim co-heads of school. “Our athletic programs are a wonderful source of life and pride within the schools and the broader community; finding a ‘home’ for our students to both practice and play at Villa feels like a natural fit for us—and a win-win for the community.”
A private, co-educational, Catholic college, Villa Maria offers students a unique experience to learn and grow with a culturally diverse student population and a growing baccalaureate culture that lives its values of truth, charity, and unity.
Nardin Academy, founded in 1857 by the Daughters of the Heart of Mary, is the oldest independent Catholic school in Western New York. The three schools under the academy’s umbrella include Montessori and Elementary, for boys and girls from toddlers through 8th grade, and an all-girls high school.
For more information call 716.896.0700 and visit www.villa.edu or 716-881-6262 and visit www.nardin.org.
