Welcome to St. Viator Elementary School.

​

For over a century, St. Viator has stood at the heart of Chicago's Old Irving Park neighborhood as one of its anchoring institutions, shaping not only the students who passed through its doors, but the faith and character of the neighborhood around it. Generation after generation, families have chosen this school for its excellent academics, sense of belonging, and faith formation. St. Viator students grow up in a place where faith and learning are woven together to meet the needs of the whole child.

​

This is an exciting moment to be part of St. Viator. Together, we have the opportunity to build on a century of legacy while shaping a modern, thriving, and sustainable future for the next hundred years of students. I invite our whole community to be involved in imagining what that looks like. I come to this work with an Ed.D. from the University of Dayton and an M.A. from Teachers College, Columbia University, along with two decades of non-profit organization and school leadership across Catholic, urban public, and suburban schools — experience that shapes how I think about building on a foundation like this one.

 

The cornerstones of our success are:

• A faith-filled foundation that stays at our center. Our students encounter the love of Jesus Christ daily through Mass, prayer, sacramental preparation, and a faculty who model what it means to be in service of Christ.

• A community that welcomes every family. St. Viator is a Catholic school, and it is also a diverse and inclusive one. Families of all backgrounds and faith traditions are welcomed as part of our community, and every student is respected and treated with dignity.

• Small class sizes that let us truly know each child. Our favorable student-to-teacher ratio ensures every student is seen, supported, and challenged as an individual.

• Growth for the whole child. Strong academics matter, and so does character, resilience, and social-emotional growth. We want our students to leave St. Viator confident in who they are and prepared to excel in high school.

• Relationships and honest communication as a key operating principle with our families, parish, and the larger community.

 

An invitation. Whether you are a family just discovering St. Viator, a parishioner who has watched this school shape generations, or an alumnus who still thinks of these halls as home, we would love to have you visit. Come tour our school and see for yourself why families keep choosing St. Viator to grow not just their children's minds, but their character.

 

Thank you for trusting us with your children, your support, and everything you have built here. I feel privileged to be entrusted with St. Viator's next era, and look forward to building it together with you.

 

With gratitude,

Dr. Sheila Calko

​