Ursuline Academy (Cincinnati, Ohio)

Ursuline Academy is a four-year college-preparatory independent girls’ Catholic high school founded by the Ursuline sisters of Brown County, Ohio in 1896., 700 students from all over Greater Cincinnati are enrolled in the school, representing 50 different ZIP codes.Ursuline offers a curriculum of over 100 courses specifically designed to prepare the student for the demands of college level programs. A modular schedule (see below) is enhanced by the open-area structure which provides flexible learning areas. Twenty-six different co-curricular activities are available to students including 13 different sports at various levels.TuitionThe tuition for 2014-2015 is $11,850, $275 additional for technology; $175 additional for activity fee. Tuition does not include fees for Kairos and Graduation. Each class level has certain fees such as retreat fees, special class equipment fees, etc.Modular ScheduleDuring the 1970s, Ursuline switched to a modular schedule. This consists of 6 days (lettered A-F) each with 18 modules. Each mod is 20 min, with a 3 min passing time between each one added in 2004. Classes range from 2-4 modules long. Students say that the schedule works very well in helping them with time management and responsibility.Each also has a certain number of free mods each day to eat, study, do homework, work in the library, or socialize. As the choice of classes becomes more open to each student, free mods become more abundant. A typical student would have between 21 and 40 free mods a cycle, depending on the number of classes taken.Different schedule days are set up so that mods can be shortened, (to incorporate time for a pep rally, department meeting, etc.) but are never skipped.