Tolton High School

Private, catholic, college preparatory school in Columbia, , Missouri, United States

AthleticsBoys: Soccer, Cross Country, Football, Basketball, Wrestling, Baseball, Golf, Tennis, and Track and Field. Girls: Dance, Cheer, Cross Country, Golf, Tennis, Softball, Volleyball, Basketball, Swimming, Soccer, and Track and Field.MascotGusNicknameTrailblazers^[4]Tuition$7,395 per year per child for registered Catholic families and $9,495 per year for all other students.^[2]Websitetoltoncatholic.org

Father Augustine Tolton Regional Catholic High School is the first private, Roman Catholic high school in Columbia, Missouri, built in 2010. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Jefferson City. The school is named after Missouri native Augustus Tolton, the first self-identified black Catholic priest in the United States.^[5] The school's enrollment for the 2017-18 school year was 285 students.

History^[6]

Talk of opening a Catholic high school in Columbia had become a serious conversation by the time Bishop John R. Gaydos arrived in the Diocese Jefferson City in 1997. In a 2001 statement of his vision for the local Church, he called for “a study of how to expand the possibilities for Catholic secondary education in the diocese.” Feasibility studies indicated strong support among Catholic parishioners in Columbia and surrounding communities for opening a Catholic high school.

Local parishioners wanted the new high school to be built on a foundation of Catholic spirituality, college-prep academics, and leadership-development opportunities for students. They helped their parishes pay down construction debts, which allowed fund-raising for the new school to begin in earnest. The Diocese of Jefferson City provided $1.5 million in seed money through the “Grateful Memories … Faithful Future” capital campaign in 2006 and Bishop John Gaydos authorized the purchase of 23 acres of real estate.

A fund drive to raise an additional $5 million in pledges in 2009 allowed the executive committee to secure financing for the rest of the school's cost. Bishop Gaydos authorized initial site work and excavation for the school to begin in April of that year. The first classes started in August 2011 and the building opened in November 2011.

Additional funds were being raised with the hope of keeping tuition affordable for as many children as possible. As of December 2019, however, the school held a debt of $6.2M, said to be related to the cost of constructing the school.^[7]

Campus

Tolton High School is located on the south side of Columbia off of U.S. Route 63 on East Gans Road. The campus sits adjacent to A. Perry Philips Park, an outdoor recreation area and lake.

Athletics

Tolton is a member of the Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) which governs the athletics of most schools within Missouri.^[8] The school's teams are designated the "Trailblazers." Sponsored sports include baseball, golf (boys and girls), basketball (boys and girls), cheerleading, cross country (boys and girls), dance, football, soccer (boys and girls), softball, tennis (boys and girls), track (boys and girls), volleyball, and wrestling. In 2022, Tolton won the Missouri state class 3 high school baseball championship.^[9]

Notable alumni

Michael Porter Jr., college basketball player for the Missouri Tigers, professional for the NBA team Denver Nuggets^[10]
Jontay Porter, college basketball player for the Missouri Tigers, former professional for the NBA team Toronto Raptors^[11]^[12]

References

^ "Faculty and Staff". Fr. Tolton Regional Catholic High School. 2012. Retrieved 2012-08-27.
^ "Admissions FAQs". Father Tolton Catholic High School.
^ "Welcome to Fr. Tolton Catholic". Father Tolton Catholic High School.
^ "Fr. Tolton Catholic High School".
^ Braden, Jonathon (October 3, 2009). "Catholic High Has a Name as Donations Still Sought". Columbia Daily Tribune. Archived from the original on January 10, 2013.
^ "History of the School | Fr. Tolton Catholic High School". www.toltoncatholic.org. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
^ Panuncial, Kate Seaman and Diana. "Meet the man behind the Tolton shakeup: Bishop McKnight on school's 'challenges'". Columbia Missourian. Retrieved 2021-09-17.
^ "Father Tolton Regional Catholic High School". Retrieved 2012-08-27.
^ "2021–2022 Class 3 Spring Season Baseball State Tournament". MSHSAA. June 2, 2022. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
^ "Michael Porter Jr". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
^ "Jontay Porter". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
^ Reynolds, Tim (April 17, 2024). "NBA bans Jontay Porter after gambling probe shows he shared information, bet on games". Associated Press. Retrieved April 18, 2024.