Academic Excellence

With an average class size of 18, Connelly offers a highly personal approach to education which encourages independent thinking and responsible decision making.  Connelly's caring and committed faculty strives to engage each student's intellectual curiosity, and to challenge each student to test her abilities.  As a result, the school's Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores reflect the strength of Connelly's curriculum.

                                                          1998 SAT SCORES
                                                  Math           Verbal             Total

 Connelly                                     573               556               1129
 Orange County Average*           549               515               1064
 State Average*                          516                497               1013
 National Average*                     512               505                1017

             *Source: California Dept. of Education

INTERDISCIPLINARY CURRICULUM

College preparatory on all levels, Connelly's curriculum is designed to provide each student with a solid, inclusive academic foundation.  Connelly teachers work closely together to link subject matter in their individual fields to those in other disciplines.  It is believed that this approach to learning deepens the student's understanding and retention of material while helping her to better grasp complex I ideas.  For example, when ninth grade students study Roman dictators in Ancient History, they read the Shakespeare tragedy The Tragedy of Julius Caesar in Literature class and study Roman sculpture in Art.  The ultimate goal of Connelly's Interdisciplinary Program is to prepare students for the more demanding level of thinking that will be expected of them in college and beyond.

Graduation Requirements 

English                    8 semesters                 Physical Education       4 semesters
Fine Arts                3 semesters                 Religious Studies          8 semesters
Foreign Language   6 semesters                 Lab Science                5 semesters
                             (of the same language)  Social Science             7 semesters
Mathematics          6 semesters                  Community Service     80 hours

Connelly's academic requirements exceed those of the State Board of Education, as well as the University of California entrance requirements.

Honors and Advanced Placement (AP) Courses

In addition to regular college-prep courses, Honors and AP courses are offered across the curriculum.

                         Honors Courses:                                       Advanced Placement Courses:
                        • Algebra I                                                  -20th Century Literature (English IV)
                        • Algebra II/Trigonometry                           -AB Calculus
                        • American Literature (English 111)             - BC Calculus
                        • British Literature (English 11)                    - Biology
                        • Chemistry                                                 -Chemistry
                        • Geometry                                                 -French Language
                       • Physics                                                     -Spanish Language
                        • Spanish III                                               -Spanish Literature
                        • World History                                         -Studio Art I and II
                                                                                         -U.S. History