Cristo Rey High School welcomes students to new campus
Brissa Gutierrez receives as hug as she's "drafted" to an employer during the 2019 Cristo Rey Draft Day at school's new campus on Altamesa Boulevard in south Fort Worth Aug. 16. (NTC/Ben Torres)
FORT WORTH — The 75 freshmen of Cristo Rey Fort Worth High School don’t know how good they have it.
The sophomores who helped the college preparatory school move to its new campus this summer were “in awe” of the gymnasium, an auditorium, and a larger lunchroom, according to Dani Ray Barton, director of the corporate work study program for the school. The amenities will enhance the school’s culture, she said.
The school’s second year is starting strong, with more than 40 corporate partners attending draft day on August 16. During the celebratory draft, the students, who number about 140, learned which corporation will employ them one day each week, allowing them to earn a portion of their tuition.
New corporate partners include Cook Children’s Medical Center, Finley Resources, and VLK Architects. Nineteen of the 20 corporations who employed Cristo Rey students last year will continue as corporate partners.
Although Cristo Rey Fort Worth is part of a 37-school nationwide network offering a Catholic college preparatory education to students from economically disadvantaged families, Barton said in its first year, students and businesses “took a chance” on the new school.
“Now we have delivered on that promise,” said Barton. “Moving to this new campus in our second year validates that it’s not just a dream, but the school is serving families and serving the community.”
The school, which opened last year at the Terrell Heights property that once housed Our Mother of Mercy Catholic School, moved to a 4.47-acre site on Altamesa Boulevard in south Fort Worth.
Minor renovations were completed this summer which will accommodate the students this year and next. The administration is planning a capital campaign to expand the school for 2021-2022, when the campus will house freshmen through seniors.
Also new this year: the school is offering transportation from four Catholic schools across Fort Worth to the campus.
Barton waxed enthusiastic about the new school year in the facility. She said, “This is a campus we can grow into, and the students know this is their real home through graduation.”