Chesterton Academy’s House system is drawn from the 1,000 year-old tradition of Christian education exemplified in the colleges at Oxford and Cambridge. The Houses provide real, tangible community within the larger school.

So, what can parents do to make sure their children get a solid Catholic education with a staff loyal to the Magisterium of the Church? I have an answer for parents living in the Detroit area with high-school-aged children: Chesterton Academy of Our Lady of Guadalupe (CAOLOG).

Chesterton Academy is named for the great English writer and Catholic convert, G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936). G.K. Chesterton is a model for our school because he exemplified the Catholic faith through a life filled with joy, wonder, and gratitude. In him, we have one of the best guides for navigating the modern world, through his wit, his clarity, his kindness, and his ability to love people with whom he disagreed, while sharing the truths of the faith in Christian charity. These are all characteristics we aim to cultivate in the Chesterton Academy student.

Learning happens in the shared discovery of ideas. The Socratic seminar is perhaps the oldest educational tool and the most highly regarded educational format. Through this method, a teacher imparts knowledge through directed questions and guided dialogue, bringing ideas and knowledge to life. Knowledge gained in this way is more meaningful to the student, makes a greater impact, and can be retained more easily than rote memorization.

At Chesterton Academy, we seek to create environments where students experience the joy of community, the joy of the discovery process, and the joy of learning. We work to provide students with an opportunity to live out their spiritual life and grow in holiness in an atmosphere of joy and fun. We hope to inspire lifelong learners, committed to building up joyful communities of faith as they mature into adulthood.

At Chesterton Academy, we seek to create environments where students experience the joy of community, the joy of the discovery process, and the joy of learning. We work to provide students with an opportunity to live out their spiritual life and grow in holiness in an atmosphere of joy and fun. We hope to inspire lifelong learners, committed to building up joyful communities of faith as they mature into adulthood.

Classical education can be described as the cultivation of wisdom and virtue through meditation on the good, the true, and the beautiful. It is our hope that our students will be able to proclaim the truth, goodness, and beauty of the Catholic faith as they encounter an increasingly dark and skeptical world that is so desperately in need of Jesus Christ.

The central truth of the Incarnation of the Second Person of the Divine Trinity becoming man in the Human Person of Jesus Christ is the central truth of the Chesterton Academy education. From history and theology to math and science, the Incarnation is the central mystery we explore across the entire curriculum. It is our prayer and desire that each student would personally experience the Incarnation; that Christ would grow and mature within the heart of each student.

Chesterton Academy of Our Lady of Guadalupe keeps the Archdiocese of Detroit Office of Catholic Schools informed of its operations while maintaining independence through a lay-run Board of Directors, each of whom is a faithful Catholic member of a parish in the Archdiocese.

Because we seek to transform our culture, from the beginning one of the great principles of Chesterton Academy has been a commitment to thrift. Our dream is a return to the days when a strong, classical Catholic education was affordable for any middle- or working-class family, large or small, living on a single income.

Chesterton Academy is named for the great English writer and Catholic convert, G.K. Chesterton (1874- 1936). Chesterton is a model for our school because he exemplified the Catholic faith through a life filled with joy, wonder, and gratitude.