Mission & History

Empowering students to grow into confident decision makers and responsible leaders in a community of belonging, rooted in the Catholic Dominican tradition

Lacordaire Academy has been a landmark at the intersection of Park Street and Lorraine Avenue in Upper Montclair for over a century. Our original campus building, James Hall, is a Queen Anne style mansion erected in 1894 as the country home of a prominent New York physician. At the time of its construction, the house was widely regarded as one of the finest residences in Montclair. In the late 1910s, the estate and its surrounding buildings, including a large carriage house, were purchased by the Sisters of Saint Dominic of Caldwell, NJ, who envisioned a selective French-English boarding school for girls. They named it Lacordaire School, honoring Père Henri-Dominique Lacordaire, the great 19th-century orator who re-established the Dominican Order in post-Revolutionary France.

On September 15, 1920, Lacordaire welcomed its first two boarding students under the leadership of three Sisters: Sister Concepta as principal, Sister Aloysius as the high school teacher, and Sister Andrea as the grade school teacher. By 1923, in response to growing enrollment, the school transitioned from a boarding model to a day school and expanded to include coeducational classes for students in the Lower and Middle divisions. Core academic classes were held in James Hall, while music, art, physical education, and theatre took place in the Carriage House. In the late 1940s, a generous gift from an alumna funded a much-needed addition to the Carriage House to create more classroom space.

By 1958, increased enrollment led the school to outgrow the original mansion and carriage house. Plans for a new academic building were approved, and in 1961, the cornerstone of Lacordaire Hall was laid. The Academy continued to grow in the decades that followed. In 1974, the name was officially changed to Lacordaire Academy. In 2009, the institution was accredited as a single academy with three divisions: Lower, Middle, and Upper.

Today, Lacordaire Academy is at full capacity, enrolling approximately 275 students per year. Upper and Middle School classes are held in Lacordaire Hall, and Lower School classes are conducted in the Carriage House. James Hall, lovingly preserved as the heart of campus, now houses the music room, teaching kitchen, Upper School lunch area, chapel, and administrative offices including enrollment, advancement, communications, and finance. In 2022, an alumna from all three divisions generously funded the creation of three state-of-the-art science labs, underscoring Lacordaire’s long-standing commitment to academic excellence and community support.

French language instruction continues to be a vital part of the Academy’s identity. All students from pre-K through grade 12 have the opportunity to study French with one of our native-speaking teachers. French remains a required component of the curriculum through fourth grade, ensuring that the Academy’s founding vision continues to resonate today.

We believe that: