“Catholic Tradition forms our worship and informs our classroom instruction.” – CJ Core Value
“St. Julie and Blessed Chaminade serve as models of faith in action.” – CJ Core Value
Our History
Notre Dame Academy (1886-1927)
The multi-faceted history of Chaminade Julienne Catholic High School begins with the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. Arriving by canal boat from Cincinnati in 1849, a group of these sisters purchased property on the corner of Franklin and Ludlow Streets in downtown Dayton. In 1886, they opened Notre Dame Academy, a private school for girls, with an enrollment of only 21 students. The school gradually prospered and grew, establishing a reputation for quality Catholic education and outgrowing first the original building as well as a second brick building. In the early 1920s, the sisters moved to the beautiful 14-acre Kuntz estate on Homewood Avenue where the sisters established a large, new Catholic high school for girls, Julienne High School.
Julienne High School (1927-1973)
Julienne High School opened its doors in 1927 to approximately 500 young women. Originally called Notre Dame Academy de Julienne, the school later adopted the shorter title of Julienne High School, honoring the founder of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, St. Julie Billiart. The architect who designed the new building won an award in 1928 for his beautiful Georgian-style structure. The Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, resolved to continue the tradition of providing quality Catholic education, designed a course of study that prepared students for all walks of life, giving them not only a religious education, but also the best available training in appropriate secular subjects. The “Julienne girls” were easily identifiable around town by their uniforms of navy blue and white, the school’s colors. Led by one of Julienne’s first principals, Sister Bernadette Marie, who served from 1929-1953, the school thrived for many years until the late 60’s/early 70’s, when enrollment decreased and the Sisters decided to merge with Chaminade High School. The merger was, in a sense, a homecoming, since they were returning to the site of their first school at Franklin and Ludlow.
Chaminade High School (1927-1973)
Chaminade High School began in 1927, when the priests and brothers of the Society of Mary purchased the downtown Dayton property previously owned by the Sisters of Notre Dame, who had moved to Homewood Avenue to establish Julienne High School. The Marianists
opened the area’s first Catholic high school for boys with an enrollment of 200. It was called Dayton Catholic School for the first year but was renamed in 1928 for Rev. William Joseph Chaminade, founder of the Society of Mary.
Enrollment grew steadily, as did Chaminade’s reputation for strong academics, strict discipline and superior athletics. The “Men of Chaminade” were noticeable for many years in their dress pants, shirt, tie and sweater or jacket. Chaminade’s athletic teams dominated city, district, and state competition throughout the school’s history, with outstanding teams in golf, basketball, football, cross country and baseball. Eagle football teams under coaches Bill Blake, Fuzzy Faust and Ed Regan ’40 won or tied for the city title for ten consecutive years and were feared throughout the city and state. In 1966 and 1970 the basketball team, led by Coach Jim Turvene, won state championships, and in 1970 the baseball team also earned the state title. While the sports stories are endless, students participated in numerous other activities. Enrollment peaked in the early 60’s, but when enrollment declined sharply thereafter, Chaminade decided to merge with Julienne High School.
St. Joseph Commercial High School (1945-1974)
Founded by the Sisters of Charity, St. Joseph Commercial High School was designed to offer challenging courses to young women interested in the business fields. The school opened in 1945 as a two-year senior high school with 47 juniors and seniors who attended classes on the third floor of St. Joseph’s parish elementary school in downtown Dayton. The only school of its type available to young women in the state of Ohio, St. Joe’s established itself as a fine vocational school with excellent teachers who demonstrated concern for each of the students. Enrollment increased gradually, but really thrived with the acceptance of sophomores in 1955 and freshmen in 1966. After graduating over 2,200 young women who were well-prepared both morally and academically to enter the business world, St. Joe’s faced declining enrollments as students began moving to other parts of Dayton, and in 1974 St. Joe’s was closed. Many of its students transferred to the newly-established Chaminade Julienne Catholic High School, where they became an integral part of the school.
Chaminade Julienne Catholic High School (1973 to the present)
Chaminade Julienne Catholic High was founded in 1973 when Julienne High School and Chaminade High School merged. The religious orders who owned and operated the two schools, the Marianists (Chaminade) and the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur (Julienne), worked together to create a dynamic, coeducational Catholic high school. They chose to locate the new school at the venerable site at Ludlow and Franklin Streets in downtown Dayton – the very place where Notre Dame Academy had begun before the property was sold to Chaminade High School, which occupied the building up until the time of the merger. In 1974, many of the young women from St. Joseph Commercial High School joined the students already at C-J. The students from all three schools enjoyed frequent social and academic interaction prior to the merger, making for a smoother transition.
C-J’s athletic teams have always been competitive in city, regional and state contests. Most notably, the men’s 1982 soccer team brought home the state championship, the women’s volley ball team has become a perennial powerhouse, earning multiple district and regional titles, and the men’s basketball teams were district runner-ups several times and state runner up in 1991. Both the cross country and track teams produced championships in 1993 and 1994, and the women’s basketball team took CJ to the state tournament in 1998 for the first time in the school’s history. Returning to state the next year, the women’s basketball team brought home the 1999 State Division II championship title. In 2002 the men’s football team made history by being the first team from Dayton to win the state championship. The women’s basketball team once again captured the state championship in 2003.
Students at CJ have always enjoyed participation in a variety of activities besides athletics, and C-J’s challenging educational curriculum includes a solid base of academic courses along with religion, computer and fine arts classes. In 1989 Chaminade Julienne was recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a National School of Excellence in honor of the school’s rich tradition, committed faculty, diverse student body, and supportive community. The school colors of blue, green and white and the Eagle mascot carry the message of the unity of CJ and its predecessor schools – schools whose continued and combined traditions form the foundation of excellence in education that defines CJ today.
2024-2025 Board of Trustees
Maureen Baldock,
Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur
Brian Bensman ‘92,
Miami University
Dr. Marquetta Colbert,
Colbert Family Health and Wellness
Lainie Dean,
Premier Health
Chris Hogan ‘04,
Wright State University
Andy Horner,
University of Dayton
Dr. George Lisjak,
The Marianists
Tony Ortiz,
El Puente
Ellen Quinttus,
Community Volunteer
Julie Roach,
Diamond Hill Capital Management
Fr. Kyle Schnippel,
St. Gabriel Family of Parishes
Stacy Schwiekhart,
Learn to Earn
Julie Sullivan,
Dayton Development Coalition
Jennifer Theibert, Esq. ‘92,
University of Cincinnati Health
Berta Velilla,
Miami Valley Child Development Center
Amy Wagner,
Ohio’s Hospice
Kevin Weckesser ‘93,
Brixey & Meyer
Dan Wolking,
Shook Construction