Blessed Sacrament Huguenot

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Blessed Sacrament Huguenot is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Powhatan, Virginia. It is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Richmond.

[edit] Background

Blessed Sacrament High School and Huguenot Academy merged to form Blessed Sacrament Huguenot.

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Huguenot Academy was founded in Powhatan, Virginia in 1959. Given that the late 1950s witnessed the height of "Massive Resistance" in Virginia, Huguenot Academy was a "segregation academy," like Prince Edward Academy in Farmville (now known as Fuqua School).

Originally housed in the basement of a local bank, the school expanded when local business leaders granted land and resources. By 1970, enrollment in grades kindergarten through twelve approached 500. Huguenot Academy was known as a reputable academic institution well into the late 1980s, with enrollment approaching 750 at its peak. But the 1990s brought difficulties for the school. A sturdy public school system in Powhatan County began to grow even more dynamic, with the creation of new facilities and added resources, and Huguenot Academy began struggling with retention of both students and teachers.

Small local Catholic school Blessed Sacrament, struggling with retention issues of its own, merged with Huguenot Academy in 1998, blending the already-built facilities and infrastructure of Huguenot Academy with the financial resources of the Catholic Diocese of Richmond.

Blessed Sacrament-Huguenot enrolls 500 students each year.