School History
Arden Cahill Academy was founded in 1968 by Arden and Harry Cahill as a private academy dedicated to the interest of early childhood education. As the Head Mistress of the academy, Mrs. Cahill chose as the original faculty, Mrs. Diana Wright, Mrs. Joy Vickery, Mrs. Dolly Stakelum, Mrs. Patricia McMullen, and Mrs. Marjorie Snyder. Each of these ladies contributed greatly to the creation and formation of the philosophy of the academy.
Inspired and encouraged by the successful progress and development of the first group of students, Mrs. Cahill made the decision to expand the program and to continue the process of education by adding a grade each year through the elementary school. The first eighth grade graduation was held at Lakewood Country Club in May 1977.
The original school campus consisted of one building on a two acre site which later became the administrative office building. Buildings and classrooms were added yearly to accommodate the growing enrollment. The buildings were designed to house preschool, kindergarten, and elementary classes in separate quarters with special areas for library, art, music, and drama. Yearly improvements were added, including two swimming pools and an outdoor basketball court.
From the very beginning, it was Mrs. Cahill's desire to provide an airy country environment where children could discover and enjoy God's natural gifts along with their pursuit of knowledge. In 1976, a ten-acre tract of land was acquired for the purpose of building a new school. Riding stables and a country farmyard were developed on that property in the summer of 1976 for use in the summer camp program and to offer horseback riding as an extra-curricular activity during the regular school year. In 1982, Jefferson Parish expropriated the property to build the Boudreaux Elementary School. Soon after, a twelve-acre tract in Lake Timberlane Estates was purchased for the new school site. In 1985, stables and an equestrian arena were erected on the rear of the property. Bayou Stables, as it is now called, was used for summer camp and extra curricular horseback riding lessons.
In 1986, construction began on two of the five buildings that comprised the master plan. These buildings were designed to provide a facility that would complement the academy's curriculum of academic excellence and cultural enrichment and offered the environment long awaited by the Cahill family of children and parents throughout the years. The buildings situated on Wall Boulevard along Bayou Fatma included classrooms, a library, a dining room, an art studio, a music room, a 300-seat theatre, a gymnasium, and a junior Olympic swimming pool. In September 1988, the first class of students from nursery through the eighth grade entered the Wall Boulevard campus while the school on Farragut Street continued with an infant and early childhood program. The first graduation on the Wall Boulevard Campus was held on May 19, 1989. In the summer of 1990, Building B, an 8 classroom building, was constructed to house the nursery and preschool making it possible to add additional sections in the lower school. In September of 1995, the foundation was poured for a 16,000 square foot, two story building which was occupied in March of 1996. The new building includes 14 classrooms, a state-of -the-art science lab, a technologically advanced computer lab, and academic offices.
The Farragut Street campus was closed in the summer of 2000.