Sister Christa Marie Hamilton

The administrators of one local private school say a growing number of parents want a faith-based education for their kids.

Schoenstatt Collegium is a Catholic school that mixes classroom learning with home schooling. Administrators say the school's structure allows students to discover their own truths.

Parents held a meeting with the school's organizers Sunday to find out more about Schoenstatt and what opportunities it would present for their children.

Schoenstaat Collegium mixes traditional classroom work along with home schooling. It's a school where the family serves as the classroom.

"The family shapes and molds the child, but the family is also being shaped and molded by other forces. So, we want to create another culture where the parents are learning, and the child is free," Sister Christa Marie Hamilton said.

Now in its second year, and with an enrollment of 18 students, Schoenstatt Collegium is not an easy school. It integrates some of the most challenging and thought-provoking genres of math, art, literature and science into its curriculum.

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	Schoenstatt Collegium The Catholic school mixes classroom learning with homeschooling.

Parents also learn. They teach, too, one day a week, in any subject.

Andrew Arriaga is one of Schoenstatt's first graduates.

"I had a lot of time at home to get really close to my family and an opportunity to go deeper into myself and find out what I can do, and to do it in my own way and be appreciated for that," he said.

Schoenstatt Collegium holds classes two or three days a week at St. John Neumann Catholic Church in Westlake. The rest takes place at home.

Founders would like to find a more permanent school or possibly build one on their 28-acre parcel of land overlooking the Hill Country.

"We're witnessing the birth of a school. The efforts involved with everyone of getting everything from the ground level to grow up, it's exciting," parent Alan Hultgren said.

Another parent, Jennifer Stone, agrees.

"Hopefully I can help them find a new building. I'm in it. I'm definitely going to do this," she said.

	Background on the Schoenstatt Movement
The website for The Schoenstatt Shrine and Center in Lamar, Texas provides background information about the founding of the Schoenstatt Movement, the establishment of Schoenstatt Shrines, and the Schoenstatt Fathers and Sisters.