Admissions Process

Thank you for your interest in  St. Francis Xavier School! We are a faith community grounded on Jesuit principles of education, cultivating excellence in mind, body and spirit. Our ultimate goal is to send forth our children to be Kids for Others. We are fortunate to have a strong community of parents, teachers and students that support our school. Please see below for more information about our Admissions Process, Requirements and Frequently Asked Questions. ​

Application Timeline: 2024-2025 School Year

October 2023
There will be a Preschool and Kindergarten Open House on Tuesday, October 24th. 
November 2023
Applications will open for the 2024-2025 school year on Wednesday, November 1st.
January 2024
​Gesell Observation will begin for Kindergarten applicants.​
February 2024
Preschool and Kindergarten applicants will be notified in mid-February of acceptance.

Re-enrollment for current students begins at the end of February. Once the re-enrollment process is complete, 1st-8th Grade applicants will begin undergoing in-house educational screening and the applicants and their parents will meet with our Principal. 
March 2024
​​Acceptances for 1st-8th Grade will begin in mid-March and will continue throughout the summer.

Application Requirements

All Applicants
  • Completed application​
  • $75 Non-Refundable Application Fee
  • Birth Certificate (copy acceptable) 
  • Sacrament Certificates (copies accepted, not required for non-Catholic applicants)
  • 504 Service Plan or IEP (if your child has one)
  • Records Release Form
    • One copy should be used by you to obtain records from your child's current school.
    • One copy of the records release form should be included in your child's application to St. Francis Xavier which we use in the event that we need to contact their current school.
Preschool Applicants
  • For the 3 Year Old program, students must be 3 years old by June 1st of the year they will enter preschool. 
  • If your child has attended preschool prior to St. Francis Xavier, please download and print the Preschool Confidential Teacher Evaluation Form. 
  • You will need to sign the form and give it to your child's current teacher to fill out and return directly to Lisa Appelbe via email. 
Kindergarten Applicants
  • Students must be 5 years old prior to September 1st of the year they will enter Kindergarten.
  • Additional $75 Gesell Observation fee. For more information on the Gesell screening, please visit their website. 
1st - 8th Grade Applicants
  • Two most current report cards (current year and previous year) 
  • Two most recent Standardized Test Results (2nd-8th Grade) 
  • Essay required for students entering 6th, 7th and 8th Grade. The essay requirements are included in the application.
  • In-house educational screening and applicant(s) and their parents will meet with our Principal.
This school is authorized under Federal law to enroll nonimmigrant alien students.

Frequently Asked Questions

IS  ST. FRANCIS XAVIER ABLE TO ACCEPT ALL APPLICANTS TO THE SCHOOL?
St. Francis Xavier School gives first preference in admission to our current families who have incoming children, Catholic students of families registered and active in St. Francis Xavier Parish;  Catholic students in other parishes and then to students of other faiths.

Note: Catholic families who are moving from out of town and who are enrolled in a Catholic school will be brought in at in-parish category if they enroll in the parish.  All applications are evaluated for academic readiness. Accommodation for students with special academic or physical needs can be made only within the limits of our resources.

If a student develops an academic or physical need while enrolled at St. Francis Xavier School, and the need cannot be addressed within the limited resources, school personnel will assist the family in finding an appropriate learning environment that can address the need.

St. Francis Xavier does not discriminate on the basis of race, gender, color, nationality, or ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs and athletic and other school administered programs.
WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO VISIT THE SCHOOL?
​If you'd like to schedule a school tour, please contact our Admissions Director, Lisa Appelbe. We will also have a Preschool and Kindergarten Open House on Tuesday, October 24th from 8:00 - 9:30 am. 
HOW MANY OPENINGS YOU WILL HAVE IN A SPECIFIC GRADE?
There is no way for the Admissions Office to anticipate the number of openings that will be available for the coming school year. Current student re-enrollment is not complete until mid-March.  Once re-enrollment is complete we have more accurate understanding of how many seats will be available.  When considering the applicant pool, St. Francis Xavier follows the priority list for acceptance.
CAN WE APPLY FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE SCHOOL YEAR?
Those instances would be considered on a case by case basis. Please email Lisa Appelbe.
WHEN WILL MY APPLICATION BE ASSESSED?
Kindergarten applicants  will go through a Gesell Observation. These screenings will begin in January. You will be contacted by the Admissions Office of your screening times in mid December once your completed application has been submitted.   Preschool and Kindergarten applications will then be assessed in mid February and any available seats will be filled at that time.  1st grade – 8th grade will be contacted by the Admissions Office to schedule their testing and interviews. This will begin in mid March.
WHEN WILL WE KNOW IF OUR CHILD HAS BEEN ACCEPTED?
Preschool and Kindergarten acceptances will begin in mid-February. 1st grade – 8th grade acceptances will start in mid-March and continue through the summer. ​
WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO COMMUNICATE WITH THE ADMISSIONS OFFICE?
The best form of communication is email. You can reach Lisa Appelbe at lisa.appelbe@sfxphx.org. Please allow 24 business hours for an email reply and 48 business hours for a return phone call.  

Contact

Lisa Appelbe
Admissions Director​
lisa.appelbe@sfxphx.org

School Tours

To schedule a tour of our campus, please email our Admissions Director, Lisa Appelbe.  Tours are available Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday ​mornings. 

Forms

​Preschool Confidential Evaluation

​Records Release Form

Apply 

PLEASE NOTE: All applications for the 2024-2025 School Year will be accepted into the Admissions Office on November 1st, 2023. 

Request More Info
Phone: (602) 266-5364
Fax: (602) 279-0423
St. Francis Xavier Jesuit Catholic Elementary School
4715 North Central Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85012

St. Francis Xavier School, a faith community grounded on Jesuit principles of superior education, cultivates excellence in mind, body, and spirit sending forth Kids for Others.