Salem’s St. Paul School, a pre-K to eighth-grade school, has served parish elementary students for more than a century and is the only Catholic elementary school in Columbiana County whose mission continues.
Founded in 1904, the first school was built under the pastorate of Father Thomas Conlon. For nearly 100 years, the school was staffed by Sisters of the Humility of Mary, until Sister Dorothea Hurray and Sister Agnes Snyder retired and turned over the teaching duties to lay educators. A convent, built in 1925 to house the sisters, is now being used as the St. Paul Parish Center.
The original school building served the parish for 50 years, but due to the growth of the community, a new church and schoolhouse were both desperately needed. Construction on the current school began in May 1954, with the first section opening after Easter in 1955. Once students were moved to the new building, the original schoolhouse was demolished. An additional four classrooms were added to the new school and it opened in January 1956.
Since 1994, St. Paul School has been accredited under the Ohio Catholic School Accrediting Association—an organization formed as a collaboration between all of the dioceses of Ohio to ensure a “defined standard of quality” for Catholic schools throughout the state. The OCSAA ensures compliance with the rules and regulations stipulated by the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce as well as a standard for religious education.
The School Today
In 2020, St. Paul School went through The Ohio State University accreditation process and became a certified STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) school. Dr. Jacqueline Mumford, who served as principal of the school from 2020-2024 and now works as Director of Continuous Improvement for the Diocesan Office of Catholic Schools, was instrumental in enhancing the school’s education program and bringing about the emphasis on STEM.
A tenured professor at Walsh University, Mumford was a researcher in STEM and robotics and helped select St. Paul—where she and her family are parishioners—as one of the university’s collaboration sites to improve STEM education throughout Ohio. As a Catholic school, however, St. Paul goes beyond a normal STEM program and integrates faith throughout its educational activities.
“As a Catholic school, we have a really unique focus,” Mumford said. “We are part of Laudato Si’ Action Platform from Pope Francis’ encyclical and we are a STREAM learning ecosystem because we integrate science, technology, religion, engineering, art and mathematics.”
Laudato Si’ is a program that takes its name from Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical and which seeks to “equip Catholic institutions and individuals to journey toward total sustainability.” Pope Francis’ encyclical of the same name sets out his vision for changing how the human race interacts with all of God’s creation, and the Laudato Si’ Action Platform provides resources for parishes, educational institutions, healthcare organizations and the economic sector to take better care of our common home.
What that means for St. Paul School is that all of its STREAM classes are imbued with a practicality and emphasis on real-world impact that drives lessons home for students. As Mumford puts it, the school has a focus on “ecological spirituality,” which informs many of its school-wide programs.
For example, Mumford recalled a project the school initiated during the pandemic, in which teachers encouraged students to “reimagine energy production or consumption.” Students of every age got involved, with the kindergarten students endeavoring to put tin foil and magnifying glasses on the school’s roof, while the older students worked with engineers from Akron’s Bridgestone to build an electric, rechargeable tractor—and of course, the students got to ride it around the school grounds.
“Our mission as a school is on the whole child—mind, body and spirit—so it gives the children and the staff an opportunity to look at real-world problems, and we do it through the lens of helping others: the idea of incorporating a lot of Catholic social teaching into problem-based learning to help improve the common good, to help others,” Mumford said.
Student Life
As the last Catholic school in Columbiana County to teach beyond preschool, St. Paul School attracts families from 13 school districts, some as far as a 45-minute drive away. St. Paul remains a pillar of not only Salem’s community, but for all Catholic communities in the county.
“We’ve cultivated such an incredible community here,” Mumford said. “It’s such a small school, but we say we’re small but mighty. Every year, our kids—in the Ohio STEM learning network—always take an award, whether it’s the regional award or the state award.”
For example, Mumford detailed how St. Paul’s educators go above and beyond to work with a student in the event a problem arises —whether it’s in the school or in the home.
“Because we have a focus on the whole child, we do something called ‘multi-tiered systems of support. So, our teachers meet as teams to talk about individual students’ needs,” she said.
Mumford highlighted two “habits of mind” that the school works to instill in the students: the first being to “ask questions” and the second is “persistence.”
“God gives us faith and reason,” she said. “One thing we noticed, especially during the pandemic, is so many people just wanted to quit, were giving up. Those are two of the frameworks within our STEM designation where we encourage each other not to give up: through prayer, through helping each other, through that closeness to God—so that kind of brings more of that spirituality in.”
In addition to the school’s academic rigor, the students are encouraged to deepen their faith with a weekly Mass where children do readings, serve as altar servers and participate in a “small-but-mighty” choir.
Mumford said that the students are developing not just academically and in their faith, but that they will grow into the next generation of parish leaders as they become adults.
Maggie Hall, a former St. Paul student who graduated as valedictorian from Salem Senior High School in 2025, confirmed Mumford’s vision of students becoming academic and religious leaders.
“It sets you up for the real word, in simple terms,” Hall said. “I had a very small class when I went there. We were very close, and we got to know each other—it wasn’t little cliques. And I believe that has helped me so much [because], by not being so cliquey, it’s helped with my independence, and I don’t feel like I have to be with somebody at all times.”
Hall, whose four siblings have also gone to St. Paul, has personal experience with some of the ways the school collaborates with families. “If there was an issue with a kid, they would have the parents come in and speak, and a lot of times the issue would be resolved,” she said. “Even now, my classmates’ parents are still involved and still involved with the Church. There was a kid in my class who graduated with me, he still altar-served until he graduated just a few months ago. I think it goes to show that those relationships build and that networking starts at that early age.” She also noted that the school excels at keeping families informed about what’s going on at the school with frequent newsletters.
Just like many of her St. Paul classmates, Hall attended Salem City Schools after graduating the elementary program, and she feels that St. Paul School equipped her for academic success in high school and beyond. Today, she is studying biology at Michigan’s Oakland University.
“The transition [to junior high] for myself was not that difficult … If anything, I felt more ready to go in those classes, and I got put into advanced classes a lot of the time,” she said.
“Being a small school, the teachers are always there,” she added. “They’re not focused on so many different kids, they’re focused on whoever is in that class.”
Although Hall graduated just before St. Paul School embraced its STREAM program, the school has always been committed to pursuing not just academic excellence, but to forming children in the faith. Hall said that the catechesis she received at St. Paul School formed the foundation of her Catholicism.
“The religion classes were super informative, and I still think about them to this day. You can relate a lot of those stories to life now and see the differences … I got a ton out of actually going to a Catholic school and learning it every day,” she said. “It teaches kids responsibility too, standing up there for Mass and speaking in front of your classmates. It teaches you how to be respectful in public.”
St. Paul School’s community-wide commitment to its students goes far beyond eighth grade. When Hall committed to college, she and several other of her fellow St. Paul graduates received scholarships from their elementary school to put towards their tertiary education.
“You have to do what’s best for your family but, from my experience, it’s gotten me to where I am today,” said Hall. “I feel very independent, and I am a lot more responsible. I’ve been told at least that I act a little bit more mature for my age, and I think that’s all due to my experiences when I was very young. If you instill those qualities into a child, then chances are they’re going to carry those into the real world.”
