Best Catholic Pre-K Schools for Language Immersion

16 schools match. Top 10 ranked by size, tuition fit, and freshness of our data.

We track 16 catholic pre-k-level schools across our active markets in Florida and New York. Annual tuition ranges from $5.4K/yr to $24.3K/yr, with a median of $9.5K/yr across schools that publish a number. 16 of these schools accept Florida Step Up / FES scholarships — roughly 100% of the list — so families using state-funded scholarships have real choice here.

Catholic schools accept students of all faiths but typically prioritize parish families. Tuition is well below independent-school rates, and most participate in Florida Step Up scholarships. Every school is re-verified through direct outreach to admissions teams; data is refreshed on a 180-day cadence and timestamped on each profile.

See also: Learning Support, Gifted, IB (International Baccalaureate).

  1. 1

    Academy of the Holy Names

    Tampa, Hillsborough County · Grades PK-12

    Tuition
    $24.3K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~1,000 students
  2. 2

    Christ the King Catholic School

    Tampa, Hillsborough County · Grades PK-8

    Tuition
    $11K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~500 students
  3. 3

    Espiritu Santo Catholic School

    Safety Harbor, Pinellas County · Grades PK-08

    Tuition
    $10.7K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~450 students
  4. 4

    Saint Joseph Parish School

    Tampa, Hillsborough County · Grades PK-08

    Tuition
    $10.3K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~300 students
  5. 5

    St. Raphael Catholic School

    St. Petersburg, Pinellas County · Grades PK-08

    Tuition
    $10.3K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~200 students
  6. 6

    St. Thomas Aquinas Academy

    Tampa, Hillsborough County · Grades PK-08

    Tuition
    $10.7K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~80 students
  7. 7

    Saint Lawrence Catholic School

    Tampa, Hillsborough County · Grades PK-08

    Tuition
    $8.7K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~500 students
  8. 8

    Saint Jude Cathedral School

    Saint Petersburg, Pinellas County · Grades PK-08

    Tuition
    $9K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~500 students
  9. 9

    Saint Cecelia Interparochial

    Clearwater, Pinellas County · Grades PK-08

    Tuition
    $9.9K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~450 students
  10. 10

    Saint Paul Catholic School

    Saint Petersburg, Pinellas County · Grades PK-08

    Tuition
    $7.0K/yr
    Type
    private
    • ~350 students
How we rank these schools

Built relationships, not scrapers. AdmitCompass ranks schools using a composite score that blends four signals: enrollment size (a proxy for stability and program breadth), tuition reasonableness within the local market, freshness of our most recent verification, and a small bonus for schools with full admissions detail published on their profile.

Public data comes from the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE), the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), and each school's own admissions pages. The information that actually matters to most families — acceptance rates, deadlines, what a director cares about — comes from direct interviews with school directors and admissions coaches across our active markets.

We do not publish scoring weights or per-axis thresholds. That keeps the moat intact: the rankings reflect actual conversations with people inside schools, not a formula anyone with a crawler could clone. Every profile is re-verified on a 180-day cadence, and the "last updated" date is timestamped on every school page.

Read the full methodology.

Frequently asked questions

What's the average tuition for pre-k schools?
Across the 16 schools on this list, annual tuition ranges from $5.4K/yr to $24.3K/yr, with a median of $9.5K/yr. Many schools offer financial aid, sibling discounts, or accept Florida Step Up / FES scholarships — check each school's detail page for current aid policy.
How competitive is admission?
Admissions selectivity ranges from open-enrollment (most charters and parish schools) to highly selective (top independent K-12 programs). Each school's profile page lists deadlines, test requirements, and any published acceptance rate.
Do these schools accept Step Up / FES scholarships?
16 of the 16 schools on this page accept Florida's Step Up For Students / FES-EO / FES-UA scholarships. That covers most or all of tuition for income-eligible families. Each school's detail page lists the specific scholarship programs accepted.
What's the smallest and largest school on this list?
St. Thomas Aquinas Academy is the smallest with 79 students; Academy of the Holy Names is the largest at 993. Smaller schools tend to offer more direct teacher contact and tighter community; larger schools usually have more elective and extracurricular breadth.
How many schools offer Language Immersion programs?
16 schools on this page have documented Language Immersion programs. Program depth varies — some schools embed it across the curriculum, others offer dedicated tracks or after-school options. Visit each school's profile for specifics.
Is this list updated?
Yes. We re-verify school data on a 180-day cadence through direct contact with admissions teams, plus cross-checks against FLDOE, NCES, and published school sources. Each school profile shows the date of its most recent verification.

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