FAQs

• Our new school will be returning to our urban/Lewiston roots by leasing the 2nd and 3rd floors of the Peck Building at 184 Main St., Lewiston. While Peck is a historic building, the extensive renovations carried out by L.L.Bean in the last few decades means we have a relatively free-rein to design the interior space to our needs, without having to meet historic-preservation guidelines.
• The Peck Building was the only option of the many we explored (including the former Holy Family school building, the TD Bank call center in the Auburn Mall, the former Liberty Mutual Building on Rte. 196, a few options on Mollison Way, etc.) that offered us both the core INFRASTRUCTURE and AFFORDABLE BUILD-OUT options required for starting a school by Fall 2026.
• 30,000+ square feet, ample parking, technology wiring, cafeteria/kitchen capability, enough bathrooms, including showers/locker rooms and a fitness center, safety features like security cameras/fob-controlled elevator access/fire & intruder alarms and doors already built in, extensive sprinkler system, etc.
• All-in lease/insurance around $25,000/month
• Lease-to-own structure means all monies invested in renovations will stay in-house, and not revert to a third-party owner or the Diocese.
• Capacity: This space will allow us to expand to up to 200 students over the next 5-7 years. We are planning to build out 6-8 classrooms in our first year, (including dedicated Science and Art lab space), along with necessary administrative offices and extensive common areas. There is already a dedicated cafeteria space, with the opportunity to build out to a full-service kitchen in coming year. We plan on utilizing a catering-kitchen model in our first year to allow for hot-lunch options.
• Safety: While there are other tenants on both the first and fourth floors, we will be restricting access to our 2nd/3rd floor school via elevator-fobs and hard-wired fire doors from the stairwells. The parking garage offers direct “buzz-in” access to our 2nd floor reception area. Further, the presence of Senator Collins’ office on the fourth floor means the building meets Federal standards for fire and intruder safety protocols. In addition, the City’s five-year urban renewal plan includes significant investment in this side of Main Street, from the River all the way up to the Hospital–to include 100+ upscale apartment units, with retail options on the first floors.
• City Partnership. Lewiston City officials have already expressed excitement about our return to Lewiston. We will be working with both the Lewiston PD and FD to coordinate fire-drills, and to facilitate smooth drop-off/pick-up procedures.
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• We are planning to open our new school in the Fall of 2026.
• We will be hosting Open Houses and Informational sessions during December/ January.
• We will be accepting enrollments (with a $500 deposit) starting December 1; the first 40 enrolled students will have their initial $500 deposit matched (effectively a $500 discount).
• We are currently working with architects and Code-enforcement officers to plan out the retrofitting of the space for our needs; this build-out will occur between February-July of 2026. (The lease officially starts February 1, 2026).
• We are currently working to meet our goal of raising $2 million in start-up costs from donors at all giving levels.
• We will be hiring a new head-of-school and making additional hires starting as soon as possible.

• Tuition is currently set for $14,500.
• We have budgeted in some tuition-assistance monies, which families can apply for; we are also hoping to be able to re-acquire some of the previous scholarship monies currently held by the Catholic Foundation–but that will require original donors / donor families to file paperwork with the Foundation.
• Tuition covers academics only; athletic participation may require separate fees, depending on the sport-specific costs.
• We will be using FACTS to allow for payment-by-the-month.

• We plan to field as many in-house teams as our student body can support.
• We are also working to create co-op partnerships with area schools for those sports where we do not initially have enough students to field our own teams.
• Athletics will initially be a “pay-to-play” opportunity, with costs determined by individual sport facility/equipment/transportation needs; our hope is this will allow our students to still play together on a given team.
• We are hoping to rally our alumni to form a strong Booster Club to offset these costs.
• We will arrange to lease local facilities and fields for practices.
• We do not currently know our plans for athletic transportation.
• The Peck Building has both locker rooms and showers on-site, as well as a well-equipped weight/fitness room on the 3rd floor.

• We will be offering a traditional College Preparatory curriculum, including 4 years each of English, Social Studies, Math, Science, and Theology, access to foreign language instruction (likely French/Spanish/Latin), and Art electives in just our first year, with plans to expand our elective offerings as our student enrollment grows.
• There will be the opportunity to enroll in AP classes, as well as some Dual-Enrollment / Early College options.
• We may be able to arrange for interested students to take some courses at the Vocational school in Lewiston on alternating days.
• We will have a full-time College/Post-Secondary Advisor to assist all students in developing productive post-secondary plans; in the past, 100% of St. Dominic students have been accepted at 4-year colleges or have joined the military.
• We plan to maintain a 1:10 faculty-student ratio, with class-size capped at 20 maximum for any given section.
• All teachers will either be state-certified, or have a Master’s degree in their field; in addition all teachers will undergo standard Background checks.
• Our small school ethos and structure allow us to meet many of the same supports and accommodations typically outlined in IEPs or 504 plans. While we are not required to implement formal IEP or 504 plans, we will do our best to thoughtfully accommodate student needs through an Individualized Support Plan (ISP) whenever possible.
• We will have a dress code (likely something along the lines of collared-shirts and khaki or navy blue slacks).
• Students will be encouraged to start any clubs they are interested in, with faculty support.
• We will be seeking NEASC accreditation as soon as possible (usually a 3-year process); in the meantime, we will be registered with the State DOE as an Equivalent Instruction Private School.

• The Board is currently made up of 12 people including alumni and current and former parents who are committed to bringing back a Saint Dominic educational option to the Lewiston-Auburn area. Our by-laws have set board size between 9-21 people, and all community members are welcome to petition to join the Board.
• Budget: Our proposed budget sets a “break-even” enrollment number at 80 students, as long as we supplement that tuition revenue with about $500,000 in additional donor funding for the first year. As student enrollment grows, that supplemental funding number will decrease.
• Demographics: The current demographic and enrollment trends at local school indicates that we would need to pull about 5% of current high-school age children enrolled in public schools in our area. That number does not include those children who are already enrolled at other private school options who may wish to return to a vibrant Saint Dominic High School, or those who are currently being home-schooled. The amount of building currently going on in the Lewiston-Auburn area suggests that our area will continue to see modest population gains over the next decade at least. This analysis leads us to bet on the long-term viability of Saint Dominic Regional High School.

Contact us at Stdominicrhs@outlook.com.