New programs have been added to O'Neal's Lower and Upper School divisions.

The O'Neal School is offering a new pre-kindergarten program and extended care center for the 2010-2011 school year. A 3-year-old pre-kindergarten and a 4-year-old pre-kindergarten will be offered from 8:15 a.m. to 12 p.m., five days a week.

The 3-year-old pre-kindergarten will use the Core Knowledge Level I curriculum to include development in cognitive and language skills, fine and gross motor skills, social and self-help skills, as well as learning through play and exploration.

Also from 8:15 a.m. to 12 p.m., five days a week, the 4-year-olds will use the Core Knowledge Level II curriculum, which will include the AlphaTime Reading Readiness program, Everyday Math program, development in social and self-help skills, as well as physical well-being and motor skills.

The 3- and 4-year-olds will have the opportunity to participate in the extended care center from 12 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. Parents may choose a five-, three- or two-day weekly program. This consists of center-based learning and play.

After 3:15 p.m., O'Neal students, pre-kindergarten through fourth grade, may attend the extended care center until 6 p.m.

The pre-kindergarten, extended care center for 3- and 4-year-olds and the extended care center after hours each have a separate fee structure to accommodate individual needs. Supervised by Lower School Director Linda Roberts, the teaching staff has formal education and experience in early childhood education.

All three programs will be housed in the Lower School, McMurray Hall. The facility has celebrated its second year in operation and is equipped with spacious classrooms, a science laboratory, multipurpose room and a playground that is a favorite for all O'Neal Lower School students.

"We've been listening to the needs of our current O'Neal families and those of the community," says Headmaster Alan Barr. "We have a superb lower school program, as well as great facilities providing a nurturing and safe environment that will allow our future 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds to flourish."

Two new programs in O'Neal's Upper School were kicked off this summer. The orientation for a new prefect student leadership program was held and two rising seniors won scholarships to participate in a month-long study abroad program in Spain.

The study abroad program was brought to O'Neal by the School's new Upper School Assistant Director, Richard Catania.

Catania comes to O'Neal from Trinity School in Midland, Texas, where he served as dean of students, assistant head of upper school and French teacher. He has 27 years of independent school education. Catania, a native of Sur de Poitiers, France, earned his bachelor's and master's degrees at La Sorbonne in Paris, and is an American citizen.

In addition to teaching children, he has a passion for sports. He is a member of the USTA and plays tennis weekly, and is also accomplished in snow skiing and windsurfing. He, his wife, Andrea, and son, Rick, a rising eighth grade student, live in Southern Pines.

Serving students from pre-K to grade 12, The O'Neal School is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools and is a Core Knowledge National Visitation Site.

The school has dual accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) and the Southern Association of Independent Schools (SAIS). The O'Neal School graduates 100 percent of its seniors and all are accepted to colleges and universities throughout the nation.

For more information about enrollment to The O'Neal School, call Alice Droppers, director of admissions, at (910) 692-6920 or visit www.ONealSchool.org.