When it opens for the school year this September, Notre Dame Academy, located in Middleburg, Virginia opens as a fully independent school, operating along the lines of other area private schools such as Wakefield, Highland, The Hill School, and Foxcroft.

Last fall, the Notre Dame Academy Board voted to end the school's historic relationship with the Roman Catholic Church, effective, July 1, 2009, so that it could serve a broader student population. This decision was subsequently challenged with a lawsuit filed by a former trustee of the school, claiming that the Board had no legal right to make the changes. At the trial in Leesburg on July 29, Judge McCahill rejected all claims by the plaintiff, affirming the school's right to change its Articles of Incorporation and remove the school from any involvement with, or oversight by, the Catholic Diocese of Arlington.

Newly elected Board Chair, Mark Rossi, commented "this ruling removes a cloud of uncertainty from the school's future, with a new Head of school, a new vision, and two new trustees who are parents of students, we are in a good position to realize our dream of making this school a treasured asset of the entire community we serve." He added, "we are especially fortunate to have the continued financial support of the Frank Mangano Foundation during this period of change."

Head of School, Elizabeth "Libbi" Murray, said that "we will retain the ethical, spiritual, compassionate and respectful approach to life that has been characteristic of the Notre Dame faculty and students. We continue to offer an excellent college preparatory academic program, with music and great offerings in the study of the arts; in addition to a strong athletic program teaching the values of physical fitness, team play and sportsmanship. We want to prepare our students for a life of service and leadership in a complex and changing world. Making the school an integral and valued part of our community is the challenge that drew me to this job."

Asked about the school's name Murray replied, "The title 'Notre Dame Academy' has been used by the Sisters for their schools and they have asked us not to use it any longer since we are no longer affiliated with them or the Catholic Church. We have spent some time discussing other names descriptive of the school's location and function. Much input from our school community has been gathered. The Board will select a new name for the school, consistent with our vision for it, at its meeting in late August and phase that name in over the following months."

The school has an interesting history. Founded by the Sisters of Notre Dame in 1965, as a Catholic girls' boarding school, it was managed and staffed by members of that religious order. In 1990 it became a co-educational day high school, managed and partially staffed by the Sisters, with governance shifting to a lay Board of Trustees. In 2000 the Board purchased the school from the Sisters of Notre Dame. In 2004, Sister Cecilia Liberatore retired as Head of School, ending the involvement of the Sisters of Notre Dame in the school operation. The Diocese of Arlington continued its association with the school until the recent change in direction.

A recent release of text from the schools vision statement reads as follows:

Our vision is to be a highly regarded independent Co-educational College Preparatory High School that provides students with the intellectual, ethical and spiritual foundations needed to succeed in higher education and beyond. We seek to instill in our students the ambition and desire to embrace opportunities in leadership and service as stewards of our fragile world.