Incarnate Word Academy

What Incarnate Word Academy does

Incarnate Word Academy is a private, Catholic, college-preparatory high school for young women located at 2788 Normandy Drive in Saint Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1932 by the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word as a sponsored ministry of the congregation, the school opened with 35 students during the Great Depression and has expanded through successive facility investments into a single-campus institution offering grades 9-12 with a 12:1 student-teacher ratio, 67% of students enrolled in honors coursework, and a 100% college matriculation rate. The curriculum is augmented by 15+ dual-credit courses transferable to college through partnerships with the University of Missouri-St. Louis and Saint Louis University, plus AP coursework, a 120-hour Service Learning requirement tracked via MobileServe, Campus Ministry retreats, OCIA sacramental preparation, and 25+ student clubs. Athletically, the school fields 11 sports across fall, winter, and spring seasons and achieved its 16th Missouri Class 6 girls basketball state championship in March 2026, an extended 9-year championship run.

The school's revenue model is tuition-driven ($18,650 per student for the 2026-2027 academic year) with auxiliary recurring revenue from the Red Knight Express shuttle service ($500/year) and merchandise sales through the Knight Shop Boutique. Tuition affordability is addressed through the Access IWA individualized family tuition program, which uses FACTS financial assessment to award need-based reductions, and a tiered merit-scholarship structure ($1,000-$5,000 renewable awards tied to PSAT/NPS scores). Cognia (and historically North Central Association) accreditation underpins credit transferability and credential quality.

The technology stack consists of standard K-12 edtech tooling — Canvas for course delivery, PowerSchool for grades and attendance, MobileServe for service-hour logging, and SCOIR for college and career planning — with no proprietary platform, AI/ML capability, mobile app, or API surface disclosed. Go-to-market is admissions-led, executed through structured outreach including fall high school fairs, October Open Houses, Future Red Knight shadow days, Knights Out community events, summer camps, and an active multi-channel digital presence (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, YouTube) under the management of a Director of Marketing and Communications. Operating geographies are concentrated in the greater St. Louis metropolitan area with no claims of broader geographic reach.

Name

Incarnate Word Academy

Legal name

Incarnate Word Academy

Website

https://iwacademy.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1932

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Incarnate Word Academy is a private Catholic, college-preparatory high school for young women (grades 9-12) in Saint Louis, Missouri, founded in 1932 by the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word. It serves Greater St. Louis families with a 12:1 student-teacher ratio, 100% college matriculation rate, and 15+ dual-credit college partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint Louis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Tuition: Primary revenue stream from tuition for college-preparatory education. Full tuition for 2026-2027 school year is $18,650. Financial assistance available through Access IWA individualized family tuition program based on FACTS assessment.
2. Red Knight Express Shuttle Service: Optional transportation service for students at annual fee of $500.
3. Knight Shop Boutique: Spirit wear and uniform merchandise sales through online store.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Incarnate Word Academy is a private, Catholic, college-preparatory high school for young women in grades 9-12 located in Saint Louis, Missouri. Sponsored by the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, the school delivers a college-preparatory curriculum that includes AP, dual credit, and Project Lead the Way courses, faith formation, athletics, fine arts, and service-learning programs. The academy reports a 12:1 student-to-faculty ratio and a 100% college matriculation rate for graduates.

Product overview

Incarnate Word Academy is a Catholic, college-preparatory high school for young women offering a comprehensive educational program. The core offering is college-preparatory education (grades 9-12) complemented by college credit programs (AP and Dual Credit through UMSL/SLU), an Academic Support Center with learning consultant services, Guidance and Counseling services, and a Testing Center. Additional programs include athletics (11 sports across fall, winter, and spring seasons), faith formation (retreats, OCIA, Campus Ministry), Service Learning Program, and over 25 clubs and organizations. The school also provides ancillary services including Summer Camps, Summer School, Access IWA tuition assistance, Knight Shop Boutique spirit wear, Red Knight Express shuttle service, and The Word Magazine alumni publication. The institution maintains a 12:1 student-teacher ratio with 100% college matriculation rate.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• College-Preparatory High School Education (Grades 9-12)

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% college matriculation rate
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• University of Missouri-St. Louis (UMSL)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDual credit program partnership allowing qualifying students to earn college credits while in high school. Courses include Introduction to Literature, Topics in Literature, English Literature, First-Year Writing, American Civilization, Asian Philosophy, Introduction to Philosophy, Spanish Language and Culture I-III, Fundamentals of Acting, PreCalculus, College Algebra, Probability and Statistics, Drawing I, Ceramics I, and Painting I. Credits accepted at Missouri public colleges and universities.
• Saint Louis University (SLU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDual credit program partnership allowing qualifying students to earn college credits in History of the United States to 1865 and History of the United States Since 1865 while in high school. Credits accepted at Missouri public colleges and universities and many institutions nationwide.
• Archdiocese of St. LouisminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOCIA program students receive sacraments through connection to local parishes following Archdiocese of St. Louis guidelines. Extraordinary Ministers training follows Archdiocese protocols.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Cor Jesu Academy: All-girls Catholic college-preparatory high school in Affton, Missouri (St. Louis). Operates the same product — Catholic, all-girls, grades 9-12, college-prep curriculum — for the same regional family pool, making it IWA's most direct in-market competitor.
• Villa Duchesne & Oak Hill School: Catholic all-girls college-preparatory school in Frontenac/Clayton, Missouri (St. Louis), operated by the Society of the Sacred Heart. Competes with IWA for the same Catholic college-prep all-girls demographic and shares faith-based retreat and service programming.
• St. Joseph's Academy: All-girls Catholic college-preparatory high school in Frontenac, Missouri (St. Louis suburb). IWA explicitly partners with St. Joseph's Academy for shared high school fairs, confirming they compete head-to-head for the same Catholic, college-prep, all-girls family demographic in the greater St. Louis area.
• Visitation Academy: Catholic all-girls school in St. Louis County, Missouri. Comparable all-girls Catholic model targeting families in the same metropolitan area, drawing from a similar faith-oriented, college-prep parent base.
• Duchesne High School: Catholic high school in St. Charles, Missouri, with co-ed enrollment that competes regionally with IWA. Explicitly listed as a St. Louis-area high school fair partner, indicating shared prospective-family outreach.
• Ursuline Academy: Catholic all-girls college-preparatory high school in Kirkwood, Missouri (St. Louis suburb), part of the Ursuline network. Same Catholic all-girls college-prep product, same St. Louis metro catchment, and same target parent persona as IWA.
• Marymount High School: Independent Catholic all-girls college-preparatory school in Los Angeles. Closely comparable product offering (single-sex, Catholic, college-prep, faith formation, service hours), making it a strong out-of-market peer for benchmarking positioning, programs, and pricing.
• Convent of the Sacred Heart: Network of independent Catholic all-girls college-preparatory schools across multiple U.S. cities. Shares with IWA the faith-rooted, single-sex, college-prep model and the underlying Society of the Sacred Heart/Sisters of Charity Catholic-charism tradition.
• Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy: Independent Catholic all-girls college-preparatory school in La Cañada Flintridge, California. Same Joost-de-Monte Foundation / Sisters of Charity heritage as IWA, with comparable service-learning requirements, retreats, and college-prep curriculum.
• Saint Louis University High School: Jesuit Catholic all-boys college-preparatory high school in St. Louis. While gender-segmented, it competes for Catholic college-prep St. Louis families and is listed as a shared high school fair partner.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/iwaredknights
• Xx.com/iwaredknights

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Incarnate Word Academy