In the late 1950s, there were five Catholic elementary schools in the Bloomfield Hills area, but no Catholic high school. Parents from nearby Holy Name Parish formed a committee to explore the feasibility of a girls’ high school.
The committee approached the IHM Sisters to sponsor Marian. After receiving archdiocesan approval, each of the five founding parishes, Holy Name, Our Lady Queen of Martyrs, St. Hugo of the Hills, St. Bede and St. Columban, contributed toward construction costs. They raised nearly $1 million; the sisters mortgaged their Motherhouse to finance the rest.
Marian opened in September 1959. It began with 132 freshmen and nine IHM Sisters, with an additional grade added in each subsequent year.
Each year since its first graduating class in 1963, more than 90 percent of Marian graduates go on to college (in many years, 100 percent continue their educations). Today, Marian High School remains true to its mission: “…to ensure, within a Christian environment, an excellent education built on a strong academic curriculum, which will enable young women to value human diversity and live responsible lives of leadership and action based upon gospel values.