Rapid City Catholic School System
| St. Thomas More High School | |
|---|---|
Aerial view of the school & surrounding area | |
| Location | |
300 Fairmont Boulevard , , 57701 United States | |
| Coordinates | 44°3′33″N 103°13′25″W / 44.05917°N 103.22361°W |
| Information | |
| Type | Private, Coeducational |
| Religious affiliation | Roman Catholic |
| Established | 1991 |
| Superintendent | Julie Tipton[1] |
| Grades | Preschool–12 |
| Athletics conference | Black Hills Conference |
| Affiliation | Diocese of Rapid City |
| Website | https://rccss.org/ |
Rapid City Catholic School System (RCCSS) is a set of private, Roman Catholic schools in Rapid City, South Dakota. It is made up of two campuses, with the preschool (pre-K) and elementary students (K-5) attending St. Elizabeth Seton, and middle (6–8) and high school (9–12) students at the main campus attending St. Thomas More. It is a part of the Diocese of Rapid City.
Parishes
The Rapid City Catholic School System serves the following parishes:
- Blessed Sacrament [2]
- Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help [3]
- Our Lady of the Black Hills[4]
- St. Isaac Jogues
- St. Therese
Athletics
The St. Thomas More High School girls' basketball team won five straight class A state championships from 2013 to 2018 under coach Brandon Kandolin. They became the third team to do so in the state of South Dakota, behind Armour High School and later Sioux Falls Roosevelt.[5]
St. Thomas More High School won the South Dakota state 11B football championship for the first time in the 2025 season, defeating Elk Point Jefferson 48–38.[6]
Connection to Scandals
Andrew Hiipakka, a teacher for the St. Thomas More Middle School, was convicted on child pornography charges after being caught with "thousands of images of child pornography, many of which depicted children under the age of 12 years". He was sentenced to 25 years in prison and a life of supervised release. [7][8]
Marcin Garbacz was a Catholic priest and served as the Chaplain for the RCCSS office for some time between 2012[9] up to at least 2015.[10] During this time, he was assigned to the Catholic Diocese of Rapid City, but would also lead the weekly in-school Mass for the middle and high school and was considered to be an RCCSS staff member.[10] Garbacz was convicted of stealing $258,696.19 from parish donations over the course of 2012–2018,[11] and was charged with possession of child pornography.[12] He was sentenced to 7 years and 9 months in prison.[11]
References
- ^ "New Families". rccss.org. Rapid City, SD: Rapid City Catholic School System. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^ "Our Catholic Schools". www.blessedsacramentchurch.org. Rapid City, SD: Blessed Sacrament Church. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^ "Parish Schools". www.cathedralolph.org. Rapid City, SD: Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^ "Our Lady of the Black Hills supports our Catholic Schools". www.olbh.org. Piedmont, SD: Our Lady of the Black Hills. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^ Wek, Nate (March 12, 2018). "St. Thomas More, A Historical Era of Basketball". sdpb.org. South Dakota Public Broadcast. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^ Wek, Nate (November 14, 2025). "St. Thomas More finally wins the big one, Cavs beat EPJ in 11B title game". sdpb.org. South Dakota Public Broadcast. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^ "Rapid City Man Indicted On Child Pornography Charges". justice.gov. Sioux Falls, SD: United States Attorney's Office, District of South Dakota. August 29, 2014. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^ "Former Middle School Teacher Sentenced for Illegal Use of the Internet". justice.gov. Sioux Falls, SD: United States Attorney's Office, District of South Dakota. November 16, 2015. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^ "Rapid City Catholic School System 2013-2014 Annual Report" (PDF). rccss.org. Rapid City, SD. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^ a b "Mayfest Auctions" (PDF). rccss.org. Rapid City, SD. May 2, 2015. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^ a b "Rapid City Priest Sentenced to 7 Years and 9 Months in Federal Prison for Wire Fraud, Money Laundering, Transportation of Stolen Money, and Filing a False Tax Return". justice.gov. Sioux Falls, SD: United States Attorney's Office, District of South Dakota. November 25, 2020. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^ "Convicted Embezzler Charged with Illegal Sexual Conduct and Possession of Child Pornography". justice.gov. Sioux Falls, SD: U.S. Attorney's Office, District of South Dakota. December 11, 2020. Retrieved January 31, 2026.