What Do You Do at a Catholic Retreat Each Year at St. Agnes?
Retreats are an integral part of the experience at St. Agnes Academy. If you have questions like, “What do you do at a catholic retreat?” find the answers you’re looking for!
If you’ve ever wondered, “What do you do at a Catholic retreat?” at St. Agnes Academy, think of it as a chance to step away from your usual routine so you can reset, reflect, and reconnect with God, your classmates, and yourself.
Instead of learning in a classroom, you’ll learn through a mix of service, time outdoors, small group conversations, prayer, and space to just breathe. And as you move from freshman to senior year, each retreat is designed to meet you where you are.
How Retreats Work at St. Agnes
At St. Agnes, every student goes on one retreat each year, and each retreat is built around one of the four Dominican Pillars that shape our school:
- Community: building real connections with your class
- Study: engaging with the world and asking deeper questions
- Preaching: discovering how your life can share the Gospel
Retreats are usually overnight and held away from campus, giving you room to unplug from daily pressures and focus on what really matters.
What Do You Do at a Catholic Retreat? (By School Year)
Each grade has its own retreat theme and experience. Here’s what that looks like from freshman through senior year.
9th Grade Retreat: COMMUNITY
Your first retreat at St. Agnes is all about Community. As a freshman, you head to Camp for All in Burton, TX, for a two‑day, one‑night retreat focused on getting to know your class and feeling at home at St. Agnes.
What you’ll do:
- Make new friends and build connections with your classmates
- Join in community service projects that you do together
- Play games and team‑building activities that help everyone relax and have fun
- Spend small group time talking, sharing, and listening
- Experience music and prayer in a setting that feels different from a regular school day
The retreat is led by seniors from the Preaching Team, so you’ll also hear about the Dominican heritage of St. Agnes and get a glimpse of all the possibilities high school has in store for you.
By the end, you won’t just know more names – you’ll feel like you’re truly part of your class.
10th Grade Retreat: STUDY
During your sophomore year, the retreat focuses on the Dominican Pillar of Study, but not in a classroom sense.
This two‑day, one‑night retreat sends you out into service sites across the Houston area so you can see the realities of our world up close.
What you’ll do:
What you’ll do:
- Spend time in hands‑on service meeting people and hearing their stories
- Learn about the different needs that exist right here in Houston
- Reflect on how what you’re seeing connects to your faith and values
As you serve, you’ll be encouraged to grapple with big questions, like:
- What is really happening in my community?
- Where do I see injustice or need?
- How can I make the world a better place as a person of faith?
This retreat is meant to stretch the way you see the world and invite you to let your faith shape how you respond to it.
11th Grade Retreat: PRAYER
Junior year can feel like a blur – classes, activities, testing, and college decisions. The 11th‑grade retreat gives you three days and two nights at Forest Glen Camp in Huntsville to slow down and focus on Prayer.
What you’ll do:
What you’ll do:
- Step away from the noise and busyness of everyday life
- Take an inventory of your heart and mind – where you are, what you’re carrying, what you need
- Explore different ways to connect with God through prayer
- Spend quiet time reflecting on your relationship with the Sacred
Throughout the retreat, you’ll be invited to consider these key questions:
- Who is God for me right now?
- How is God present in both the good and hard parts of my life?
- What does it look like to trust that God sustains me through ups and downs?
Many students come back from this retreat with a renewed sense of peace, clarity, and confidence in their relationship with God.
12th Grade Retreat: PREACHING
Ah, senior year! Your final retreat is a three‑day, two‑night experience focused on Preaching – not just preaching with words, but with your whole life.
What you’ll do:
What you’ll do:
- Have one last, intentional chance to bond deeply with your classmates
- Reflect on your four years at St. Agnes and how you’ve grown
- Spend time in prayer, conversation, and reflection about what comes next
- Remember that you are deeply loved by God as you prepare to step into a new season
On this retreat, you’ll be invited to ask deeper, more meaningful questions:
- How will I preach the Gospel with my life after graduation?
- What kind of person do I want to be in college and beyond?
- How can my choices, relationships, and career become ways of sharing God’s love?
It’s a time to be renewed in your relationship with God and to look ahead with hope and courage at the completion of your high school journey.
Learn More About Retreats at St. Agnes
If you’ve been wondering what you do at a Catholic retreat, the heart of it is simple: you make space each year to grow – spiritually, personally, and together with your class.
To see dates, locations, and upcoming retreat information, visit our Retreats page to learn more about the Retreat Schedule.
And when it’s your turn to go, show up with an open mind and heart. You may be surprised by how much a few days away can change the way you see God, yourself, and the people around you.
