In 1920, Minnie H. Conolly contributed to the Parish of the Assumption to purchase land for Hanson Memorial High School at 903 Anderson Street. Conolly also established a trust fund to keep tuition costs low. In 1925, classes began at the boys' school, which was still being constructed. Eighty students were enrolled in grades four through eight. The first graduating class comprised six students who completed their studies in 1929.

In January 1958, Reverend John Disch, the pastor of the Church of the Assumption, devised a three-phase Catholic development plan for Franklin. The plan involved several improvements to the community, such as installing a terrazzo floor, new oak pews, and air conditioning at the Church of the Assumption, constructing a new convent for the nuns, building a new cafeteria at St. John's Academy, and making repairs to the Hanson Memorial High School gym. Volunteers collected funds from Catholic families in Franklin, Garden City, and Irish Bend, raising $226,000.