The Daughters of Charity first welcomed students to the School of the Holy Cross in Santa Cruz on January 7, 1863. The first classes were held in the Old Adobe under the direction of Sister Corsina McKay, Sister Servant, Sister Andrea Gibbs and Sister Emmanuel Burke. The two-and-a-half story adobe was originally part of the Santa Cruz Mission founded in 1791. An orphanage was opened at the same time. The Daughters sponsored the school for 81 years until 1943. Today, Holy Cross School still sits on the original site adjacent to the Santa Cruz Mission. Current enrollment K-8 is 286 students. In 1871, the Sisters also took charge of the County Hospital, but withdrew from this ministry by 1875.