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Positioning
Catholic Schools in the 21st Century It is my position that Catholic schools are the best choice for students in the 21st century. This option is built on a foundation of current programs of study and the building of community infused by our own faith which becomes a true reality. Catholic schools take great pride in the academic programs that represent the heart of our mission. However, Catholic educational programs involve more than just being a student in a classroom. Our students give witness to Christ’s good news of hope, justice, love, reconciliation, and peace to people of diverse backgrounds. In January 2005, Archbishop Henry J. Mansell promulgated the vision statement for Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Hartford. The vision for all schools commits us to graduating students who are productive moral citizens, spiritual leaders and critical thinkers within the global and technological world. In June 2005, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops released a document entitled Renewing our Commitment to Catholic Elementary and Secondary Schools in the Third Millennium. It is a compelling statement, proclaiming that Catholic schools play a vital role in the Church’s mission. “Our young people are the Church of today and tomorrow. It is imperative that we provide them with schools ready to address their spiritual, moral, and academic needs.” It was this document, supported by our vision statement and my position paper, which served as the starting point for conversation at the local level in preparation for the 2007 Educational Symposium. On March 28, 2007, over 350 delegates gathered for the historic Educational Symposium to learn, to share, to be inspired and to be challenged. Its purpose was to identify common threads in the four core values central to elementary and secondary Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Hartford: Catholic Identity, Quality Catholic Education, Accessibility, and School Advancement. We must be faithful to the Church’s teachings and to her evangelizing mission. We must partner with parents who will always be the primary educators of their children. We must be accountable in our efforts to strengthen the unique and distinct CATHOLIC IDENTITY that is the hallmark of our schools. By doing this, we in turn strengthen each parish and ultimately the entire Church. Catholic schools are an extension of the Church’s mission. Catholic educators have an awesome obligation to ensure that those entrusted to their care clearly understand the Gospel message and are provided with a solid academic foundation. We must be accountable to the students we teach in providing them with a QUALITY CATHOLIC EDUCATION – an education for a lifetime. Students must be offered “an academically rigorous and doctrinally sound program of education” where faith and knowledge are intertwined to form Catholic, person-centered learning communities. Catholic school administrators and teachers bear special responsibility in the mission. They must be well-prepared professionally, employ best practices, commit to the total formation of each child, and be inspired by a love of learning. Catholic educators should possess effective pedagogical skills: a command of method, a mastery of content, and an understanding of how students learn. Partnerships must be established among all levels of Catholic education – elementary, secondary and collegiate – for the benefit of all. We must provide ACCESSIBILITY for all who desire a Catholic school education. It is the responsibility of the entire Catholic community “to continue to strive towards the goal of making our Catholic elementary and secondary schools available, accessible, and affordable to all Catholic parents and their children, including those who are poor and middle class”, as well as those of other faith traditions who want to choose Catholic schools. We must be aggressive in seeking public funds and resources for Catholic schools and for the students they serve. This accessibility must also be extended to those with special needs. Inextricably linked with accessibility is CATHOLIC SCHOOL ADVANCEMENT, which is essential to the schools as they maintain quality programs, hire talented teachers, foster committee-driven school boards and retain and attract additional students. “The burden of supporting our Catholic schools can no longer be placed exclusively on the individual parishes that have schools and on parents who pay tuition.” We must expand our efforts in the areas of development, endowments and marketing; “continue actively to pursue financial support from the business and civic communities”; encourage the concept of stewardship throughout the entire Catholic community; address the crucial issue of compensation for teachers and administrators; and advocate for parental choice in education. We have been energized by the support of our bishops, especially the initiatives of Archbishop Henry J. Mansell, in strengthening Catholic school education. I am deeply grateful to all those who have served on the Educational Symposium Planning Committee and those on the Archdiocesan School Board who will now assist in the action plan and implementation phase of the strategic direction documents. I am confident that the Holy Spirit will grace us with a hopeful future filled with opportunities and challenges while encouraging us to be risk-takers and creative forward thinkers. I ask for your prayers, support and resources in our shared quest to make 21st-century Catholic school education academically excellent and faith-centered. Reference: Renewing
our Commitment to Catholic Elementary and Secondary Schools in the
Third Millennium. United States Conference of Catholic
Bishops, Washington, D.C. 2005. |