The 2012 Catholic Schools Week theme is “Faith. Academics. Service.” I’m happy to welcome another excellent collection of ideas and activities from two master teachers and employees of the Alliance for Catholic Education, Jennifer Dees and Meghann (Robinson) Kirzeder. They have come up with some amazing ideas that should be useful for an entire school,…
Catholic School News
National Catholic Schools Week News and Events
Catholic Schools Week LogoCatholic Schools Week is one of the most important times of year for Catholic schools in the United States. It is an opportunity for these schools to share the amazing things that they do for children and to celebrate their accomplishments.
How Catechesis and Religious Instruction Differ
The recent circular letter released by the Congregation for Catholic Education brought back to my attention the relationship between religious instruction and catechesis. “[Religious instruction] is different from, and complementary to, parish catechesis…” (Circular Letter to the Presidents of Bishops’ Conferences on Religious Education in Schools, 17). According to the General Directory for Catechesis, “there…
Circular Letter on Religious Education in Schools Summary
Last week the Congregation for Catholic Education released a letter sent out to the presidents of bishops’ conferences in May 2009 titled Circular Letter to the Presidents of Bishops’ Conferences on Religious Education in Schools. This letter is a reminder of the Church’s teachings about religious education in Catholic schools that can be found in…
News Article on “Reinventing Catholic Schools”
An article was released on Wednesday by http://www.uscatholic.org/ on the various efforts to breathe life into financially troubled Catholic Schools. Click here to read Sarah Karp’s article titled “Final Exam: Can we reinvent Catholic schools?” Also for a more detailed explanation of the topics, read the Thomas B. Fordham Institute’s publication by Scott Hamilton titled,…
Catholic Schools K12 Virtual
[UPDATE: Please see the comments at the bottom of this post to correct some errors that were made in this overview of CSK12.] St. Andrew Catholic School/Parish in Coral Springs, Florida has developed an online education program focused on the Catholic Schools market. The program is called Catholic Schools K12 Virtual and it can be…
How many students are enrolled in Catholic schools?
Enrollment in Catholic schools is dropping in the United States. Newspaper articles across the country frequently site the annual data report put out by the NCEA. The full report, coordinated by Dale McDonald, PBVM, Ph.D., provides information on school enrollment history, staffing data, public and private school comparisons, demographic information, and more. Some highlights from…
"The Charter Explosion" Webpage
The News21 Fellows at Columbia have dedicated a portion of their website called “The Charter Explosion” to the growing charter school movement. Recently a special focus was placed on the conversion of Catholic schools to charter schools in Washington, D.C. More and more dioceses like Brooklyn, San Antonio, San Diego, and Chicago are looking to…
Two Big Changes for the Diocese of Green Bay Catholic Schools
Catholic schools are at a crossroads in the United States today. It is time for innovation or closure. Many dioceses have turned to innovative models to improve the quality of the education they offer in their schools as well as work toward sustainability. The Diocese of Green Bay recently reorganized 10 Catholic schools under the…
LA Catholic schools offer summer school substitute
Due to the current economic climate, some public school districts have canceled summer school sessions this year. In Los Angeles Cardinal Mahony announced that students in the Los Angeles Unified School District were welcome to attend Catholic school summer sessions. For students in desperate need for additional instruction, this should be seen as a great…