Catholic schools go well beyond academic excellence

Second graders at St. Mary Star of the Sea School, Hampton, are welcomed on the first day of the 2021-2022 academic year. (Photo/Maritza Davila)

It is natural for us to reference events or changes in our lives as “before” and “after” statements, e.g., “That happened before I left for college” or “We did that after we moved here.”

Since March 2020, “before COVID” has joined the list of ways we mark how life was and how it is. During these nearly two years of uncertainty, we have found reassurance in things that have remained constant.

One of the constants has been our Catholic schools. You might recall that when in-person learning ended that month, our schools adapted quickly and were able to provide quality virtual education for the remainder of the academic year.

During the summer of 2020, after consulting with our diocesan Office of Catholic Schools and having been assured that all necessary safety precautions would be in place, our schools returned to in-person learning for the 2020-2021 academic year.

Thanks to the diligence and commitment of our parents, teachers and administrators, our schools have remained opened throughout the pandemic, providing our children with the in-person environment that is most beneficial to their ability to learn.

As we prepare to celebrate Catholic Schools Week this Sunday, I highlight this particular time in our Catholic schools’ history as an example of how integral they are to our Catholic mission.

When people talk about quality education, they often focus on high test scores, academic achievement and advancement to higher levels of learning. In our Catholic schools, we encourage academic excellence, but we go well beyond that.

We form our students intellectually and spiritually. We demonstrate reverence and dignity for the human person daily in the way we operate our Catholic schools, in the way we treat our students, parents and others who are part of our school families.

We are blessed that while our Catholic school teachers, staff and administrators see their work as a profession and hold themselves to high standards, they also see what they are doing as a vocation, a calling, a response to God’s own plan for them, and they recognize that they are contributing to the larger plan for his people.

The mission of the Church — teaching, sanctifying and living in charity — is embedded in our schools. As we form students in the faith, we teach right and wrong, how to live and act, how to grow in goodness and in their relationship with God.

Through prayer, sacraments and opportunities for traditional expressions of piety, we nurture their spiritual lives, encouraging them to embrace the gifts of the Holy Spirit as they mature in their faith.

This is expressed in the acts of charity that are part of their education and are examples of how they are to live their lives as followers of Christ.

When it comes to charity, our schools have benefited over the decades from thousands of generous individuals throughout our diocese. Assessments from of our parishes, the Annual Diocesan Appeal and other sources have supported our schools.

As we began this academic year, our parish schools and regional schools have undertaken a Learn to Lead Campaign to provide them with the financial resources they need — and will need — in years to come. As you read some of the details about this initiative on Page 15, and as you learn more about it in the months to come, you will realize how important Catholic school education is to the mission of our Church.

As we highlight work of our schools during Catholic Schools Week, I invite you to join me in prayers of thanksgiving for those — particularly our men and women religious — who made sacrifices decades ago in order to educate our children and to center our schools firmly in the life of the Church.

At the same time, let us pray for all in our Catholic school families that the children we educate today will be examples of Catholic discipleship now — and for decades to come.

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