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U.S. Catholic schools see strong growth

Posted on by Our Sunday Visitor

As they open their doors for a new academic year, the nation’s Catholic schools are enjoying overall strong growth, along with a firm commitment to mission, experts told OSV News.

“Our school system has grown two years in a row,” said Lincoln Snyder, president and CEO of the National Catholic Educational Association.

Based in Leesburg, Virginia, the NCEA, an organization which traces its origins to a 1904 conference held in St. Louis, represents close to 140,000 Catholic educators serving 1.6 million students.

Snyder told OSV News that Catholic schools in the U.S. on balance experienced a bump in enrollment amid the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a 3.8 percent growth from 2021-2022 and 0.3 percent growth during the 2022-2023 year.

In addition, “most retention rates are pretty high,” said Snyder. “Dioceses last year retained 93 to 98 percent of students who came (during) Covid.”

The Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, for example, has seen a three-year rise in enrollment, with the overall student population — now at 18,400 in 41 diocesan schools — up 10 percent since the 2020-2021 academic year.

Snyder attributed such sustained growth to factors that transcended the pandemic.

“By all indications, families who came to Catholic schools were very happy with the community and they established relationships” with the schools, he said. “Once people have children in a positive environment, they tend not to change it.”

At the same time, some Catholic schools saw an uptick in numbers due to straightforward demographic shifts, he said.

While declines “tended to be in the Northeast and the Midwest … most of our growth was seen in southeastern Florida, and some in the (U.S.) Southwest,” said Snyder.

“We’ve recovered from the pandemic and then some,” said Jim Rigg, superintendent of Catholic schools and secretary of education for the Archdiocese of Miami. “We have the highest enrollment in eight years, up about 3.6 percent year over year.”

One formerly closed school — St. Malachy in Tamarac, Florida — has even reopened for the 2023-2024 academic year after a 14-year hiatus, he said.

Rigg cited an influx of new Florida residents as one factor in enrollment surges. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Florida is the nation’s third most populous state, as well as the fastest-growing one.

“Substantial numbers of people move here from the northern U.S., and we have continuous waves of immigration from Latin America and the Caribbean, the majority of whom identify as Catholic,” he told OSV News.

Christopher Pastura, superintendent of Catholic schools for the Diocese of St. Petersburg, Florida, agreed. He said Florida’s “robust school choice programs” also have worked to fill classrooms.

“Florida has moved to a 100 percent choice scholarship program, so everybody has access to that regardless of income,” Pastura told OSV News. “It’s helped our low- and middle-income folks be able to afford a Catholic school education.”

Making Catholic education accessible to students with disabilities also is key, said Andrew McLaughlin, secretary for elementary education at the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

“We are really pushing for full inclusion for children with disabilities, rather than have separate schools for them,” said McLaughlin, whose schools have seen strong growth and — in contrast to national trends — little learning loss during the Covid-19 pandemic, as evidenced by standardized testing.

“Ensuring every school can support students with identified special needs is a vital part of our Catholic mission, to serve all who wish to come to our schools,” said Rigg.

Along with expanding access, school administrators with whom OSV News spoke are focused on addressing both mental health and school security concerns.

While their students are not immune from national increases in mental health challenges — a trend highlighted by Surgeon General Vivek Murthy in a 2021 advisory — Catholic schools, equipped with psychological and spiritual resources, can provide a strongly supportive environment for students and families navigating such issues.

“Often we hear families say, ‘Thank God this happened in a Catholic school, because there is a community of care,'” said Rigg. “(The) community will rally around a family in crisis.”

School security also is a priority for Rigg, given the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, which killed 17.

“That weighs heavily on the psyche of everyone in South Florida,” said Rigg, whose safety investments include on-site police officers, cameras and enhanced standards for ensuring campus doors are locked appropriately.

But the biggest draw at many schools is the fundamental nature of Catholic education itself, said experts.

“When you create the type of Catholic culture that people want to be part of, you don’t have to worry about enrollment,” said Kevin Ferdinandt, headmaster of St. Agnes School in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The preK-12 school draws students from dozens of area ZIP codes, drawing from “a really broad area” and functioning “a lot like a regional school,” he told OSV News.

Admitting that St. Agnes had “almost closed in 2007” due to financial struggles, Ferdinandt said the school revisited its roots — and bore fruit as a result.

“We’ve got a very clear mission, and we serve Catholic families that are really serious about engaging their kids in education, and making sure their kids get a chance to learn what we as Catholics really believe,” he said. “If we’re going to call ourselves a Catholic school and not be serious about teaching the faith … then we’re just private schools with a religion department. We worked hard for a lot of years to establish an extraordinary student and faculty culture (of Catholic education), and with that came the success of our school.”

“Our first role as Catholic schools is forming disciples,” said Snyder. “We are a ministry of the Church, and we want to form children who love Jesus Christ.”

—Gina Christian, OSV News

U.S. Catholic Dioceses leading the ‘green revolution’ championed by popes

Posted on by Our Sunday Visitor

Many Catholics, increasingly aware of the environmental impact of fossil fuels, are at the forefront of a “green revolution,” heeding the call of several popes to explore and implement alternatives.

As the 2023 Season of Creation (Sept. 1-Oct. 4) begins, OSV News discovered what some Catholic dioceses and organizations are doing to become better caretakers of the earth.

In the Diocese of Brooklyn, New York, the Laudato Si Corporation — a green energy initiative to generate renewable energy, managed by Catholic Charities of Brooklyn and Queens’ Progress of Peoples Development Corporation — is quite obviously inspired by Pope Francis’ landmark 2015 ecological encyclical, “Laudato Si’.”

“The goal at the beginning was to leverage our work developing affordable housing — for more than 50 years, at that point — with sustainable development,” David Downs, a vice president at Catholic Charities and director of the Laudato Si Corporation, told OSV News.

The corporation worked with a variety of different partners to assess the viability of installing solar panels on the rooftops of 30 Catholic Charities-owned residential buildings in Brooklyn and Queens, New York. The assessment narrowed to about five properties and launched with a test pilot project.

The first installation took place in June 2021.

“We would love to do this on every building where it makes financial sense,” Downs said. “The goal is to get it to a place where we have no work left to do.”

Some buildings may not qualify, such as those nearing the end of their life spans or restricted by local covenants. But solar-equipped buildings can generate income to invest in other projects. Some of the energy produced is kept; some goes to the power grid; and some is returned to residents in the form of adjusted bills.

Battery storage of power also is being explored.

“We are certainly excited to try to incorporate this into all of our existing buildings, as well as when we build new,” Downs said. “All of our new buildings have solar from the beginning at this point.”

The Department of Energy website reports there are over 1 million solar installations across the U.S., and that “the solar resource of the United States is enormous … just one hour of noontime summer sun is equal to the annual U.S. electricity demand.”

As the department also notes, solar panels can reduce electrical bills, potentially increase property resale value and decrease carbon footprints.

On the 1990 World Day of Peace, St. John Paul II cautioned, “Industrial waste, the burning of fossil fuels, unrestricted deforestation … all of these are known to harm the atmosphere and environment.”

Pope Benedict XVI, often dubbed “the Green Pope,” in 2008 oversaw the installation of 2,400 solar panels on the roof of the Paul VI Audience Hall.

Advocating for the switch to cleaner energy at a June 2018 Pontifical Academy of Sciences conference, Pope Francis urged, “we need to talk together — industry, investors, researchers and consumers — about transition and the search for alternatives. Civilization requires energy, but energy must not destroy civilization!”

In 2020, the Vatican committed to achieving its own net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

As of May 2022, only about two dozen U.S. Catholic dioceses — out of 194 territorial archdioceses and dioceses, the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services and the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter — had expressed a commitment to the Vatican’s multiyear, churchwide Laudato Si’ Action Platform, according to the National Catholic Reporter.

But in the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, a thriving community of almost 450,000 Catholics in 70 parishes, care for creation is very much a priority of Bishop Michael F. Burbidge.

“We know this is a major emphasis of our Holy Father, Pope Francis, reminding us that we all, as children of God, are stewards of creation — and we must have a common care; care for our common home, and be united in that,” said Bishop Burbidge in the Aug. 23 edition of his “Walk Humbly” podcast.

“In our diocese, we want to have the message of ‘Laudato Si” in front of us — and we’re doing some great work. Currently, our diocese has four parishes with operational solar rooftops,” Bishop Burbidge shared.

Five new solar panel projects are planned for a high school, three parish schools and a retreat center within the diocese.

“Our diocese has also currently signed five power purchase agreements — meaning a joint contract to collective bargain on energy pricing, which will be solar if the feasibility study is successful,” he said. “The savings will be significant.”

Bishop Burbidge added, “The diocese has supported numerous parishes with energy-saving facility projects across Northern Virginia. And our office for parish construction is also doing audits: how can we be more conservative in our use of energy; how can we take good care of the environment, and even save some funds along the way?”

Across the Potomac River in Washington, the mission of Catholic Energies, launched in 2016, is apparent from its name. A program of the Catholic Climate Covenant — a nonprofit formed with the help of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops that, with 20 national partners, guides the U.S. church’s response to climate change — Catholic Energies and its partner Mission Energy began with simple energy efficiency projects.

Dan Misleh, the covenant’s founding executive director and visionary behind Catholic Energies, told OSV News he knew that “if we could help Catholics facilities reduce their energy cost, then we would have their attention.”

A strategic adjustment was soon required.

“We started with energy efficiency, thinking that that would be the road to making this happen,” Misleh recalled. “But a lot of Catholic institutions were asking for solar … so we just sort of shifted over to what the market was demanding.”

Dan Last, CEO of Mission Energy, told OSV News he found their joint customers were positively zealous. He said the initiative has since grown to 40 projects in 14 states and Puerto Rico. Misleh added that current ventures include the Diocese of San Diego, the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and the Diocese of Davenport, Iowa.

“Solar was, ‘We want to do this. This is a thing that we are committed to doing,'” Last recalled. “It was just a different mindset.”

Longevity and return on investment is an obvious attraction.

“Solar is there. It’s there for 30 years; 40 years; or longer,” Last explained. “It’s going to continue to provide benefits. It’s going to continue to insulate these organizations from price shocks, as we saw after the (Ukraine) war began last year, and some of the uptick in pricing all over the country.”

Saving both money and the planet are major plusses — but Misleh identified an evangelical reason, too.

“This is what young people are looking for. They want to see their Catholic Church demonstrating that they are concerned about their future,” said Misleh. “If we want to retain or draw back young people into our faith, this should be one of the things that we ought to focus on.”

And for those still hesitating to “go green,” Last has a final word of encouraging advice: “It’s easier than you think it is.”

— Kimberley Heatherington, OSV News

 

U.S. Catholic bishops call on faithful to pray for Pope Francis’ recovery during hospitalization

Posted on by Our Sunday Visitor

After the Vatican said Pope Francis was hospitalized for a pulmonary infection March 29, Catholic bishops in the United States called on the faithful to pray for the Holy Father’s recovery.

“On behalf of my brother bishops, I invite all the faithful to pause, if possible before the Blessed Sacrament, and pray for his speedy recovery,” Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Servicesand president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said in a March 29 statement. “May our dear shepherd and all those in need of healing experience the comfort of Christ.”

Pope Francis went to Rome’s Gemelli hospital March 29 after having difficulty breathing. The pontiff was diagnosed with a respiratory infection that will be treated in the hospital for several days, the Vatican press office said. In an update on Pope Francis’ condition March 30, the Vatican press office said his “clinical picture is progressively improving and he is continuing with his planned treatment.”

The statement also said after breakfast, the pope read newspapers and resumed work, as well as prayed in a private chapel in the hospital and received the Eucharist.

“Pope Francis is touched by the many messages he’s received and expresses his gratitude for the closeness and prayer,” the press office said.

Other U.S. bishops offered their own individual well wishes and calls for prayers for Pope Francis’ recovery as well.

New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan wrote on Twitter that he has been “following the updates on the Holy Father through the media.”

“Please join me in keeping him in prayer for a speedy return to health!” Cardinal Dolan wrote.

Archbishop Nelson Pérez of Philadelphia wrote in a statement that he was “saddened” by the news of Pope Francis’ hospitalization, and asked the faithful to join him in “prayer for the intention of the Holy Father’s good health.”

“The Universal Church is deeply blessed by his ministry,” Archbishop Perez wrote. “He is a man of deep compassion, humility, and strength.”

Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago called on the faithful to pray “for the swift and complete recovery of the Holy Father.”

“Over the past month, people around the world prayed millions of Hail Marys to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Holy Father’s election to the chair of Peter. We responded then to Pope Francis’s often repeated request to pray for him,” he said in a statement. “Let us continue our prayers, this time for the return of this extraordinary shepherd to good health and to his work of spreading the joy of God’s love and mercy.”

Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles wrote in a tweet that “we entrust him to the tender care of Our Lady of Guadalupe and we ask that she keep him close in her love.”

— Kate Scanlon, OSV News

 

U.S. bishops vote to accept Eucharist document

Posted on by Submitted Article

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops voted overwhelmingly to accept the document “The Mystery of the Eucharist in the Life of the Church” during the afternoon session of their fall meeting Nov. 17.

The vote, which is held in a secret electronic ballot, was 222 in favor to eight against, with three abstentions.

To pass, two-thirds of the bishops had to vote in favor of the document.

This vote total was even more lopsided than the June vote to move forward with the drafting of the document. In June, the bishops voted 168 to 55 to move forward with the document.

Initially, it was speculated that the document would provide explicit directives on who and who is not eligible to receive the Eucharist. Particularly, it was feared that the bishops would use the document to rebuke Catholic politicians who are in favor of abortion rights.

President Joe Biden, the second Catholic president of the United States, has publicly supported a right to legal abortion throughout the entirety of a pregnancy. During his presidential campaign, he broke from several decades of his past beliefs and announced that he was now opposed to the Hyde Amendment.

The final draft of the document does not make explicit mention of denying the sacrament from certain high-profile Catholics, and instead focuses on the importance of teaching the Real Presence of the Eucharist and the Eucharist as a tool for evangelization.

The two sections of the document are “The Gift,” which centers on the Eucharist as a gift from Christ through his incarnation, death, and resurrection, and  “Our Response,” which focuses on gratitude for the gift of the Eucharist, the role the laity play in regards to reception of the Eucharist, and the importance of the Eucharist in conversion.

—Christine Rousselle, Catholic News Agency

U.S. Bishops urge extension of Temporary Protected Status for Haiti

Posted on by Mary-Margaret Carroll

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Office of Migration and Refugee Services (USCCB/MRS), released its report today, entitled Haiti’s Ongoing Road to Recovery: The Necessity of an Extension of Temporary Protected Status, recommending the U.S. government extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haiti.

Bishop Joe S. Vásquez of Austin, Texas, Chairman of the USCCB Committee on Migration, in a letter introducing the report, states: “[W]hile conditions in Haiti are improving, the country is not yet in a position where it can adequately and safely accept return of the estimated 50,000 Haitian nationals who have received TPS.”

A delegation from USCCB/MRS traveled to Haiti, from September 4-7, 2017, to examine the progress Haiti had made since its initial designation for TPS in 2010 and the challenges that remain. The delegation also assessed the ability of the country to safely accept and reintegrate returned nationals should TPS for Haiti be terminated. USCCB/MRS Committee Member, Archbishop Thomas Wenski of Miami, Florida, led the delegation and was accompanied by Bishop Launay Saturné of Jacmel, Haiti, as well as staff from MRS and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc.

Currently, there are an estimated 50,000 Haitians living in the U.S. with TPS. Through its work in Haiti and in the United States, the Catholic Church knows these individuals to be hardworking contributors to American communities, Catholic parishes, and our nation. Unfortunately, Haitian TPS recipients are living in a state of uncertainty and flux as Haiti’s current TPS designation is set to expire on January 22, 2018, with the Administration required to make a decision to extend or terminate the status by November 23, 2017.

Bishop Vásquez states in his introductory letter: “We urge the Administration to provide an 18-month extension of TPS for Haiti to ensure recipients’ continued protection while their country rebuilds. We further urge Congress to work in a bipartisan manner to find a legislative solution for TPS recipients who have been in the United States for many years.”

This report and other resources related to TPS are available on the Justice for Immigrants website. Resources include a backgrounder on TPS, a toolkit for Catholic leaders that offers ideas on how to show their support and solidarity with TPS recipients, and the USCCB/MRS report on TPS for El Salvador and Honduras.

Read the full text of the Haiti report.

U.S. bishops to meet June 12-14 in Louisville

Posted on by United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops will gather for the 2024 Spring Plenary Assembly in Louisville, Kentucky, June 12-14. The public sessions on June 13 and 14 will be livestreamed on the USCCB website.

The public portion of the assembly will begin with addresses by Cardinal Christophe Pierre, the papal nuncio to the United States, and Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, who serves as president of the Conference.

During the plenary, the bishops will receive updates on various issues and initiatives. The meeting agenda is not yet finalized and therefore, subject to change. However, it is expected to include updates on: the Committee on Migration; the bishops’ national mental health campaign; the Synod on Synodality; the Task Force for a National Directory for Instituted Ministries; the National Eucharistic Revival and the National Eucharistic Congress; and the National Review Board. The bishops will also hold a consultation on opening the cause for beatification and canonization of Adele Brise.

Votes are expected on a number of action items including:

  • Three action items on liturgical texts pertaining to the Liturgy of the Hours, presented by the USCCB’s Committee on Divine Worship.
  • Listen, Teach, Send: A National Pastoral Framework for Ministries with Youth and Young Adults, by the USCCB’s Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life, and Youth.
  • Keeping Christ’s Promise: A Pastoral Framework for Indigenous Ministry, a pastoral plan for Native American and Indigenous Ministry by the USCCB’s Subcommittee on Native American Affairs.

Prior to the public sessions, the bishops will spend time in prayer and fraternal dialogue with one another. They will also be reflecting on positioning the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) for the future. For a half-century, grants made possible through the annual CCHD collection have gone to help community organizations working to empower people striving to overcome poverty. Now, the bishops have begun the process of discerning the next 50 years.

Over the past several years, including during the pandemic, the CCHD maintained its level of support for those in need, despite a decline in donations. Last year, the CCHD started a review to explore ways to renew the mandate and mission of CCHD. The bishops will spend time prayerfully discussing the best way to adapt to the post-pandemic needs and resources, while at the same time continuing a steadfast commitment to helping the poor and disenfranchised emerge from the cycle of poverty.

Public sessions of the assembly will be held on the afternoon of June 13 and the morning of June 14, and livestreamed at: www.usccb.org/meetings — news updates, vote totals, texts of addresses and presentations, and other materials will be posted to this page. Those wishing to follow the meeting on social media can use the hashtag #USCCB24 follow on Facebook (www.facebook.com/usccb), as well as Instagram (https://instagram.com/usccb), Threads (www.threads.net/@usccb), and X, formerly known as Twitter (@USCCB).