Catholic Schools: The Little Engine that Could

A recent commentary appeared in the Wall Street Journal in which an 8th-grader asked why her prestigious public school could not open, yet the Catholic and other religious schools attended by her younger siblings could open. As I look around my city and other cities throughout the U.S., the same is occurring. All of the urban public school systems are either still closed (this was written before Labor Day weekend) or are teaching remotely, while all of the Catholic schools are opening or fully open for in-person instruction.

Catholic Schools Serving Minority Communities

Aren’t Catholic schools wealthier and discriminatory? Heavens no. Catholic schools spend less than half of the amount to educate a child than their public counterparts. First-year Catholic school teachers in our state make $10,000 less than their counterparts in public schools. Even spending much less, parochial schools nationwide have the highest high school graduation rate—99.1%, with 86% of those attending four-year colleges.

Children who are African-American, Latino, and Asian make up 19.8% of the nearly 2 million total Catholic school population, while 45% of parochial schools provide subsidized meals to students. Almost 18% of attendees are non-Catholic. Besides, a black or Latino child is 42% more likely to graduate from high school and 2.5 times more likely to graduate from college if he or she attends a Catholic school, and they save taxpayers more than $24 billion annually.

Subsidiarity and Solidarity in Action

Because Catholic schools must run a “tight ship,” they necessarily have small bureaucracies and dedicated parental involvement. Both of these also align with the Catholic tenets of subsidiarity and solidarity: The smallest possible entity should make decisions for the common good, recognizing that the parents are the primary teachers of their children. This not only requires active parent involvement but also removes superfluous or redundant efforts. Each school is run by its principal, under the supervision of its “superintendent,” which in most cases is the pastor of the parish, with an expectation that parents will be actively involved in some way.

Each school is a small, self-contained entity that effectively serves its students and parents in the spirit of Christ and also makes any necessary changes quickly and effectively. This ability to “make a U-turn” quickly was evident when schools in Ohio were called to close down in March and switch to remote learning. Catholic schools had a much easier time providing effective on-line learning and were able to more effectively prepare for whatever awaited them in the fall.

Conclusion

The Catholic school in which I teach has about 400 students. All are back in school, with the option for remote learning available and already well-tested for those few who have chosen to stay home. The process for opening our school was undertaken by a small, tenacious committee consisting of pastor, principal, staff, and parents, all voluntarily, working closely with our local health department throughout the summer. This strategy was similarly repeated by all other Catholic elementary and secondary schools in our area, and they are all open for in-person teaching.

Meanwhile, the three large public school systems in our area are still closed or provide remote learning only.

The little engine that could is an apt metaphor for our Catholic schools this fall. Less is more; and with God, truly all things are possible. God bless our Catholic schools!