Sustaining Catholic Education in and for the Black Community
By Lois J. Carson, Sr. Roberta Fulton, S.S.M.N., Dorothy Gupton, Veronica Morgan-Lee, Freida D. McCray, Mary Crowley McDonald, Kathleen A. Merritt, Sr. Jamie T. Phelps, O.P., Ph.D., Brother Gary Sawyer, ECSA, Deacon Marvin Threatt, PhD.
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To attract and retain educators for urban schools, administrators and school board trustees must develop strategies that highlight the vision, mission, and overwhelming successes of Catholic schools and students. The strategy should emphasize the schools' curricular goals, academic achievement standards, and benchmarks for measuring success. Priority should be given to hiring those who embrace the schools' mission and values.
Catholic schools have for centuries received accolades for their organizational structures, well defined policies, unequivocal procedures for discipline, and clear social behavioral expectations of students. Historically, the mission and values of Catholic schools have been committed to promoting a more just and humane society and to helping students with social and economic needs to achieve high academic success. This goal demands that schools invest in dedicated teachers and empower parents to partner with schools in the education of their children. It also requires that communities advocate for social and economic change.
The research on family functioning, poverty, and urban communities is clear: a multi-pronged, community-capacity building effort is necessary to empower parents who are embedded in a context of economic survival and social isolation. Only then can parents overcome the daunting array of formidable obstacles to manage successfully their children's educational experiences in the community and inside the classroom.
Substantial data indicate the positive effects of both home and schoolbased parental involvement programs for all parents, teachers, and students. Findings, such as those of Carole Ames in 1993, indicate that parent involvement enhances parents' attitudes about themselves, school, school personnel, and the role each plays in the development of the child. This increased understanding promotes greater cooperation, commitment, and trust between parents and teachers. Finally, evidence, such as that of James Comer in 1980, suggests that students' achievement and cognitive development increase when effective parent involvement practices are in place. Catholic schools in urban communities historically have operated in ways that bind families in networks of support that enhance parents' abilities to promote positive educational outcomes for their children.
In the pastoral letter, Renewing Our Commitment to Catholic Elementary and Secondary Schools in the Third Millennium, by the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops, the bishops state that young people are a valued treasure and the future leaders of our Church. It is the responsibility of the entire Catholic community—bishops, priests, deacons, religious, and laity—to continue to strive towards the goal of making our Catholic elementary and secondary schools available, accessible, and affordable to all. Catholic schools are often the Church's most effective contribution to those families who are poor and underserved, especially in poor inner city neighborhoods and rural areas. Catholic schools cultivate healthy interaction among the increasingly diverse populations of our society.
In cities and rural areas, Catholic schools are often the only opportunity for economically underserved young people to receive a quality education designed to develop the whole person.
Research conducted by the United States Department of Education, the National Catholic Educational Association, and other independent agencies shows that Catholic schools make a major impact in closing the achievement gap for poor and minority students in inner-city environments. Catholic schools have a lower dropout rate (3.4 percent) than both public (14.4 percent) and other private schools (11.9 percent). Ninety-nine percent of Catholic high school students graduate, and 97 percent go on to some form of post-secondary education.
Catholic school students continue to score well on standardized tests (such as the National Assessment of Educational Progress) in subjects such as reading, mathematics, social studies, and science, often surpassing standards established by federal and/or state agencies. A Harvard University study issued in 2000 reported that Catholic school students performed better than other students on the three basic objectives of civic education: the capacity for civic engagement (e.g., voluntary community service), political knowledge (e.g., learning and using civic skills), and political tolerance (e.g., respect for opinions different from their own). Catholic schools are needed more today than ever, and studies have consistently demonstrated that Catholic schools work in urban communities.
The Commission on Catholic Education believes that the Church, Black Catholics, and the Black community today must strive to assist Catholic schools that exist in urban communities, to identify educational and financial models that sustain schools, and to explore new models that will help schools with diverse needs to flourish. Without a doubt, the successes of many Catholic schools today are the direct result of collaborations among bishops, pastors, lay leadership, parents, educational institutions, and the larger community.
The University of Notre Dame study affirms the direction and findings of the Commission: many models of Catholic schools are surviving in urban communities. However, it is crucial to raise awareness and develop partnerships that communicate the diverse models, because no one model will fit the needs of all urban schools. One of the exciting challenges of developing solutions to sustaining Catholic schools in urban communities is the opportunity to bring together educators, businesses, and community constituents to address this issue.
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