A special effort should be made to strengthen the Catholic identity of schools, whose specific character is based on an educational vision having its origin in the person of Christ and its roots in the teachings of the Gospel…..The influence of these educational centers should extend to all sectors of society, without distinction or exclusion. It is essential that every possible effort be made to ensure that Catholic schools, despite financial difficulties, continue to provide “a Catholic education to the poor and the marginalized in society.”
These words are from Chapter VI of Pope St. John Paul II’s 1999 exhortation, Ecclesia in America. While they are indeed his words, they are also essentially a carbon-copy of what many bishops, popes, and saints have said, and continue to say, regarding Catholic education. From St. Elizabeth Ann Seton circa 1808, to the bishops of the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore in 1884, to the statements of support for Catholic education by the USCCB both in 1990 and 2005, right up to our most recent popes, Francis and Leo XIV in Dilexi Te: all have sung the same tune in regards to Catholic education. First, as in all things, Christ must be at the center. And second, we must make it available to all, without exclusion.
While this appears to be on par with the vision and goals of early American Catholic schools and their founders, it seems that we now find ourselves being carried along by a horse of a different color. Drilling down specifically on Diocesan Catholic schools, we uncover a landscape that has largely been swept up into the wider American secular culture. This culture includes the likes of materialism, radical individualism, and feminism. With such influences, as well as the addition of state and federal regulations over the years, the difficulty of keeping Christ at the center has become more than apparent.
Additionally, as Catholic schools have subsequently positioned themselves to compete with, and oftentimes lead, other schools in these political and secular cultural metrics, tuition has skyrocketed exponentially, while enrollment has steadily declined. Evidently, a Catholic school education is increasingly available only to the wealthy.
And just like that, in a handful of decades, we have all but eliminated the two major cornerstones of Catholic schools. That is, Jesus and inclusivity. What remains are essentially worldly schools with “Catholic patches,” to use Frank Sheed’s analogy. The Catholic School Playbook calls this “the utilitarianism of modern education.” The result is a race to prepare children for standardized testing, college, and a career, rather than forming the whole person in the image and likeness of God.
Furthermore, as these factors contribute to an increase in costs and tuition, the subsequent exclusivity of Catholic schools has led to Catholic education being increasingly seen as a product within the marketplace, rather than a ministry of the Church. There are, however, a few unicorns out there in the wild. I was able to speak with Dr. Erin Vader and Dr. Jamie Finkeldei, both operating in dioceses where Catholic school tuition does not exist.
Dr. Vader, Superintendent of the Diocese of Jefferson City, Missouri, runs a stewardship model in which their schools essentially function as a ministry of the parish to which they’re associated. They do not charge tuition, as long as families tithe and participate in parish life. She values the interaction it creates between church and school, and says:
The vast majority of the time, the fact that they are parish schools and fully supported by the parish leads to a vibrant relationship between the two entities—something that I didn’t see often in my previous experiences with tuition-based schools.
Dr. Finkeldei, Associate Superintendent of the Diocese of Wichita, Kansas, oversees a similar operation. She had this to say about their tuition-free, stewardship model of funding their Catholic schools:
The biggest success of stewardship is our schools represent the neighborhoods they are in.
In a country with compulsory education and a generation as perverse as ours, it’s hard to deny the responsibility of providing our children a Catholic worldview, primarily by teaching them the Faith, and secondarily by educating them through the eyes of faith. Not doing so seems both reckless and negligent.
In terms of Catholic families, let us also zoom-out and take a broader, cultural assessment of creating a transactional relationship where one, perhaps, ought not be. Having more than 1 child in Catholic school is often listed next to the mortgage as one of the top expenses for Catholic families, easily reaching a substantial percentage of total income.
Is this affecting our culture in any way? Is this good, bad, or indifferent for our families? Does anyone know for sure? It certainly feels like it can’t be good. And while I am no social scientist, I’d nonetheless like to propose a kind of “collective examen” for us to consider:
- First, is this a pro-life issue? In other words, are there families that are inclined to intentionally stop at a certain number of children in order to ensure that Catholic education remains affordable for them?
- Have some Catholic schools become status symbols? Are some families attracted to certain Catholic schools because the cost displays to others that they can afford it?
- Are we excluding the poor? How many families would love to attend Catholic school, but simply cannot pay for it?
- Are we robbing the faithful of opportunities for generosity? How many families have the means to help fund Catholic schools, but the expenses are already covered with tuition? Or rather, when funds are donated, they are spent on superfluous items instead of necessary ones?
- Are our schools viewed as mission fields? Do we truly have Christ at the center? Are secular achievements and accolades placed above faith and conversion?
- Are we simply following popular culture? Have we bought in to excessive consumerism and transactional relationships?
- Are we removing mothers from the home? How many Catholic school working-moms desire to give up their work outside the home, yet find it impossible to do so with the expense of tuition?
These are just a few simple, albeit hard, questions that really shoot a dart of compunction at the examinee, i.e. you and me. It doesn’t take an expert to see that we may be guilty of facilitating some unintended consequences here.
We have seen major strides in recent years to renew the integrity of Christ-centered education. There has been little discussion, however, on the problem of cost. Have we placed a sort of “undue burden” on our Catholic families? It may be time to learn from our friends in Wichita and Jefferson City on how “…educational centers should extend to all sectors of society, without distinction or exclusion” (Ecclesia in America).
While it may be a monumental task, removing the barrier of tuition from our Diocesan Catholic schools may, in turn, have monumental results. At the very least, it will fulfill our obligation to our children, the future of our Church, and our society. We do not have time to wait for a governmental solution, we should feel empowered to tackle this as faithful Catholics. Don’t take it from me, just listen to John Paul the Great as well as our other spiritual mothers and fathers in the Faith over the last 200+ years.
Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash
