Last week was Catholic Schools Week, a national celebration of the beauty, power, and impact of Catholic School education. For over two centuries, Catholic schools have stood for educational excellence, economic mobility, faith formation, societal equality, and moral leadership.
Catholic Schools, including St. Peter’s and St. Mary’s School here in Mansfield, have prepared generations of Americans for college, careers, religious life, service, parenthood, and lifelong success.
While the staff and students at St. Peter’s and St. Mary’s School certainly enjoyed their Catholic Schools Week festivities, the real celebration is honoring the incredible, long-standing impact that Catholic Schools have on our nation, our city, our society, and especially on the future of those students who attend Catholic Schools. Here are some enlightening and important facts about the power and impact of Catholic Schools.*
- Students in Catholic schools demonstrate higher academic achievement than their peers in public school, charter schools, and other non-Catholic, private schools, from similar socioeconomic backgrounds.
- In fact, on post-pandemic, nationally normed, standardized tests, the nation’s Catholic school students either held the line on their previous standardized test scores or lost substantially less ground than both public and charter schools. On eighth-grade reading scores, Catholic schools even managed to score a one-point improvement while charter and public schools each lost three points.
- The achievement gap between students of different racial and/or socioeconomic backgrounds is significantly smaller in Catholic schools.
- 99% of Catholic school students graduate from high school on time, and 88% of Catholic school graduates attend college.
- 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.
- Six of the nine sitting Supreme Court Justices are the products of Catholic education.
- Catholic school graduates are more likely to go to college, graduate college, vote in elections, own a home, and actively serve their parishes and communities than their public high school counterparts.
- Catholic school students are more likely to pray daily, attend church more often, retain a Catholic identity as an adult, and donate more to the Church.
- Catholic schools provide over 20 billion dollars a year in savings for the nation.
The evidence for Catholic schools is strong and well documented. In addition to the academic and spiritual benefits of Catholic education, Catholic Schools directly and positively impact their communities and neighborhoods, especially urban neighborhoods. Catholic schools increase property values, reduce crime, increase church attendance, and social interaction.**
Richland County is fortunate to have over 150 years of Catholic education in our city, beginning with St. Peter’s School in 1868.
Catholic School enrollment season begins this month. If you are looking for a faith-filled, individualized education for your children, rooted in values and excellence, reach out to St. Peter’s School, https://mansfieldstpeters.org/school/tour/ (419-524-2572) or St. Mary’s of the Snow, https://www.mansfieldstmaryschool.org/ (419) 589-2114.
Sources
*McDonald, Dale, PBVM. Ph.D. and Margaret Schultz, Annual Statistical Report 2013-2014, National Catholic Educational Association (NCA), 2014
*https://ace.nd.edu/resources/catholic-school-facts
*https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/storage/pdf/23-ncea-data-brief-final-2022-2023-catholic-school-enrollment-v995.pd
**(Lost Classroom, Lost Community, Margaret Brinig and Nicolle Stelle Garnett)
