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Celebrate Catholic Schools!
What is National Catholic Schools Week?
National Catholic Schools Week is the annual celebration of Catholic education in the United States. It starts the last Sunday in January and runs all week, which in 2022 is January 30 – February 5. The theme for the National Catholic Schools Week 2022 is “Catholic Schools: Faith. Excellence. Service.” Schools typically observe the annual celebration week with Masses, open houses and other activities for students, families, parishioners and community members. Through these events, schools focus on the value Catholic education provides to young people and its contributions to our church, our communities and our nation.
Catholic Schools need our support
more than ever
A message from Bishop David M. O'Connell, C.M.Each year, the Diocese of Trenton joins dioceses throughout our country in celebrating Catholic Schools Week. At a time when dioceses, including our own, are experiencing the unfortunate circumstance of having to close a school or schools for a variety of reasons, we need to support Catholic education more than ever.
Established by the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) in 1974, Catholic Schools Week takes place annually from the last Sunday in January throughout the remaining week. This year’s theme is “Catholic Schools: Faith. Excellence. Service.” Promoting this national observance is one way that dioceses in our country highlight the contributions that Catholic education makes to the Church, society at large and the communities where our Catholic schools are a vital part.Continue reading Bishop O'Connell's 2022 message for Catholic Schools Week.
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From the Desk of the Superintendent of Catholic Schools
Dr. Vincent de Paul Schmidt
As the Superintendent of Schools for the Diocese of Trenton, I am honored to speak on behalf of our Catholic schools. Our diocese has a wide-reaching swath of the State of New Jersey. Four counties that reach from the Pennsylvania line all the way to the beaches. Each of these counties have a different flavor and make-up, but the Catholic schools in all of these counties have one thing in common … they are living the Gospel values that represent the mission of Catholic education each and every day.
Our Catholic schools have stayed open, with minimal disruption, because of the sense of community present in our programs. Every parent, teacher, and student has come together to work together to make our schools safe and centers of real academic achievement and learning. Our schools’ leaders have never lost sight of their two most important responsibilities: Making sure our schools are open and living the Catholic mission.
The deep sense of community, manifest during these two pandemic years, is one of the residual effects that I am most proud to see come to light in our Catholic schools. The COVID pandemic, and all its variants, has put the educational system under severe stress. I am so proud of our schools, our Catholic school families, and their leaders in their respective abilities to combat this terrible virus that is so prevalent in our world.
How do our schools do this?
Our schools answer the call of the needs of the students in the classroom, but in the community as well, whenever/wherever it is needed. The needs might be spiritual, educational, or even social. The need might be a meal to eat or a shoulder just to cry on or a tutoring session for a lesson. The call is now and loud. The call is real. Our Catholic schools continue to step up to serve others as true servant leaders should.
To achieve a true Catholic education that serves all requires that we teach and live the faith. Our Catholic schools must live Gospel values. Our educational staffs work hard every day to support this mission and do the same.
The Catholic schools in the Diocese of Trenton are taking off into unprecedented areas of academic growth and rigor along with a continual focus on Catholic identity. I often say, “Our Catholic schools ROCK!!” when asked about our status of the schools. This sentiment comes from the committed teams of educators that are dedicated to leading all students in our schools to a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ, strong academic achievement, personal growth in the areas of social awareness/social responsibility and a sense of self-reliance steeped in a set of values which only can come from a mission driven, faith-filled community such as that found in Catholic schools. This is never on display more than during Catholic Schools Week!
Our students are just starting the journey into young adulthood within their faith, and our students are role models that are proof positive of what can be achieved by putting one’s self second. Men and women for others…just as Jesus did throughout his ministry and is calling us to do. It is on display in our Catholic Schools EVERYDAY!
Thank you for allowing our Catholic Schools the privilege of educating the children of the Diocese of Trenton.
Our Catholic schools need more champions
Rayanne Bennett, Associate Publisher, The Monitor
As Catholics around the nation are invited to celebrate Catholic Schools Week, much is said and written about why these schools are important, and the many positive ways that they impact their students, the Catholic community overall and even the society at large.
As it does every year at this time, The Monitor salutes Catholic schools and all that they accomplish in support of their unique mission to prepare students academically, while they pass on the faith to the next generation. This year is no different, and the special center section of this issue of The Monitor offers a collection of comprehensive and detailed articles, along with several compelling messages about the value of Catholic schools.