![]() “We are really pushing for full inclusion for children with disabilities, rather than have separate schools for them,” said McLaughlin, whose schools have seen strong growth and - in contrast to national trends - little learning loss during the COVID-19 pandemic, as evidenced by standardized testing. Making Catholic education accessible to students with disabilities also is key, said Andrew McLaughlin, secretary for elementary education at the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. ![]() “It’s helped our low- and middle-income folks be able to afford a Catholic school education.”Ī student is pictured raising his hand during class at St. “Florida has moved to a 100% choice scholarship program, so everybody has access to that regardless of income,” Pastura told OSV News. He said Florida’s “robust school choice programs” also have worked to fill classrooms. “Substantial numbers of people move here from the northern U.S., and we have continuous waves of immigration from Latin America and the Caribbean, the majority of whom identify as Catholic,” he told OSV News.Ĭhristopher Pastura, superintendent of Catholic schools for the Diocese of St. Census Bureau, Florida is the nation’s third most populous state, as well as the fastest-growing one. Rigg cited an influx of new Florida residents as one factor in enrollment surges. Malachy in Tamarac, Florida - has even reopened for the 2023-2024 academic year after a 14-year hiatus, he said. “We have the highest enrollment in eight years, up about 3.6% year over year.” “We’ve recovered from the pandemic and then some,” said Jim Rigg, superintendent of Catholic schools and secretary of education for the Archdiocese of Miami. While declines “tended to be in the Northeast and the Midwest … most of our growth was seen in southeastern Florida, and some in the (U.S.) Southwest,” said Snyder. “Once people have children in a positive environment, they tend not to change it.”Īt the same time, some Catholic schools saw an uptick in numbers due to straightforward demographic shifts, he said. “By all indications, families who came to Catholic schools were very happy with the community and they established relationships” with the schools, he said. Snyder attributed such sustained growth to factors that transcended the pandemic. The Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, for example, has seen a three-year rise in enrollment, with the overall student population - now at 18,400 in 41 diocesan schools - up 10% since the 2020-2021 academic year. “Dioceses last year retained 93% to 98% of students who came (during) COVID.” In addition, “most retention rates are pretty high,” said Snyder. on balance experienced a bump in enrollment amid the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a 3.8% growth from 2021-2022 and 0.3% growth during the 2022-2023 year. Snyder told OSV News that Catholic schools in the U.S. Louis, represents close to 140,000 Catholic educators serving 1.6 million students. “Our school system has grown two years in a row,” said Lincoln Snyder, president and CEO of the National Catholic Educational Association.īased in Leesburg, Virginia, the NCEA, an organization which traces its origins to a 1904 conference held in St. (OSV News) - As they open their doors for a new academic year, the nation’s Catholic schools are enjoying overall strong growth, along with a firm commitment to mission, experts told OSV News. Mary Academy, Longmeadow/IObserve file photo)
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