Educator challenges Church, parents

Historically, parents have sent their children to Catholic schools because of their reputation for providing a quality education.

Why, then, are so many Catholic schools struggling to stay afloat or closing?

"It's a 'best of times/worst of times' scenario," said Sister Carol Cimino, SSJ. "Catholic schools have never been better, but we seem to have become a secret! We are being ignored, and I find that scary. The worst thing that could happen is that we become perceived as irrelevant."

Education expert

A national consultant on Catholic education for both the Sadlier publishing company and Catholic School Management, Inc., Sister Carol travels the country from her "home base" in the Albany Diocese, advising dioceses and schools on strategies for success.

She has seen some disturbing trends in Catholics' attitude toward Catholic schools -- and hopes to see an "attitude adjustment."

"People originally put their kids in Catholic schools because the Church said, 'Your kids need Catholic education. We need to show them how to live the Gospel all day long, in this kind of setting,'" she explained.

The Church spoke, and parents listened. Sister Carol pointed out that many still do; the Albany Diocese is home to three dozen Catholic elementary and secondary schools (including private schools).

Priorities

But "priorities have changed," she continued. Families "would rather have 'stuff' than what we offer."

She gave the example of a father she met in her travels who was about to take his children out of Catholic school. He complained about the tuition costs. When Sister Carol confronted him about what he was willing to spend money on, he explained that the family had just bought a second home and wanted the money earmarked for Catholic education to pay the mortgage instead.

"For a family of four [to vacation] at Disney for a week, how much Catholic education could you get?" Sister Carol asked. "We've got to get people's priorities straight. Jesus didn't say, 'Teach them as long as you can afford it;' He said, 'Teach them.'"

Values in education

She also countered many parents' belief that enrolling their children in parish religious education programs is equal to sending them to Catholic schools.

"Imagine getting 12 years of religious instruction, five hours a day -- what a difference that makes," Sister Carol said.

She cited a study earlier this year by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) in which 76 percent of Catholic parents agreed with the statement that "Catholic schools are better at teaching good morals and values than public schools."

Having taught religious education herself, Sister Carol noted that parish catechists do a fine job but face many challenges: "You get kids after school; how's an eight-year-old feeling after school? You get them on Saturday; what else is going on on Saturday? You get high-schoolers and say, 'You've got to stay an hour extra after Mass on Sunday.' I feel a lot of sympathy for people who do parish religious education."

Coke Classic

The expert believes the Coca-Cola Co. provides the best example of what direction the Church must take to save its Catholic schools: When Coke changed its formula in 1985, it was a marketing disaster.

It turned out that consumers liked "classic Coke" better than "new Coke," and, within months, the company switched back.

Sister Carol thinks the Catholic Church must do the same: "We have to go back to 'Catholic classic.'"

Making choices

To her, that means making two major choices: First, dioceses must commit to funding Catholic schools so that needy children can attend; second, dioceses must build new schools in the growing suburban areas where the Catholic population has relocated.

"The only thing we can ever give the poor, as a Church, is an education. That is the only empowerment poor people really need," she explained, citing the adage of giving someone a fish versus teaching him to fish, which lasts a lifetime.

"In this Diocese, the number of Catholics is increasing. Why aren't schools being built?" she asked. In the suburbs, "where the people are, there are no schools. We need to build schools where there are Catholics."

Finances

Funding inner-city Catholic schools and building new ones in growing areas would mean an immense financial commitment from the Albany Diocese and from families.

But Sister Carol argued that Catholics have readily given millions to Hurricane Katrina and tsunami relief; if Catholic education were emphasized as a priority, people would donate to them, too.

"If you build it, they will come," she said of parents choosing to send their students to the schools.

New models

Sister Carol pointed out that the Catholic schools that are succeeding around the country are new models:

* Nativity/Miguel schools, urban middle schools for low-income families that have longer school days and years (see www.nativitymiguelschools.org); and

* Cristo Rey high schools, which integrate academics, community service and corporate internships for students (see www.cristoreynetwork.org).

She advocates using such models in the Albany Diocese.

Pluses

Sister Carol listed many strengths she sees in the Diocese, calling Bishop Howard J. Hubbard a "compassionate man who wants to do his best for poor people" and the diocesan Schools Office staff "top-notch."

She also said the parishes she has experienced in the Diocese are "terrific" and hopes they look into youth programs to involve and enthuse teenage parishioners.

"Since 2003, 139 Catholic schools have closed in the U.S., and two have opened -- yet all the census data says the number of Catholics is increasing," said Sister Carol. "People need to get excited about Catholic schools. I see [teachers] who are killing themselves for not a lot of money, and parents who say, 'I'll drive the 10-year-old car' [to send my children to Catholic school]. I want to say, 'Cheer up, because we're going to have a resurgence!'"

Called to be Church

She sees the Diocese's "Called to be Church" effort to examine its future and resources (see stories at www.evangelist.org) as the perfect opportunity to create that resurgence.

"Catholic schools can't take care of every kid's needs, but we need to build a fire in more people," she stated.

Catholic schools "save money for taxpayers and do an excellent job. We need to say, 'Give Catholic schools a fighting chance.'"

[Sister Carol entered the field of education in 1965, and has been a teacher, principal and development director in the Rochester Diocese. She also headed the Catholic Schools Administrators Association of New York State (CSAANYS) from 1987-2003.]

Can you name nun who won on 'Jeopardy'?

In her days as a development director for Nazareth Academy (now The Nazareth Schools) in Rochester, Sister Carol came up with an unusual fundraising idea to kick off an endowment fund: She tried out to be a contestant on "Jeopardy" -- and passed the test.

The trivia fan went on to be a three-day champion on the game show, winning $15,000. She even parlayed her winnings into more than double that amount by holding parties when the episodes aired and challenging her guests to match her winnings for each episode.

Today, the endowment has about $6 million to fund Catholic education, and Sister Carol still holds the title of "only religious woman to have been a three-day champion" on the show.

Her eventual loss on "Jeopardy" still rankles, though: "I had the right [solution] for final Jeopardy, and I crossed it off and wrote something else!"

(The answer: "Eleanor of Aquitaine married the kings of what two countries?" The correct question: "What are England and France?") (KB)

Why high schools fare better

(10/5/06)