Learning why parents choose a Catholic education

Michael Kosar has been selected to be part of a prestigious nationwide program, learning how better to promote Catholic education to families.
The Holy Spirit School principal is one of just 12 Catholic school principals participating in the National Catholic School Mentorship Program. The program, sponsored by NCEA and FADICA (Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities), is free, had its opening conference Aug. 4-7 in Illinois, and continues online throughout the 2019-20 school year. 

Virtually, participants will meet monthly with their study teams and mentor coaches throughout the year. During the program, participants will be in the company of a slew of speakers, from a former superintendent, to current educators and marketing specialists. Ultimately, principals will collect data to track improvements pertaining to enrollment and retention rates as part of a pilot program. 

The pilot program is based off a study conducted by the National Catholic Educational Association or NCEA, “The Catholic School Choice: Understanding the Perspectives of Parents and Opportunities for More Engagement.” The market research study measured the general population’s attitudes, opinions, and perceptions on Catholic education in America and what drives parents’ decisions about educational choices for their children.
“The purpose of the pilot program is to take this national market research that’s been done, and help our Catholic schools to understand what parent perspectives are, (and) how they make choices about Catholic schools,” Kosar said.   

Kosar, who is going into his fourth year as principal at Holy Spirit after teaching religion and social studies at Blessed Sacrament School in Albany, said when deciding on a principal to enter the program, superintendents looked for three things: the participant has been in the role (as principal), has demonstrated transformational leadership, and is in a school that is financially stable. 

While enrollment at Holy Spirit the last couple of years has been level, Kosar says there is room for growth. 

Participants will conduct an internal audit and send data requested by Meitler, a consulting firm which partners with religious institutions. Once the data has been received, Meitler will provide principals with key findings and observations, such as enrollment trends and demographics. 

Holy Spirit’s past independent research only pertained to current families enrolled, whereas this market research combines not only current, but prospective families of students as well. Unlike previous market research, Kosar said, this is going to reveal both why families choose Holy Spirit and also why they didn’t.

Through Holy Spirit’s independent market research, Kosar said one of the biggest hurdles to tackle involves misconceptions among parents such as affordability and standard of education alongside religious instruction.

“These are all things, whether they’re true or not, we have to understand the parent perspectives and make sure our marketing and messaging invites those parents to the table,” Kosar said. 

The combination of research as well as networking with 11 other principals across the U.S. is not only going to give Holy Spirit, but all the diocesan schools, a leg up in marketing, Kosar said. 

“There’s a whole untapped group of parents that we’re not even engaging with, and if we can understand them and learn what would draw them in, we can provide that Catholic education for their kids,” he said. 

Kosar says if there’s a Diocese built to correct the ongoing trend of Catholic schools closing across the nation, it’s in Albany. 

“Because you’ve got somebody like (superintendent of schools) Giovanni (Virgiglio), who was a student, teacher, principal, assistant supervisor, supervisor, went all the way through, served in all those roles; he’s a lifer,” Kosar said. “We’ve started raising principals out of our teacher core recently and I’m one example of that.” 

While finances remain one of the largest constraints parents face when deciding on sending their children to Catholic school versus public, Kosar says the diocesan schools offer an incomparable advantage. 

“The religious instruction piece is certainly one of those things that you have to highlight,” Kosar said, “I think you have to show these families that academics are there, so they’re not worried about that, and then you say, ‘Hey you’re gonna get that in a faith environment.’ ”