I received an email yesterday from Brian Flaherty asking whether I knew of any commissioning prayers for teachers for the beginning of the school year. I sent him a quick email with two services I found, but after a little more digging I came up with some other resources, and I thought it would be a good idea to share them with you.
The best resource I found–though I didn’t find it in time for my email to Brian–is the USCCB’s Commissioning Service (pdf format) intended for use this year on Catechetical Sunday, September 18, 2011. There are options for commissioning teachers during Mass and outside of Mass.
Second, there is the Blessing of Students and Teachers from the official Book of Blessings. This is the blessing that the USCCB commissioning service is based on.
Are you familiar with other commissioning services? If so, I’m sure Brian and others would love to know about them. Mention them in the comment area below.
I really appreciate Brian’s question since it gave me a chance to address a real need. If you have a question, feel free to submit it using the contact form on the “About” page.
Here’s all the news in Catholic schools for the past week:
The Alliance for Catholic Education Summer Forum
As regular Catholic School Chronicle readers know, I was fortunate enough to attend The Alliance for Catholic Education Summer Forum on the campus of Notre Dame University last weekend. While I am still preparing a longer summary of my experience there, here are a few references to the conference from around the web:
Dr. John Schoenig Presenting at the ACE Summer Forum
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“The Church worldwide is in the midst of a Catholic education boom,” writes Jeff Ziegler in a new article from The Catholic World Report. But, he continues, “In the midst of this Catholic education boom worldwide, the Church in the United States has suffered a dramatic decline in its education apostolate.”
Ziegler’s article offers a fascinating analysis of where Catholic education has been, where it is now, and where it’s going. A few more quotes:
Catholic school culture, in general, is thus strongest near the Ohio River, the central Mississippi River, and parts of the Gulf Coast; it is weakest in portions of Texas, California, and in Alaska.
“Despite research that indicates that Hispanic students in Catholic schools are dramatically better prepared academically for postsecondary education and productive careers than Hispanic students in other kinds of schools, only 3 percent of school-aged Hispanic children are enrolled in Catholic schools,” Marie Powell, executive director of the Secretariat of Catholic Education at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, told CWR.
…the average elementary school tuition [is] now at $3,383 and the average secondary school tuition [is] at $8,182….In contrast, the average per-pupil cost for elementary and secondary students at the nation’s public schools is $10,297.
“What is the greatest challenge facing our Catholic schools today? Providing just compensation for our staff while protecting our families,” says Daryl Hagan, superintendent of schools for the Diocese of Evansville.
The abandonment of the practice of the faith by large numbers of the nation’s Catholics also poses a significant challenge to the future of Catholic schools.
…education leaders in the dioceses with the most successful Catholic school programs have repeatedly emphasized the importance of a strong Catholic identity.
“More than crucifixes displayed on the walls and students wearing plaid, a Catholic school must invite its students into a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ,” added Dan Peters of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph.
In Wichita, all Catholic primary and secondary schools have been tuition-free for Catholic students since 2002.
A few days ago I mentioned I would be taking a “field trip” this summer, and today I’m thrilled to announce that it’s going to be the ACE Summer Forum on the campus of Notre Dame from July 8-10. Not only do I love visiting Notre Dame, but I can’t wait to attend what I’m sure is going to be an outstanding weekend of speakers and presentations.
One of the best things about being a Catholic blogger is connecting with friendly people and organizations that I never would have known about otherwise. High on that list for me would be Ricky Austin and the ACE Advocates at the University of Notre Dame. When they invited me to this summer’s ACE Forum, I jumped at the chance. Their generosity and support has been a great blessing not only to me but to all involved in Catholic education.
What is ACE?
The Alliance for Catholic Education is a program that “exists for one purpose: to strengthen and sustain Catholic schools.” Since 1993, ACE has worked to improve Catholic education across the nation. Only recently have I begun to know and appreciate the work of ACE and its related programs. As part of my trip to Notre Dame, I plan on learning all I can about ACE and its national movement to support Catholic education, ACE Advocates.
The ACE Summer Forum
The focus of this year’s summer forum is “Expanding Access to K-12 Catholic Schools.” ACE is offering three different tracks to choose from, and they each sound so good I’m going to have a hard time choosing which one to attend:
Privately funded scholarship programs and initiatives
Strategies for advocating for parental choice public policy in your state
Increasing access to Catholic schools for Latino children and families
The Field Trip
I also plan on sharing my trip with you from beginning to end. Because of the support of Catholic School Chronicle readers, I have been able to acquire the digital tools I need to take you along on this journey. Thank you to everyone who has purchased items from Amazon.com after clicking through from here, or otherwise patronized our sponsors. Your continued support is greatly appreciated.
You’ve got several options for keeping up with me as I travel out to Notre Dame:
Twitter: I’ll be tweeting regularly all through the conference at both of my Twitter accounts. Follow @CatholicSch for formal news and @nsenger for more personal, quirky updates.
Facebook:The Catholic School Chronicle Facebook Page will be a hub for pictures, audio and video. Be sure to click on over and press the “Like” button to get all the updates.
Audioboo: With the iPhone Audioboo app, I will record and share short bits of audio as I travel. These will be posted to Facebook and Twitter, but you can also subscribe in iTunes by visiting my Audioboo page and clicking on the iTunes button.
Of course, when I get back I’ll also write a blog post or two to summarize my experience and explain more about ACE.
A Chance to Meet
Are you going to be there? I’d love to meet up with any readers and fellow Catholic educators who are going to be at the summer forum. Let me know if you’re going, and we can try and meet up.
There’s nothing quite like a gathering of Catholic educators, and there’s nothing quite like the campus of Notre Dame. I can’t wait.
