The enduring gift of Catholic education
By Ned Vanders, Ed.D., Superintendent of Catholic Schools
The Catholic Schools Diocese of Austin (CSDA) recently celebrated National Catholic Schools Week Jan. 29 to Feb. 4. During the months of February and March, the application and registration process for the 2012-2013 school year moves into “high gear.”
As a parent or legal guardian, one of the most important decisions in your life and in the lives of your children is that of choosing the education that will most benefit them. You ask yourself many questions: Where will they learn the most? How do I help them prepare to live in the world around them? Who will be their friends? Will they fit in?
Having attended Catholic schools and colleges and with 42 years of experience as a teacher and administrator in Catholic schools, I believe that a Catholic education is the best answer to every parent’s questions. A Catholic education is the enduring gift that parents give to their child now as a student and in the future as an adult.
As members of the CSDA system, our 23 schools are part of a large organization dedicated to educating our children to be fruitful, moral members of our society. We join the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in their mission “to provide an atmosphere in which the Gospel is proclaimed, a community in which Christ is experienced, service to our sisters and brothers is the norm, and thanksgiving and worship of our God is cultivated” (“Renewing Our Commitment to Catholic Elementary and Secondary Schools in the Third Millennium”). CSDA provides the highest of academic preparation, coupled with the broad enrichment opportunities that nurture our children’s minds, bodies and souls.
CSDA offers excellent Catholic school opportunities for every child’s education! Find out more about our exciting schools and their commitment to the highest academic, moral and spiritual standards at www.csdatx.org. I invite visitors to look through the website to further discover all that our Catholic schools have to offer. The website has profiles of each school in the diocese, information about open house events, and information on the registration process. Application deadlines for the fall are due very soon.
Our 17 Catholic elementary schools offer an excellent education, with an emphasis on academics and moral training, which will last our children a lifetime. The academic foundation set by the Catholic elementary schools is strengthened in our six Catholic high schools for acceptance into college and life-long learning.
I encourage those who already send their children to Catholic school to invite their friends to investigate our Catholic schools for their children’s education. Research has shown time and again that the most effective publicity for Catholic schools is by word of mouth. So those who love Catholic schools should spread the word!
With teamwork, we can build support for our Catholic schools and provide even more students with the enduring gift of a Catholic education.
