January 29, 2010

2010 Catholic Schools Week Supplement

2009-10 facts about Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis

2009-10 school facts graphic

Click the above graphic for a larger version.

Summary

Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis operate as an extension of the family to unite faith and educational excellence through Gospel values, high educational standards, prayer and sacraments to achieve the teaching mission of the Church—learning, teaching and sharing our faith. The schools accomplish their educational mission through there responsible use of resources generously shared by the parents, faculty, parishioners and the larger community. There are 72 Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis; 61 are elementary schools (29 in Marion County) and 11 are high schools (7 in Marion County). Seven of the high schools are interparochial (archdiocesan) and four are privately owned.

  • More than 1,800 dedicated people staff the schools.
  • 57 elementary schools have before-school and/or after-school extended care programs.
  • 46 schools have preschool or daycare programs.
  • 7 Indianapolis center-city schools serve 74 percent minority, 47 percent non-parishioners and approximately 78 percent qualified for the Federal Lunch Program.
  • 6 center-city schools were formed into a consortium in 2004, now known as the Mother Theodore Catholic Academies, to serve urban families, monitor and control the finances for the schools, share resources and staff, and minimize the financial burden of the parishes for support of the schools.
  • Catholic schools in the archdiocese cost more than $100 million per year to operate and save Indiana taxpayers more than $214 million each year (estimated).
  • The graduation rate for the Catholic high schools is more than 98 percent (in four years or less), and more than 97 percent of graduates go on to higher education.
  • 22 National Blue Ribbons have been earned by schools in the archdiocese since 2003 through the No Child Left Behind Blue Ribbon School program.
  • 25 schools in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis have earned a total of 31 Blue Ribbons since 1985, the most by any archdiocese in the country.
  • Schools are using information technology in instruction, and see replacement and renewal and training for technology as a high priority.
  • Sixteen elementary schools are currently involved in a four-year Strategic Management and Development Process to build their capacity for strategic planning, attract enrollment and raise funds toward their preferred future.

The Schools Team of the Office of Catholic Education works to provide guidance, support, training, and processes for curriculum development, assessment, school accreditation, school safety, administrative employment and leadership development for school administrators and teachers.

Project EXCEED Continuation and Replication

Project EXCEED (Excellence in Catholic Expectation for Education) represented a commitment to raise student academic achievement through a new set of Three R’s in Catholic schools. The project was the result of a historic $10 million challenge grant from the Lilly Endowment Inc. to private schools in Marion County for school improvement from 2002-06. The challenge to the archdiocese was met with nearly $8 million in matching gifts from generous corporate, foundation, government and individual donors. The program has implemented innovative, measurable and sustainable best-practice strategies to:

  • Recruit, retain, reward and develop the best school teachers and administrators.
  • Teacher Advancement Program (TAP).
  • Network for Catholic School Excellence (NCSE).
  • Raise the level of students’ performance and report their progress.
  • Curriculum management and Assessment.
  • Standards alignment.
  • Monitoring performance (value added assessment).
  • Reach out to children with special learning needs or advanced capabilities.
  • Urban Schools Program.
  • Latino outreach.
  • Special needs.
  • Technology program.

Through the recent Legacy for Our Mission capital campaign, the Office of Catholic Education plans to sustain the most effective EXCEED programs and replicate these throughout the archdiocese. †

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