Catholic School Matters
February 19, 2017
What Makes a School Catholic?
How do we establish, cultivate, and grow our Catholic identity? Commonweal has a great article entitled “What Makes a University Catholic?” examining how universities struggle to establish their Catholic identity. The president of Catholic University argues that over 50 percent of the faculty must be Catholic while a Notre Dame professor argues for hiring for mission. I interviewed Dr. Tom Evans, the president of Carroll College in Helena, Montana and we discussed hiring for mission at a small, Catholic college. It’s really not that different from the struggles of K-12 schools. That episode is now live.
Dr. Mimi Schuttloffel of Catholic University has an interesting perspective in her October 2016 article about the contemplative practice of school leaders. Catholic schools should view themselves as faith internship communities, she argues, that train our students about the faith, allowing for experiences and growth in the faith. Schuttloffel also argues that school leaders should be metacognitive—that is, thinking about their thinking about Catholic identity. We need to be deliberately examining how we are viewing and shaping the Catholic identities of our schools.
This is part of a larger (and longer) conversation. Dr. Tim Cook of Creighton, for example, wrote about this in 2001 with his work, Architects of Catholic Culture. The work was reviewed by Michael Caruso. Ultimately, our attempts to design and form Catholic culture is based on the spiritual capacity of our teachers, many of whom haven’t developed their faith since Confirmation (if they are even Catholic at all). Some believe their Catholic formation is complete and are too busy and uninterested in learning about their faith. Really?
In our Montana Catholic schools this year, we have adopted Jonathan Doyle’s Going Deeper faith formation program. This program allows for teachers to receive a personalized faith formation video every week along with discussion questions and a prayer service which can be used with students or fellow staff members. The program is short, personal, and relevant.
Here’s a link to one of the videos from last month which talks about Church teachings and the Internet. The weekly series can include inspiration, teachings, and humor. It sends the message that taking care of our teachers’ faith formation needs is a priority for our Catholic school communities. It challenges our principals to motivate our teachers to watch the videos. It doesn’t solve our struggle for a more authentic Catholic identity, but it certainly moves us closer. Watch the video because the message and the style are really appropriate for our schools.
Jonathan will be coming to St. Louis in April to keynote the NCEA convention and will also be travelling to Montana this fall for our Professional Development days. Jonathan is working hard to plant the seeds of Catholic identity across the States.
Dr. Tim Uhl, Superintendent
"Catholic School Matters" Podcast
Tomorrow's podcast (#29) is an interview with Julian Hanlon, the Executive Director of the Canadian Catholic Schools Trustees' Association (CCSTA). If you've ever wondered how they operate schools in Canada--especially Catholic schools which receive government funding--this is a great podcast to listen to.
Last week's pocast (#27) is an interview with Jessica Lahey, the author of The Gift of Failure. Lahey shares her views of overparenting and offers suggestions for dealing with helicopter parents. I also dropped an interview with Dr. Tom Evans (#28), the president of Carroll College. We talked about setting tuition rates, ensurng the Catholic identity of your school, and strategic planning.
Here is the link to the podcast on iTunes. Please subscribe to the podcast so new episodes will automatically download. The show is also available on Stitcher and Google Play. If you don't have accounts with any of those content providers, here is the link to my basic page with the podcasts.
- TUESDAY: Jessica Lahey's podcast
- WEDNESDAY: Book Blog: The Gift of Joy by the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Tutu
- FRIDAY: "Cultivating Catholic Identity"
This week, Dr. Uhl will blog about:
- TUESDAY: Julian Hanlon's podcast
- WEDNESDAY: Book Blog: Our Kids by Robert Putnam
- FRIDAY: TBA
You can find and subscribe to the blog at drtimuhl.com
The Week Ahead
Monday: office (Helena)
Tuesday: Missoula meetings
Wed: Missoula meetings
Thurs: office (Helena)
Fri: 7th & 8th grade days at the Legislature (Helena)
Next week: 512 miles
Last week: 740 miles
2016-17: 23,899 driving miles; 14,376 air miles
What I'm Reading 2016-17
- Spillover by David Quammen. (underway)
- Thank You For Being Late: An Optimist's Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations by Thomas L. Friedman.
- The Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling
- Weathering the Storm: Moving Catholic Schools Forward by DeFiore, Convey, & Schuttloffel
- Missoula by Jon Krakauer
- Redeeming Administration by Ann Garrido.
- Where You Go Is Not Who You'll Be by Frank Bruni.
- Moonwalking with Einstein by Joshua Foer
- Stall Points by Matthew S. Olson & Derek van Bever
- Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance
- Why Don't Kids Like School? by Daniel Willingham
- Tom Clancy: Commander in Chief by Mark Greaney
- Our Kids: The American Dream in Crisis by Robert Putnam
- The Book of Joy by the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu
- Reading with the daughter: The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis (7 books).
- The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni
- The Gift of Failure by Jessica Lahey
- Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen
- The Purple Goldfish by Stan Phelps
- The Song of the Dodo by David Quammen
- Learned Optimism by Martin Seligman.
- Reinvention: Accelerating Results in the Age of Disruption Cragun & Sweetman
- Cultures Built to Last: Systemic PLCs at Work by Fullan and DuFour
- Daring Greatly by Brene Brown
- Finding Our Way: Leadership for an Uncertain Time by Margaret J. Wheatley
- The Orange Frog by Shawn Achor
Montana Catholic Schools
Email: superintendent@montanacc.org
Website: www.montanacatholicschools.org
Location: PO Box 1708 Helena MT 59601
Phone: (406) 442-5761
Facebook: facebook.com/montanacatholicschools
Twitter: @mtcathschools
For Principals & Teachers
- If any of your parents are concerned about their immigration status and the impact of new immigration policies, the USCCB has a page entitled "Justice for Immigrants." The most relevant page is a series of resources, including videos in English and in Spanish.
- It appears that OPI is now allowing private schools to take the Smarter Balanced Assessment (not the MONT-CAS as I previously reported). If you haven't received an invitation, you'll need to request (that is, if you want to participate). It's your choice. I don't believe the data is timely enough to impact instruction but if you want to compare your students with the public schools in your area, this is your test.
- All religion teachers in our Montana Catholic Schools are kindly asked to fill out this survey in order to help us make decisions and acquire funding for our catechetical certification programs.
- Interested in coding? The Montana Teachers Teaching Tech is a new free resource. Here is the link.
- NWEA has released an on-demand webinar for analyzing student performance. It's only 10 minutes! Renaissance Learning is offering a great free math webinar. HMH has a great webinar on early learning.
- Accreditation progress reports are due March 1st. All schools are required except for the 6 schools who are undergoing/underwent visits this year.
- Diocesan principal/president letters of intent have been issued. Please return ASAP.
- Of all the bills in the legislature now, the Special Education ESA bill has the most promise. This bill passed two years ago but was vetoed.
- On the Horizon:
- 7th/8th grade days at the legislature Feb 24th
- Loyola Sacred Heart WCEA visit: March 15-17
- St. Paul MGS WCEA visit: March 19-21
- St. Mary's WCEA visit: March 27-29
- Regional principal meetings: April 10 (GF), 11 (Missoula), 12 (Billings).
American Catholic News
Catholic Schools Closing, Consolidating, and Opening
- Arch of StL will close St. Charles (MO) elementary school
- Diocese of Pittsburgh announces consolidation plan affecting 10 schools; one to close
Leadership Links
Teaching & Learning
Miscellaneous
Portrait of the Week
Only in Montana!
Deflategate?
Past Issues of Catholic School Matters
February 12, 2017 "Are We Ready for Vouchers?"
February 5, 2017 "Disruptive Leadership"
January 29, 2017 "Catholic Schools Week"
January 22, 2017: "Combatting Fake News"
January 16, 2017 "What's Your Purple Goldfish?
January 8, 2017: "How I Use Twitter"
December 18, 2016 "The 'Best Of' Issue"
December 11, 2016 "Brain-Based Learning Special Issue"
December 4, 2016 "Cultures Built to Last"
November 20, 2016 "Good News Issue"
November 13, 2016 "School Culture Special Issue"
November 6, 2016 "Diocesan Demographics"
October 30, 2016 "Catholic Leadership Summit"
October 23, 2016 "Classroom Management Issue"
October 16, 2016 "Professional Development Conferences"
October 9, 2016 "Daring Greatly"
October 2, 2016 "The New Podcast"
September 25, 2016 "The Productivity Issue"
September 18, 2016 "Measuring our Success"
September 11, 2016 "Courage and Grief"
August 28, 2016 "A Senior Moment"August 21, 2016 "Schools as Field Hospitals"