NEW YORK—Bishop Bernard J. Harrington, chair of the education committee for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), will discuss the future of Catholic education in the United States with a group of church leaders and school administrators from around the country as he kicks off Fordham University’s “Keeping Faith With the Future” conversation serieson Tuesday, Oct. 11, at 12 p.m. in the Great Hall of Duane Library on the Rose Hill campus.
DATE: TUESDAY, OCT. 11
TIME: 12 P.M.
PLACE: GREAT HALL, DUANE LIBRARY
FORDHAM UNIVERSITY, ROSE HILL CAMPUS
441 EAST FORDHAM ROAD, BRONX, N.Y.
Sponsored by the Fordham Center for Catholic School Leadership and the Center for Non-Public Education, the series was inspired by a USCCB document that called on the Catholic Church to ensure that Catholic elementary and secondary schools are accessible to everyone.
The National Catholic Educational Association’s annual statistical report shows that there are currently 7,799 Catholic elementary and secondary schools in the United States, enrolling more than 2.5 million students. These schools enroll more than 48 percent of all the students enrolled in private and religious schools, yet, since 1990, there has been a net decline of more than 850 Catholic schools in the country. Almost all of this loss has been in the inner cities and rural areas.
Research conducted by the United States Department of Education, the National Catholic Educational Association and other independent agencies shows that Catholic schools play a major role in closing the achievement gap for poor and minority students in inner-city environments.
On April 29-30, 2006, national leaders in Catholic education will return to Fordham to prepare a position paper and action plan to help secure the future of Catholic education. The series will continue with a third session on May 31, 2006. Monsignor Francesco Follo, permanent observer of the Holy See to UNESCO, has been invited as a keynote speaker.
