Three schools in the Diocese of Harrisburg welcomed National Catholic Educational Association President and CEO, Dr. Steven Cheeseman, September 24 during a stop on his “Bright Lights of Catholic Education Tour,” a nationwide campaign that celebrates, learns from and shines a spotlight on the remarkable work happening in Catholic schools across the country.
Dr. Cheeseman was hosted on the school visits by Daniel Breen, Secretary for Education and Superintendent of Schools for the Diocese of Harrisburg, and several staff members from the Office for Catholic Schools. The group visited St. Joseph’s School in York, Lancaster Catholic High School, and Our Mother of Perpetual Help School in Ephrata.
As he walked through the hallways and classrooms, Dr. Cheeseman talked with students, teachers, pastors and school leaders. NCEA Vice President of Content and Program Development, Laura MacDonald, also joined in the visits.
“At all three schools, the thing that struck me the most was the intentionality in which the faith is woven into everything,” Dr. Cheeseman said at the close of his final visit. “You can feel it and you can see it. Each of the schools has an obvious faith charism which is really evident.”
He continued, “You can also see the joy in all the kids. They said hello, they looked happy and excited to learn. It was a great morning…even the high school kids were excited at what they were doing. We could also see some of the innovative learning happening in the schools, such as the 3D lab at OMPH, the broadcast studio and STEM lab at the high school…there are lots of great things happening in the Diocese of Harrisburg.”
Dr. Cheeseman is a former diocesan superintendent, associate superintendent and teacher/administrator at the elementary, secondary and college levels. He offered words of encouragement to Catholic school teachers.
“It’s hard work and it’s holy work, it’s sacred work,” he explained. “You can see with so many of the teachers that they recognize what they do is a ministry within the Church. It’s more than just teaching a student algebra; you’re teaching them how to live, you’re teaching a frame of reference that’s grounded in faith and colored by the school environment. You can see the difference that it makes. And when the teachers recognize that aspect of their work, it makes a big difference.”
Breen added, “What strikes me on days like this is, our teachers are not only great in the classroom, they’re also really good ambassadors for the school, which means they’re also remarkable ambassadors for the Catholic faith as well.”
Dr. Cheeseman also noticed the enthusiastic reception given to the priests when they joined the tour: Father Kyle Sahd, pastor, and Father Andrew St. Denis, parochial vicar, at St. Joseph’s, and Father Paul Borowski, C.Ss.R., pastor at OMPH.
“You could tell they didn’t just come over for our visit, but that they are actually there all the time,” Dr. Cheeseman said. “The kids know them by name, they joke with them, they feel comfortable with them, and the priests obviously feel comfortable as well with the kids so that’s beautiful to see.”
He pointed to research sponsored by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops that has consistently shown that nearly 50% of newly ordained priests attended a Catholic elementary school. “It would make sense to me,” he said, “to invest in Catholic schools as it has historically been one of the strongest feeders of vocations.”
Dr. Cheeseman said “building community” is a shared goal for a school and its supporting parishes. “Whenever you can have a pastor and his leadership staff who are all-in to act as sort of two lungs of the same body, that relationship builds incredible community. The strongest schools are the ones that operate with their parish(es) as a community. Opportunities to bring the community together are extremely important, finding ways to include as many people as possible. And then also doing whatever you can to make access available to as many students as possible through state or federal tax credits, fundraising or scholarships. You don’t want to have that family who wants to send their child there but can’t. Access is extremely important.”
Breen added, “The school and the parish are both stronger when they are united, when the parish is proud of the school, runs the school, and when the school sees itself as a ministry of the parish. The more integrated they are, the stronger they are. Sometimes over time the parish and school can drift apart, and the school is seen as a separate entity. But there needs to be intentionality so they can be seen as one entity. Bishop Timothy Senior is a tremendous supporter of Catholic education, and we’re blessed to have his leadership for our schools.”
Dr. Cheeseman agreed, explaining, “You have to be intentional about building community. I always recommend that the pastor and principal have a standing meeting at least once a month where you work through issues, so things don’t fester. And then co-representation on important advisory boards or task forces in the parish and school. Be intentional. Because where you have that strong community, you’ll much often see a stronger school – and parish.”
He closed by encouraging priests to make time for Catholic school visits. “It’s important to recognize it does go both ways…. When the priests are being intentional about taking and making that time investing in building that relationship, it will mean more people in the pews. It does build both ways; it does benefit both the parish and the school.”
Learn more about Catholic schools in the Diocese of Harrisburg at www.GoCatholicSchools.org.
(Photos by Jen Reed and Patrick Brennan, The Catholic Witness. Brennan is a freelance reporter for The Catholic Witness.)
By Patrick Brennan, The Catholic Witness
