The Catholic Schools of the Diocese of Harrisburg are enormously grateful for the support of their pastors, principals, teachers, parents and school communities for the collaborative effort that allowed us to have in-person instruction over the course of the 2020-21 school year. In our 35 schools, more than 9,000 students grew spiritually and academically and truly flourished during this trying year for our world.
Although we have said it many times throughout this school year, we wish to offer a heartfelt “Thank You” to all those who work in our system of Catholic schools. Thank you for viewing your role as a vocation and not just a job. Thank you for your tireless efforts to build community in your classrooms, whether students were in-person or virtual or both. Thank you for implementing the health and safety guidelines, and being flexible with the frequent changes, to keep all students and staff safe. Thank you for smiling through your masks, providing a quality education in academics and the faith, and for bringing Jesus to our students and their families. It was only through your commitment that our students not only completed the school year, but succeeded with their academics. Diocesan wide, our K-8 students achieved and surpassed our Diocesan goals in Early Literacy, Reading and Math as measured by our Renaissance Star testing. With an increase expected in total enrollment for the 2021-22 school year, we see even greater opportunities before us as we plan for another tremendous school year.
While we are especially proud of the accomplishments of our Catholic schools, we know firsthand how difficult it has been to provide education during COVID. All teachers, administrators and support staff, whether working in a public, private or cyber school, deserve our thanks and appreciation. Thank you for putting your students first and persevering through the endless obstacles we have all faced for the past 15 months.
In March of 2020, it seemed as if all of those in education started running a marathon. While we will certainly continue to have some challenges and obstacles in the years ahead, we finished the race and should all be proud of what has been accomplished. Here’s to a relaxing summer and a positive year ahead.
~ Office of Catholic Schools
Diocese of Harrisburg
(Photos by Chris Heisey and Jen Reed, The Catholic Witness.)
