A new school year for our Catholic schools is about to begin – a fresh start for our students, teachers, administrators and staff.
Each will return to a school that educates in a style according to venerable Catholic and academic traditions and according to a philosophy that values each student as a child of God who needs to learn, be formed, be challenged and grow in body, mind and soul. These goals make our Catholic schools havens of stability in an unstable and reckless world that has lost sight of the true purpose of education.
Our schools stand out as beacons of peace and normalcy where students are educated, formed and grow intellectually, physically and spiritually. Our Catholic school students are taught to understand the world from a Christian point of view, not one based on division or pandering to one viewpoint over another. This is incredibly important, as our students are educated not to simply enter the workforce when they reach adulthood, but to become all they have the God-given potential to become. Saint Irenaeus wrote, “The glory of God is the human person fully alive,” which is what a Catholic school seeks for each student. His or her full human flourishing through an encounter with Jesus Christ.
Our students have the freedom to pursue their identity in Jesus Christ because our schools provide a safe environment for learning. School administrators use every available resource to add security measures to ensure that students are protected. Principals have close relationships with local law enforcement – who are a frequent, peaceful presence in our schools. This presence helps students come to know and trust law enforcement should they be called on to help manage any situation that may arise at the school.
School leaders have also added many other safety features to our schools in recent years and are always at the head of the class when it comes to safety drills and procedures. In the past two years, they took extraordinary measures not only to keep students successfully safe from COVID-19 but also to keep them learning in school, which no other schools in our area can claim.
Students are also safe in school because they are surrounded by adults who genuinely care about them – adults who partner with parents to help young people navigate through confusion brought about by a broken world. For many years, we have been using the tagline “Catholic Schools: The Gift of a Lifetime.” This is not just a pithy string of words; it is a fact. Families who make the sacrifice to send their children to a Catholic school give their children the gift of an education that respects the rights of parents as the first educators. Parents have the right to protect their child from agendas driven by popular culture and the dominant political party in the State of New Jersey Department of Education.
Catholic school graduates return the “Gift of a Lifetime” because they become a gift to society. Our students are taught responsible citizenship and to contribute throughout their lives to the common good as active members of society. They are taught to live lives of calm and compassion, gained through a wider worldview, understanding nuance, trusting in science and history, all within the embrace of our Catholic spiritual nature received during their time in a Catholic school.
Like any academic institution, we often comment on the test scores and scholarships our students receive, but in truth, it is never just about those. The power of our schools is that our students mature into meaningful, wholesome adults. Our Catholic school curriculum educates students to understand the human person and the world by examining stories of virtuous women and men who have made a difference in the world. They are encouraged to serve others and to succeed.
Our schools succeed in large part because of the efforts of administrators, teachers, staff and volunteers who tirelessly work to educate and support our students. It is so vital that we keep committed faculties in our Catholic schools who not only teach a class but also mold a student for his or her future. However, the most important component of a Catholic school is the commitment of the student with his or her family with whom the school partners in the education of their child.
If you have not yet enrolled your child in a Catholic school, please consider it. You will be providing him or her with a learning environment characterized by safety and opportunities not found in other learning institutions. Yes, you will be giving your child the “gift of a lifetime.”
To those who have been sending a child to our schools, thank you for placing your trust in us to educate your child. It is a responsibility we take very seriously – one that we do with great love and sacrifice.
We eagerly wait to welcome our students back to school for the academic year 2022-2023.
Most Reverend Dennis J. Sullivan, D.D.
Bishop of Camden