News

An early childhood literacy program that April Garcia has established this fall at her Catholic school in inner-city Los Angeles meets a research requirement for her studies in the Mary Ann Remick Leadership Program, but it aims to accomplish much more than that.

The program gives toddlers an early exposure to literacy and gives their parents tips on how to nurture reading-related skills. It reflects the kind of "action research" that the Remick Leadership Program emphasizes, April says—a rigorously academic endeavor born out of a school's Catholic identity, aiming to solve problems, potentially providing a model for other schools, and hoping to improve lives in and out of the classroom.

"Everything we do here is for the sake of bettering the community," explains April, who is vice-principal of Mother of Sorrows School, serving a disadvantaged, largely Latino, neighborhood in South Central L.A.

Her aspiration for a career in Catholic school leadership prompted her to enter the Remick Leadership Program, and her recognition of a need led her to propose the toddler-and-parent outreach as action research. "I noticed that a lot of kids who had not gone to preschool really struggled with reading in kindergarten," a pattern which can hinder learning in later grades, April says. Hence, she wanted to explore early gains that might be made among children aged 2 and 3.

Notre Dame ACE Academies director Christian Dallavis recently appeared on Spirit FM 90.5, the radio staton of the Diocese of St. Petersburg, FL, for an in-depth interview discussing the Alliance for Catholic Education partnership with two schools in Tampa/St. Pete.

Dallaivs talked with station director John Morris on Nov. 20, 2012, about the Alliance and the distinctive Notre Dame ACE Academies model for working with select inner-city Catholic schools where research-driven guidance and an enhanced school culture can make a big difference for students and the whole school community. There are now two ACE Academies schools in the Diocese of St. Petersburg and three in the Diocese of Tucson.

Chicago Jesuit Academy (CJA) is a full-scholarship Jesuit school that serves young men from modest economic backgrounds in grades 5-8. Following the Nativity model, the west-side school begins its day at 7:30 am and ends at 6:00 pm. The school year lasts nearly 11 months, and students learn in small class sizes to prepare for success in college prep high schools, universities, and positions of community leadership. The school opened in 2005, and thanks to the unwavering dedication of its staff and teachers—four of whom are graduates of ACE Teaching Fellows—student success rates have been staggering.

"We're fortunate to have an extraordinarily talented faculty and staff," said CJA President Matthew Lynch. "They have the education and the work ethic to do whatever they want in their professional lives," he went on to say. But they choose to dedicate themselves to the students of CJA instead. This is true of ACE grads Matt Houlihan, Teresa Haggerty, Sarah Finch, and Katie McDonnell who, with approximately 75% of all ACE graduates, have chosen to stay in Catholic education.

Of their experience at CJA, these teachers have nothing but praise. Matt (ACE 12) said, "CJA is one of the few [schools] I've ever heard of that continually hires standout teachers and individuals. The camaraderie, teamwork and selflessness exhibited in the staff at CJA are nearly singular. For [any] teacher used to being a bit of an island, CJA is inspiring."

Katie (ACE 16) added, "ACE got me hooked on service in urban Catholic schools. I looked for a school that offers holistic opportunities to students who otherwise may not have school choice and CJA was the perfect fit."

"Our mission resonates powerfully with ACE alumni," Mr. Lynch said. "Our job is to help our students discover and develop their God-given gifts. This is at the heart of who we are."

Their mission is working. On average, incoming CJA fifth-grade students test at the mid-third-grade level in reading and mathematics. Upon graduating, eighth-grade students test at the mid-tenth-grade level in those subjects, and many go on to attend rigorous college prep high schools in Chicago such as Loyola Academy and St. Ignatius and prestigious boarding schools such as the Thacher School in California, Culver Academy in Indiana and Episcopal High in Virginia. To support them, CJA offers a College-Persistence Program that collaborates with families, high schools and colleges to ensure that these young men receive the same high level of care long after they have graduated eighth grade.

CJA currently serves close to 100 young men but will have the capacity to serve twice that number when a renovation and expansion project is completed in September of 2013.

For more information about the school, call (773) 638-6103, visit the website or follow on Facebook.

One of the longest traditions in the Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE) was convened for the nineteenth time on Nov. 30, 2012. Members of the two current cohorts in ACE Teaching Fellows gathered over the weekend at a retreat center outside Austin, Texas, for the annual ACE Advent Retreat.

About 170 teachers serving in 26 dioceses marked the half-way point in the school year with a three-day experience of prayer, personal reflection, community-building, and fun. They entered the Advent season together as their Sunday liturgy began the new liturgical year and opened up a season of expectancy.

The ACE 18 and ACE 19 cohorts were joined by numerous faculty and staff members who support them throughout the year. Current teachers in the Alliance were also joined in spirit by alumni for whom the retreat has generated many good memories in the past. This annual gathering is a milestone for everyone formed as a Catholic school educator in ACE Teaching Fellows.

"Any ACEr, thinking back to their time in formation, would happily recall the December Retreat, now explicitly the ACE Advent Retreat," says Chuck Lamphier, director of ACE Advocates for Catholic Schools. The tradition goes back to the Alliance's first cohort, formed in 1994, he says. It is inseparable from the character of this initiative to serve children—and the movement that has grown from it—because "ACE is so based on relationship, on knowing each other."

The annual tradition starts on Friday with a focus on reuniting—a renewal of friendships that grew during the summer of ACE courses at the University of Notre Dame. Alongside the individual get-togethers, people celebrate that they are part of a broad ACE community. Events of the day alert people to the latest news of the ACE movement and nurture everyone's professional and spiritual growth.

Much of Saturday is devoted to a mix of recollecting, preparing for the future, and embracing the formation journey within the Alliance for Catholic Education family. Teachers' discussions look back at the experiences of the first semester, look ahead to career planning for life after ACE, and address the challenges of community life.

ACE teachers live in intentional faith communities in houses near the schools where they serve. Community and spirituality complement professional service as pillars of ACE, and all three are affirmed during the three days.

Teachers gather again Sunday morning for Mass, celebrating the Advent spirit of welcome for Jesus in their hearts, in their classrooms, and in the Christmas season.

Then, the retreatants must start getting back to their local communities—in Florida and California, in Texas and Tennessee, and many places in-between—in time to welcome schoolchildren back on Monday morning.

The Austin area has been the site for these retreats since 2004, largely because it is within reasonable driving distance of many ACE partner dioceses. Whatever means of transportation they use to attend the retreat, participants' expenses are paid for by ACE because it is such an important part of every teacher's formation.

The ACE Advent Retreat of 2012 again offered testimony to the diverse experiences and pastoral care that make ACE a unique, supportive preparation for teachers and a providentially gifted instrument for sustaining and strengthening Catholic schools. Like Advent itself, it's a time for looking ahead with hope.

Good news about the present and future of Catholic schools fills the pages of the 2011-2012 Annual Report from the Alliance for Catholic Education. That report, released today, is available online—the first fully digital version of an ACE annual report.

This fresh collection of compelling stories about ACE's activities explores successes in leadership formation, professional services, research-based innovation, and partnerships around the United States.

Faculty and staff have shared expertise in school governance, strategic planning, Latino enrollments, and parental choice, among other issue areas. Nearly 80 bishops have engaged in ACE-sponsored conferences on advocating for parental choice policies.

The report also offers highlights of the 2011-2012 academic year for numerous initiatives through which the Alliance for Catholic Education responds to the needs of dioceses—and to the call to serve children by sustaining, strengthening, and transforming Catholic schools.

During the year, ACE offered services in 74 archdioceses and dioceses. ACE teachers and principals impacted the lives of 38,000 students.

Supporters of Catholic schools will find a valuable resource in this update on ACE's growing list of activities. Paper copies of the 2011-2012 Annual Report are available by contacting communications specialist Bill Schmitt.