Award Personifies a Narrative of Hope and Zeal for Catholic Schools

An award presented this week to ACE founder Rev. Timothy Scully, C.S.C., is sparking new awareness of an ongoing legacy that goes beyond the remarkable achievements and aspirations of one man. This narrative of perseverance toward a brighter future for kids is described well in the Nov. 5 New York Post, in a commentary titled “Catholic Schools Work for Kids.”

Distinguished journalist and author Naomi Schaefer Riley outlines the ways in which Notre Dame’s Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE), during its first 20 years of service, has worked with schools in some 75 dioceses to bring hope to low-income, minority children.

Her commentary ties together three things for which ACE is deeply grateful: this expanding series of providential partnerships; Notre Dame’s commitment to educational excellence for all children, as highlighted by its Fighting for Our Children’s Future National Bus Tour; and Father Scully’s Nov.5 acceptance of the Manhattan Institute’s William E. Simon Prize for Lifetime Achievement in Social Entrepreneurship.

Riley quoted Timothy Cardinal Dolan: “Fr. Timothy Scully — and the work that he has done in founding the Alliance for Catholic Education — is one of the reasons why I believe Catholic education has a bright future in this country.”

Photo: Father Scully accepts prize from Howard Husock, Manhattan Institute vice president of policy research and director of its social entrepreneurship initiative. (Photograph copyright Elsa Ruiz)