Bishop Michael C. Barber, S.J of Oakland, chairman of the Committee on Catholic Education for the U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), has joined a coalition of more than 150 interfaith and civil society organizations calling on the U.S. Congress to provide immediate federal aid to benefit low-income students in non-public schools. In recent weeks, more than 100 Catholic schools have announced that they plan to close, with hundreds more facing an uncertain future, because of the economic losses associated with the coronavirus pandemic.
Contributing to the crisis is the fact that Catholic parishes have not had Sunday Mass collections.
The letter asks for Congress to designate emergency funding for direct scholarship aid to low-middle income private school families, and to enact a new federal tax credit for donations to state scholarship granting organizations.
Full story at USCCB.org.
As a practicing Roman Catholic for many years, I am completely opposed to the Bishops request for federal aid to Catholic schools. With federal money will come federal regulations. The strength of Catholic schools has been the support they receive from parents and the parish. This will undermine that support and Catholic schools will eventually look like public schools with apathetic parents and low student achievement.
@ William Robert — Thank you for stating so succinctly what I was just going to post.
William brings up a good point: if Catholic Schools receive funding from the state or federal level, there are quid pro quo aspects. Could the state require that once funding comes in, the school must allow for their medical coverage to cover the cost of birth control, or some other requirement in congruent with the Church’s values and practices? Could the state require that all teachers in Catholic schools receiving funding be required to be certified in their state as credentialed teachers? There’s no free lunch on this one.
I remember, years back when the Monsignor in my parish gave a sermon opposing prayer in public schools. The school board had simply stated that it wanted to have the kids say the Lord’s Prayer before pledging to the flag. Never, he shouted, because they will insist on using the Protestant version fo the Our Father. In Vermont, private, independent, and religious schools that receive state funds, for nearly any reason, must provide a full program for children with special needs, physical and mental. Quebec funds a lot of private schools but also has a lot of say in which textbooks are used, and how the money is spent. The bishops need to be careful of that which they wish. A credentialed teacher salary starts at about $40K and goes to $100K depending on years of service and educational background. As a taxpayer, I would not want my money going to unqualified teachers in the classroom. As a private parent sending a child to a Catholic School, I might want the same thing. This has catastrophe written all over it.
William Robert nails it. Bob One has excellent comments. If only the bishops would do their jobs and lead their flock in all things related to Catholicism instead of following the lead of politicians. The Left will be very happy to start controlling Catholic education — even more than they do already.
As the Brits say: If you want to take the Queen’s shilling, then you must do the Queen’s bidding.
As Bob One noted, Quebec funds some private schools. So does Ontario. Educational standards and teacher credential requirements are identical to ‘public’ schools.
When one accepts government money, of course there are strings attached.
I wonder about the physical facilities, academic standards, and teacher credentials of some ‘home’ schools.
washingtonpost.com/opinions/low-income-families-are-the-true-winners-of-the-supreme-courts-religious-schools-ruling/2020/06/30/ef176d9a-bb03-11ea-bdaf-a129f921026f_story.html
“It is important to remember that the scholarship goes to the child, and that the child’s family then decides which school best meets the needs of individual students.”
“With federal money will come federal regulations.”
Not as long as I have the money, It”s called school choice!