Archdiocese of Baltimore leaders extol reasons to choose Catholic education 

What sets a Catholic education apart?  

Gregory Farno, chancellor for education in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, believes it is the focus on the entire person. Students grow not only in academics but physically, mentally and spiritually when they receive a Catholic education, Farno said. 

“What we have is unique to Catholic education,” Farno said. “It’s what makes us different.” 

School Sister of Notre Dame Patricia McCarron, superintendent of the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Catholic schools, credits a special ingredient: love. 

“God’s love for each member of the school and the call to respond to God’s love is the foundation of the Catholic school community,” Sister Patricia said. “This love is the driving force for all that happens within a Catholic school.” 

The mission of Catholic schools in the archdiocese, she said, is “to provide a Christ-centered education that is academically excellent and empowers students to reach their potential – spiritually, intellectually, socially and morally.” 

That mission, Sister Patricia said, is “a compelling reason” why parents choose to enroll in Catholic schools. 

Farno acknowledged that a Catholic education can be a hefty investment. While some families can afford it with “little or no economic sweat,” many do need financial assistance. 

“Catholic education is founded on the principle of making it available to everyone,” Farno said. “We work really, really hard to keep tuition as low as possible and available to as many as possible.” 

According to an annual Catholic Review survey of high school tuition, average tuition among Catholic high schools is 43 percent lower than that of other area non-Catholic private schools (see page 31). 

There are many reasons, Farno believes, that families choose to make the investment, including safety in all its forms (physical and mental), excellent academics and the faith component. 

Many students who attend Catholic schools are not Catholic, Farno said. Those families, he said, find the morals and values taught at a Catholic school are important and set them apart from “other affordable schools out there.” 

Discipline is a part of it, too, he said. In general, students are “extremely well behaved,” and a “certain level of conduct and behavior” is expected, Farno said. 

Sister Patricia agreed with Farno’s reasons and said families choose a Catholic education because it supports parents in the faith formation of their children while affirming that every child can succeed.  

Catholic schools, she said, strive to help each student reach the fullness of his or her potential by setting high expectations through a challenging curriculum and a proven record of academic excellence. They foster faith and a spirit of service to others, supported by dedicated teachers and educators who consistently go above and beyond for their students. In that environment, she said, children are nurtured to become compassionate and confident individuals who want to make a difference in the world. 

Catholic schools do all that and more within strong faith communities that are “Christ-centered and where each member is treated with respect and dignity and loved and cared for and where all members strive to live the Gospel message of love,” Sister Patricia said. 

A Catholic education, she added, “is transformative for all.”  

For more information, visit archbalt.org/schools 

Email Katie V. Jones at kjones@CatholicReview.org 

Editor’s Note: This story is part of the Catholic Review’s Catholic School’s Week (Jan. 25-31) coverage. Check back at catholicreview.org/category/schools for continued coverage of the event.

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