Schools

Archdiocese of Baltimore schools will participate in a newly reinstated Maryland Blue Ribbon Schools Program, and the principal of the first local Catholic school to be recognized by the initiative couldn’t be more thrilled.

On the most recent NAEP, Catholic school fourth graders scored about 10 points higher than their public-­school peers in math and roughly 15 points higher in reading.

Latinos account for 36 percent of practicing Catholics in the United States, yet represent only 4 percent of students enrolled in Catholic schools. That disparity has become a call to action for Catholic educators, including those at St. Michael-St. Clement School in Baltimore County.

A blue ribbon might not be on its way to St. Louis School in Clarksville, but that won’t deter Archdiocese of Baltimore Catholic educators from putting a bow on what the school accomplished.

Catholic schools across the Archdiocese of Baltimore are increasingly limiting cell phone use in an effort to strengthen learning and relationships between students and teachers.

A growing movement in archdiocesan-area Catholic schools is bucking that trend. A standout example is Immaculate Heart of Mary School in Baynesville, where students embraced the “Holy Moments” program launched by Dynamic Catholic as a pilot in the 2023-24 school year.