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Introduction

“Catholic schools, which always strive to join their work of education with the explicit proclamation of the Gospel, are a most valuable resource for the evangelization of culture.”

— Pope Francis, The Joy of the Gospel (2013), n. 134

The National Survey of Catholic Schools Serving Hispanic1 Families

In 2014 Boston College, in partnership with the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) at Georgetown University, published the first round of results from the National Study of Catholic Parishes with Hispanic Ministry.² This groundbreaking study, the first of its kind, provided crucial data about Hispanic Catholics in parishes, including information about the relationship between parishes, diocesan offices of Hispanic ministry, Catholic schools, and diocesan offices of Catholic education. The study has been instrumental in reshaping many conversations at all levels about Catholic ministry in the United States. It was clear from the responses and the positive reception of this study on parishes that Catholic pastoral leaders throughout the country wanted to know more about how Catholic schools were serving Hispanic families. There is no doubt that Catholic schools continue to be a major referent for identity in the American Catholic experience. As the Church in the United States becomes increasingly Hispanic, it is fair and responsible to ask: how are Catholic educational structures, particularly our schools, serving the next generation of U.S. Catholics, which is largely Hispanic?

Once again, Boston College stepped up to the challenge and embarked on what is to this date the most comprehensive effort to name realities, challenges, and possibilities in the world of Catholic schools in the United States as they adjust to cultural changes and new demographics. The National Survey of Catholic Schools Serving Hispanic Families was conducted in 2014 by the School of Theology and Ministry and the Barbara and Patrick Roche Center for Catholic Education, Lynch School of Education at Boston College, under the leadership of professors and researchers Dr. Hosffman Ospino and Dr. Patricia Weitzel-O’Neill. The survey was designed to study local, Catholic school-based, intentional practices to support Hispanic families and better educate their children in light of their religious and cultural heritage.

The study examined current policies and practices in Catholic schools identified by Catholic educational and ministerial leaders as directly serving Hispanic families. The ultimate goal of this timely exercise was to provide reliable data and insightful analysis to spark national, regional, diocesan, and local conversations that lead to the strengthening of Catholic schools in the twenty-first century so they can better serve as vibrant and authentic instruments of the Church’s evangelization mission in an increasingly Hispanic Church.

Catholic Schools in the United States in the 21^st Century

Catholicism in the United States, from its very beginnings, has been shaped by the experiences of millions of immigrants and their descendants. New voices bring hope, fresh energy, and challenges that often require adjustments on the part of our ecclesial structures. In the 1800s and early 1900s, immigrants from Europe made incredible contributions to the American Catholic experience, particularly through Catholic schools. Today, immigrants and their children, mostly from Latin America but also from Asia and Africa, are transforming that experience. This is a unique opportunity for U.S. Catholics in the twenty-first century to reimagine the commitment to Catholic education in an increasingly Hispanic Church while building upon the best of our experiences and resources.

The Hispanic Catholic population has rapidly grown from being a small, practically unnoticed minority in various corners of the Church in the middle of the twentieth century (about 5% of the total U.S. Catholic population), mostly living in the Southwest with pockets of presence in larger urban settings, to being perhaps the most significant force transforming U.S. Catholicism in our day. More than 40% of all Catholics in the country are Hispanic. Even more interesting is the fact that approximately 60% of Catholics under the age of 18 are Hispanic. Of these, more than 90% were born in the United States.³

How are Catholic schools responding to these demographic changes and the challenge of educating the next generation of American Catholics? The National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) reports that only 15% (296,186) of students enrolled in Catholic schools in 2013–14 and 15.3% (296,903) of students enrolled in 2014–15 were Hispanic.⁴ Given the latest enrollment evidence, it is clear that of the total Hispanic school age population (approx. 12.4 million nationwide), only 2.3% (296,203) are enrolled in Catholic schools. The numbers are without a doubt sobering. Even under commendable efforts that have captured the imagination of Catholic pastoral and educational leaders at the national level, like the Catholic School Advantage led by the University of Notre Dame and local diocesan initiatives to increase enrollment of Hispanic children, the total enrollment of Hispanic children in Catholic schools remains almost stagnant.

Researchers, educators, and pastoral agents may be quick to question school leaders regarding such low enrollments of Hispanic students and the absence of more determined efforts to engage Hispanic families. While more can always be done, it is important to underline that the exponential growth of Hispanic Catholic school-age children, especially in the last two decades, has coincided with considerable challenges to the Catholic school educational system and a decline in its resources. The total number of Catholic schools in the country has decreased from more than 13,000 half a century ago to 6,568 in 2015. Total enrollment has followed suit, moving from nearly 5.2 million students to less than 2 million in the same period of time. During the last 15 years alone, student enrollment in Catholic schools has gone from 2.6 million in 2000 to 1.9 million in 2015. In the meantime, 26% of Catholic schools closed. This phenomenon has been more pronounced in urban neighborhoods during the last 10 years. Since 2005, enrollment in the largest 12 urban arch/dioceses in the country has declined by 30%.⁵

Multiple reasons have been identified as factors related to the closing of Catholic schools and the weakening of the Catholic educational network that once educated 55% of all Catholic children in the United States. Most of the reasons are largely associated with socioeconomic and demographic changes, and reasons vary from region to region. Cited most often by survey respondents are the increasing costs of Catholic education and the declining number of school-age children in Catholic families that traditionally benefitted from Catholic schools. Catholic schools in the not-so-distant past were run mostly by vowed religious women who lived in small communities and convents, committed their lives to education as part of their mission, and worked practically without the expectation of wages. Today 97.2% of the teaching and administrative workforce in these schools is constituted by laywomen and men who require fair and just salaries and benefits.⁶

Other reasons for enrollment decline worth noting are the perception that Catholic identity is not sufficiently integrated into the curriculum and the instructional practices in these schools;⁷ an increasing disassociation between schools and parishes, bringing to an end a symbiotic relationship that for many decades yielded many fruits;⁸ and the acceleration of school closings in urban and inner city contexts—coupled with the closing of parishes—where predominantly immigrant and poorer Catholic families tend to live, and the negative impact of such closings.⁹ Not less important are the assorted dynamics that continue to impact the overall U.S. Catholic religious experience such as the decline in participation in parish life among contemporary Catholic families, the growing influence of secularism, and the negative effects of recent scandals. From 1965 to 2015, marriages in the Church decreased by 56%, from 352,458 to 154,450; Mass attendance shifted from 55% to 24%; and the number of infant baptisms went from 1.3 million to 713,302.¹⁰

Catholics in the United States are before a paradoxical reality that oscillates between decline and growth, trial and opportunity. Today we are 79.7 million Catholics compared to 48.5 in 1965. Most of the new Catholic faces are neither white nor from Western Europe. Hispanics are the largest group transforming the American Catholic landscape. But they don’t do it alone. Asian Americans, African Americans, Native Americans, Euro-Americans, and a substantial presence of immigrant Catholics from Africa, the Caribbean, and other parts of the world are also making important contributions. One may then ask, so what is different this time? The answer is simple. At this time in history there is no absolute ethnic, cultural, or racial majority among U.S. Catholics. We are a church of “minorities” and we must all learn how to be authentically Catholic under these circumstances. Together we must face the reality that despite major demographic growth, the resources that the Church has to meet the educational needs of the new generation of American Catholics are fewer and fewer.

More than imagining a return to a past that cannot be replicated or stretching resources to meet unrealistic expectations, it is time to imagine how to position Catholic schools to effectively serve the new Catholic populations in the United States. It is in this context that the findings from the first National Survey of Catholic Schools Serving Hispanic Families are presented.

Responding to the Need for Research On Catholic Schools and Hispanic Catholicism

Current trends indicate that it is highly improbable to replicate the experience of the middle of the twentieth century, when more than half of all Catholic children attended Catholic schools. If all 1.9 million students in Catholic schools today were Hispanic, we would only be serving 15.3% of the entire school-age Hispanic population. If the goal were to enroll half of all school-age Hispanic children (6.2 million) in Catholic schools, based on today’s enrollment patterns and the size of our schools we would need to build 14,428 new schools and have all 20,995 schools exclusively educating Hispanics!¹¹

Given the data associated with the striking growth of the Hispanic Catholic school-age population and the declining enrollment in Catholic schools, the Church must be realistic and plan creatively—and prophetically—to serve this demographic in the Church. It is a fact that more than 97% of school-age Hispanics, most of them possibly growing up in Catholic households, do not benefit from Catholic school education. Most do not benefit from Catholic education in our parishes either: only 10% of Hispanic children are enrolled in religious education programs in parishes with Hispanic ministry.¹²

Currently, 78% of Hispanic children attend predominantly minority schools, mostly in large cities in the West. Most go to hyper-segregated schools (90% to 100% minority). Segregated schools tend to be in poor neighborhoods, have fewer resources to educate, and their performance is the lowest when compared with non-segregated schools.¹³ Hispanics have the highest school dropout rate compared to Asian, white, and black populations in the country.¹⁴ It is well known that poverty is a major factor reducing the possibilities of educational achievement among Hispanics.¹⁵ In 2014, 23.6% of Hispanics lived in poverty.¹⁶ While an improvement compared to 2012 when 25.6% lived in poverty, Hispanics still show the highest poverty rate among all demographic groups in the country. Catholic educators and pastoral leaders need to be aware of the fact that about a third of all Hispanic children live in poverty.¹⁷

“Catholic schools’ primary responsibility is one of witness.”

— Congregation for Catholic Education, Educating to Intercultural Dialogue in Catholic Schools: Living in Harmony for a Civilization of Love (2013), n. 57.

Whether our energy as U.S. Catholics reflecting about Hispanic children concentrates exclusively on the education they can receive in Catholic schools or the realities that the vast majority of them (97%) have to face while attending public schools, one thing is certain: the entire Catholic community in the United States must acknowledge that the education of the next generation of American Catholics may be in peril.¹⁸

Given these realities at this historical juncture, it is imperative to ask: how can we best strengthen and use our current resources (i.e., schools, teachers, buildings, parishes, dioceses, foundations, organizations, universities, etc.) to respond to the educational needs of Hispanic Catholic children and youth? The answer requires a major analysis of current realities, the development of appropriate action plans, and the commitment to change.

A Snapshot of Participating Schools

Regional alignment for school respondents matches the four regions utilized in the National Study of Catholic Parishes with Hispanic Ministry¹⁹ to provide a consistent platform for future analysis based on the two research efforts. Most parishes with Hispanic ministry in the United States are located in the South and the West (61%) with a smaller group represented by the Northeast and Midwest (39%). The Catholic schools surveyed share a similar geographical distribution. Of the total, 63% of the schools are located in the South and the West, while 37% are located in the Northeast and Midwest. This is consistent with the distribution of the Hispanic Catholic population in the United States, yet it is different from the distribution of most Catholic schools and parishes.

Nearly two-thirds (61.3%) of all Catholic schools are concentrated in the Northeast and Midwest regions as defined in this report.²⁰ Yet the larger percentage of those schools identified as serving Hispanic families is in the South and the West where the Catholic population is growing fast, particularly school-age Hispanics. While 53.6% of Hispanics in the South and 61.4% in the West self-identify as Catholic,²¹ these are also the regions of the country with the fewest resources to meet the needs of Hispanic Catholic families.

Most Catholic schools are located in those regions (Northeast and Midwest) where Catholicism flourished during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, but today is experiencing some decline. This observation does not suggest that in the regions experiencing Catholic demographic decline Hispanics are absent. On the contrary, tens of thousands of Hispanic families, among other ethnic groups, are bringing new life to parishes and dioceses. It is estimated that between 2000 and 2010, the Hispanic population increased by 33% in the Northeast and 49% in the Midwest, often exceeding the capacity of existing parish resources. However, total enrollment of Hispanic children in Catholic schools in these regions—11.2% in the Northeast and 7.9% in the Midwest²²—does not reflect the population shifts.

These changing demographics are challenging and ever present. Observations of responding principals are quite illuminating. One principal observed: “The Hispanic community feels somehow ‘separate’ from the rest of the Church. There is a co-existence of sorts….” Another indicates that the reason Hispanic families are not enrolled is, “Because we cannot provide ESL classes, and the students have to be fluent in English to be able to succeed.” Another principal echoes a common concern: “The Spanish-speaking community is very connected and involved in the parish. Many see the Catholic school as an elite option.” And finally this observation suggests the real test: “A challenge is when the demographics of the parish have changed over time, and now the school looks different than it did 10 years ago. Change is hard for everyone, especially adults…people are afraid of people’s difference. How do you help a community see the value of other?”

TABLE 1

REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF ALL CATHOLIC PARISHES AND CATHOLIC SCHOOLS IN THE UNITED STATES, PARISHES WITH HISPANIC MINISTRY, AND CATHOLIC SCHOOLS SERVING HISPANIC FAMILIES

Many individual proactive Catholic schools are meeting the needs of Hispanic families, yet there are significant differences across regions when comparing availability of schools and the Hispanic student population. And as we observed earlier, the majority of Catholic schools are located in the Northeast and Midwest and yet these are the two regions where Hispanic enrollment is the lowest. In the South and the West, serving Hispanic children does not seem to be an option since this is the dominant student population, yet the number of Catholic schools and resources is very limited.

SAMPLED SCHOOLS BY REGION

School Types, Affiliations and Facilities

Most responding school leaders are associated with pre-K–8 elementary schools, with only 6% serving in secondary schools. Ninety-four percent reported some form of association with at least one parish while 16% noted an association with two or three parishes and 12% with four or more parishes. As expected, the majority of responding schools (91%) are responsible to their arch/dioceses. The remaining 9% are independent or sponsored by a religious order. The vast majority of respondents (99%) reported the presence of an arch/diocesan office of Catholic education and 72% reported the existence of an arch/diocesan office for Hispanic ministry. Catholic schools exist in communion with the arch/bishop and are expected to work collaboratively with the arch/diocese. Key central offices are important and can be a source of support and direction for Catholic school leaders.

The majority of schools in the West and the South were established in the 1950s while in the Northeast and Midwest the median start date was between 1917 and 1924. This illustrates important regional differences regarding the age of these schools and their facilities.

Reasons for Hope

There is no doubt that most Catholic parents want to pass on the gift of the Christian faith to the next generation and want to do it while their children are prepared in the best possible way to succeed in life. For centuries, Catholic schools have been among the strongest allies of Catholic families in the United States to achieve these goals. The still strong-number of Catholic schools in the United States reminds us of their incredible potential. These institutions are uniquely positioned to play a major role in the lives of school-age Catholics and their families in our day. They have already done it. Not long ago, millions of immigrants from Europe arrived in the United States in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries with the hope for a more fulfilling life and better opportunities to live their human existence to the fullest. One of their first concerns was to procure the best possible education for their children. Catholic schools became instrumental in giving millions of Catholic children a strong grounding in the faith and the tools to succeed in society. Commitment to Catholic education ultimately meant a stronger Church and a stronger society.

The greatest treasure that our Catholic families have is their children. As the Catholic population in the United States grows steadily, thanks mainly to the Hispanic presence, the number of Catholic children in the country has never been larger. Most of these children are Hispanic. The least Catholic families expect from their church, as well as from its educational institutions, is that the treasure they cherish most dearly—their children—be joyfully embraced and intentionally cultivated. The hope of Catholic families for their children today, millions of them immigrant and Hispanic, coincides with that of Catholic families in previous generations: an education that provides a strong grounding in the faith and the tools to succeed in our contemporary society. Commitment to a Catholic education of Hispanic children now will ultimately mean a stronger Church and a stronger society in the rest of the twenty-first century.

The Need for a Different Conversation About Catholic Schools

Among the temptations of our contemporary culture is to approach complex realities and questions with somewhat simplistic interpretations or quick “solutions.” Both ap-proaches lead to frustration. They treat complex realities and questions as problems rather than opportunities. The question of how Catholic schools in the United States can better serve Hispanic Catholic families is very complex, and it is in this complexity that lie the opportunity and the promise. When reflecting about the mission and role of our schools in an increasingly Hispanic Church, many Catholic educational and ministerial leaders often get entangled in conversations about single issues such as finances, personnel, curriculum, enrollment, facilities, or governance, among others. Soon we all realize that there is no “magic bullet.” For instance, to speak of enrollment demands a necessary conversation on school vitality: how strong are the Catholic schools where we are asking Hispanic families to send their children? To speak of personnel invites a discussion about professional training and the development of intercultural competencies: what are we doing to train the next generation of Catholic educational leaders and faculty to advance the mission of the Church in our culturally diverse context? Who are we training? To speak of outreach and marketing requires an honest assessment of the relationship between schools and parishes with large Hispanic populations: do our targeted enrollment plans include strategies to work with pastoral leaders in Hispanic ministry? Do parish and diocesan leaders in Hispanic ministry work in collaboration with Catholic school leaders? This report calls for a renewed approach to these realities in their complexity. This requires that we engage as many voices and perspectives as possible.

There are many partners involved in the conversation about the present and future of Catholic schools in the United States: educators, dioceses, universities, philanthropists, ministers, etc. But one partner that often goes unnamed or is seldom engaged in the conversation is the Hispanic family. The National Study of Catholic Parishes with Hispanic Ministry (2011–14), upon which this present study builds, heard from pastoral leaders working in Hispanic ministry that Hispanic families and the leaders in their communities want to participate more actively in conversations about Catholic education. However, these families and their children are often treated as passive recipients of a benefit that someone else gives them rather than being heard as equal partners shaping the next phase in the history of Catholic education in the United States. It is true that many Hispanic Catholic families cannot afford the costs of educating their children in our Catholic schools. But many can. And many more would be open to exploring ways not only to send their children to these institutions but also to supporting Catholic education because of its intrinsic value. Engaging more families, pastoral leaders, and educators who are Hispanic in our conversations about Catholic schools (and Catholic education in general) will lead to an increased sense of Christian stewardship that promises to yield many fruits in this century.

Questions for Dialogue and Reflection

1. How important is Catholic education for you and your family?

2. What is your reaction to the challenges that Catholic schools have been experiencing in the last few decades? What are you doing (or can you do) to respond to these realities?

3. What must be done to engage leaders in Catholic schools, dioceses, and parishes to be more aware of the potential that Hispanic families and their children have to bring new life to Catholic schools?

About the Study

Methodology

The initial database for Catholic schools serving Hispanic families, created in June 2014, is based on the research associated with the National Study of Catholic Parishes with Hispanic Ministry.²³ This study found that the majority of parishes with Hispanic ministry are located in the South (38%) and the West (23%), with only 15% in the Northeast and 24% in the Midwest. The schools selected for the National Survey of Catholic Schools Serving Hispanic Families were predominantly elementary and initially identified as having a direct relationship with parishes with Hispanic ministry, administratively and/or geographically. This original database yielded more than 1,500 Catholic schools nationally. The research procured contact information including principal names, postal addresses, and e-mail addresses. Updates to the database included notations of changes in leadership and the removal of recently closed schools.

Identified schools were organized by arch/diocese and represented more than 150 Catholic arch/dioceses, about 85% of the 178 Latin Rite Catholic arch/dioceses in the United States. Superintendents of Catholic schools (equivalents) in identified arch/dioceses were individually contacted and invited to amend the school list by adding omitted schools or removing closed schools. Also, superintendents were invited to encourage survey participation by school leaders in their arch/dioceses. The final survey sample included 1,488 Catholic schools, or 22.7% of all Catholic schools in the U.S.

In June 2014 school principals (or their equivalents) received, electronically, a formal invitation to participate in the study and a link to the survey. All responding principals signed a consent form and all survey mailings were followed with monthly electronic reminders, a paper postcard in September 2014, and some follow-up phone calls to answer participants’ questions regarding the electronic platform. Data collection closed in November 2014. The survey was designed by the principal investigators and hosted by Boston College on a secure site using Qualtrics. The Boston College Institutional Review Board approved all materials and research activity.

In total, 656 schools responded to the survey, repre-senting 44% of all schools in the study sample and about 10% of the current 6,568 Catholic schools in the country. These responding schools are located in 130 arch/dioceses, which comprise about 73% of all Latin Rite Catholic dioceses in the United States, serving approximately 9% of the overall U.S. Catholic school population (174,000 students).

The survey design focused on the collection of descriptive information regarding demographic and educational facts that would yield realistic and illustrative results. Many of the questions focused on objective data such as enrollments or tuitions; other questions asked for listings of services, programs, and initiatives as well as respondents’ perceptions regarding the status of reported programs and initiatives. This data highlights the critical characteristics of parochial and independent Catholic schools which are identified as serving Hispanic families.

The characteristics described include: elements of an inclusive Catholic culture; curricular, instructional, and liturgical practices; governance structures and practices; intercultural competencies of leadership and staff; support provided by arch/diocesan offices and parishes, especially through Hispanic ministry; and mechanisms of collaboration between parishes and schools. Each of these is viewed as a key descriptor of the attributes of an effective Catholic school that seeks to serve and engage Hispanic families.²⁴ Equally important is the data pertaining to the purposeful management of enrollment, marketing, and financial assistance strategies, central to the business of Catholic schools. ■