We are thrilled to share an in-depth exploration of the experiences and invaluable knowledge gained at the Catholic Leadership Summit held in the heart of Raleigh, North Carolina. This gathering of passionate minds and visionary leaders was nothing short of extraordinary, offering a unique opportunity to dive into the core principles of effective leadership within the context of faith and community.
Our team enjoyed the impactful sessions, enlightening discussions, and powerful connections that were forged during this transformative event. From “The 123s of School Choice” to “Increasing Enrollment” by being inclusive of Latino Students, the opportunities within the realm of Catholic leadership, attendees participated in thought-provoking topics that continue to shape perspectives and drive positive change.
Our national account representative for K12 Solutions, Becky Haghighi, noted “This is the second year that I attended the NCEA Catholic Leadership Summit. Both years, I have left feeling inspired by the amazing work Catholic schools are doing across the country. This is a great community with an important mission for our future generations. My favorite part of the conference was being able to be part of discussions about how to continue the growth of Catholic school enrollment. Being able to see leaders engaging and sharing their ideas and best practices in person is a great feeling.”
This year’s Catholic Leadership Summit was an enriching experience that exceeded all expectations. The wisdom shared, the connections made, and the inspiration gathered have profoundly impacted our perspective on leadership, faith, and community. We are deeply grateful for the opportunity to have been a part of this event, and we are now more empowered than ever to apply these invaluable lessons in our endeavors. We are grateful for our partnership with NCEA.
Here are some key takeaways from the event we wanted to share with readers!
School Choice Is on Everyone’s Mind
Like the ESA program we set up with Merit International through the Kansas Keep program in Kansas, many states are now giving parents the choice to use their ‘public school tax dollars’ to send their students to private schools. While there are still ongoing discussions around the different impacts of school choice, Catholic schools are poised to increase enrollments and serve more students.
It is important to note, however, that the ESA grants do have an end date, and dioceses will be focused on how to retain these students after the grants end, or if the students will return to public schools.
Increasing Enrollment by Being Inclusive of Latino Students
Insightful discussions happened regarding more inclusivity of Latino students in Catholic Schools. Catholic schools are focused on empowering equity and inclusivity. They continue to focus on creating a school culture to help embrace Latino students and parents into the Catholic school systems.
Our solution TADS (Tuition Aid Data Services) offers family tech support in both English and Spanish.
Teacher Retention and Principal Retention
Retention is always on the minds of all our private K-12 and independent schools. One of the key needs noted and discussed was the need for superintendents at the Archdiocese level to be able to have more efficient methods for tracking school population and enrollment data.
- Having a real-time view of current student data, helps Archdioceses increase retention rates and plan for future growth and financial needs for their schools. By using, for instance, the Census module in our Student Management System, Educate, Catholic schools can benefit from data insights, track student growth, and report financial statistics to funders and supporters.
Until Next Year..
At Community Brands, we know that by working together, we have the power to influence the future of education technology and create a meaningful educational experience for students, families, and schools. The Catholic schools we work with inspire us to do more! And we’re already making plans for CLS 2024 in Seattle!
If you’re a Catholic school administrator or staff, please let us know how we can help your school’s mission and growth by reaching us here.