Marshall High and other turnaround high schools, in Chicago and nationally, face a thorny dilemma. Higher-performing students are being siphoned off through competition, driving down enrollment and raising tough policy questions about the future of these schools.
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Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
By: Alexander Russo / March 13, 2009
Many of us enjoy Rod Estvan's informative and level-headed comments on this site, and now Rod has kindly agreed to step up his participation with a weekly blog post on a topic of his choice.
Here's the first of what I hope will be many columns from Rod, on the topic of Catholic schools in New York City being "converted" into public charter schools.
As you'll see below, Rod has some questions about this.
What do you think he's going to say? And do you agree?
This week on Monday (March 9, 2009)
the New York Times ran an interesting and thought provoking article
about a new and special type of charter schools. The title was “Upholding Catholic Values After Conversion to Charter Schools.” The article
told the story of seven former Catholic schools run by the Archdiocese
of Washington DC that the Catholic Church has turned into charter schools.
They are staffed by the same teachers, apparently have the same principals,
and many of the same students as one year ago when they were religious
schools. These schools are now run by Center City Public Charter Schools
which has its own central office with a staff of 16 and the Executive
director is a former administrator for the Archdiocese with 30 years
in Catholic education. The NYT article does not discuss this, but it
appears that all seven of these now charter schools are leasing the
schools from the Archdiocese.
The article discusses in detail how
these former Catholic School purged themselves of overt religion, how
the schools began special education programs, and the teachers got 20%
salary increases. The article discusses only in passing that these seven
schools were enrollment wise were among the weakest in the Archdiocese
of Washington DC school system prior to their conversion. Tuition at
DC Catholic schools vary, the most elite Catholic middle school and
the most white, St. Anselm’s Abby School, charges $19,900 per year.
The somewhat less elite but still very good largely African American
Washington Jesuit Academy middle school charges $15,000 a year, others
cost only around $5,000 a year. The seven schools that were converted
to charters effectively fiscally collapsed even though some of their
students were receiving vouchers through the District of Columbia Opportunity
Scholarship program which provides scholarships of up to $7,500.
According to the Times Article the
Archdiocese of New York working with Mayor Bloomberg plans on converting
four Catholic Schools to charters next year. The Chicago Tribune on
Monday indicated that Sister Mary Paul McCaughey superintendent of Chicago
Catholic Schools is also considering converting an unknown number of
Catholic Schools into charters, which presumably will also be leasing
from the Chicago Archdiocese. Currently there are numerous CPS charter
schools located in former Catholic schools, but only in the case of
CICS Northtown Academy were many of the former Catholic students left
in place during the transition process. In general in Chicago the former
Catholic school students take their chances in the lottery for admission
to the closed Catholic School once it becomes a charter.
Now I am familiar with Tony Bryk’s
book “Catholic Schools and the Common Good” and I appreciate the
education these schools provide to many non-Catholic students, including
inner city minority students. But having been born and raised a Lutheran
in Chicago I am also keenly aware that the Catholic Church has a distinct
theology, very different from the one I was raised in. The liturgy of
the Catholic Church was profoundly different from the church I was raised
in and to a very real degree no matter the ecumenical dialog between
Protestants and Catholics these religions are after all still fighting
for adherents to their faiths. It seems to me that the Catholic Church
is receiving material benefits from these conversions to charters in
the form of rent and space utilization. Moreover, if it was the Catholic
Church’s intent on being able to provide free educations to lower
income students why aren’t they talking about converting schools like
Saint Xavier Ward School or St. Ignatius College Prep here in Chicago
or St. Anselm’s Abby School in Washington DC?
There is something disingenuous about
this conversation process even if the issue of separation of church
and state are effectively resolved by a full theological purge upon
their conversion to charter schools. The public sector gets the Archdioceses
weak schools and they get to keep their highest performing and financially
viable schools. I am sure the CPS would like to hand off a few low performing
schools with students who wanted to go included to the Archdiocese if
they could, maybe sell them for a dollar so it would be legal.
But I somehow do not expect Cardinal George to buy into that deal.Rod Estvan
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Margaret
http://lotterymegamillions.net
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
Many former Catholic schools are leased by charter schools, a few have been leased by CPS. The Archdiocese generally will not sell schools that are directly linked to still existing churches. CICS and Noble Street charters have had to do extensive up grades to the schools they have leased from the Archdiocese.
In general these charters have had to borrow money to fix these Catholic schools. At the end of the lease all of the up grades and the property return to the church.
But as to the question of whether CPS needs more school sites, that is on the face of it absurd. The district is closing schools all over the city for low attendance, in hispanic communities that still are experiencing over crowding most former Catholic schools have been converted already. The Archdiocese now is planning on dumping schools located in areas with declining populations and converting them into charters paid for by the public.
The public sector does not need these run down out of date fire trap buildings. This is a big bail out for the Catholic church school system which has been losing students because many white Catholic families moved away and hispanic families are for the most part too poor to afford tution. The number of African American Catholics in Chicago has never been large. Another big factor driving down enrollment are the endless sex cases involving Catholic priests and children under their care.
Even worse is the fact that Cardinal George repeatedly looked the other way in many of these cases which makes many families wonder how deep and extensive are these problems. SNAP has looked extensively at the abuse carried out by Rev. Daniel McCormack at Chicago's Holy Family Catholic School and found that even a nun told several archdiocesan officials about the child's allegations -- both verbally and in writing -- on several occasions, but her warnings went unheeded.
There is something very wrong in CPS bailing out the Catholic Church which has brought on to itself most of the problems causing these schools to fail.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
Is CPS leasing or has it purchased these properties?
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
What I meant was having religious icons present from an era gone didn't trouble me. Nobody started talking in tongues or anything. We just had our meeting and enjoyed the lovely room. I think we're making too big of an issue out of the whole thing. A solid building is a solid building. It would be ridiculous to purge the Stars of David, menorahs (sp) and other icons so as not to offend. No big deal.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
Well Black may not be a private school but they sure look NICE enough to be private compared to the non black schools.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
You are talokg about the Black School--so what!? It was just historically and econmically approriate to now rip the symbol off the pews. Black is not a private school and no religion is taught there.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
Over the years have attended many meetings at a school in Pill Hill (around 91st & Jeffrey) that was formerly a Jewish school. There are icons all over the place and a beautiful auditorium with the Star of David carved in the wood at the end of each pew. The Catholics didn't start this.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
What about the Community Christian Alernative school which is part of the Youth Connections Charter School. Really how can a public charter school have "Christian" in its name? Or how about new Chicago Hope Academy contract school opening next year which supposed to be a non religious high school, yet it is a spin off of the Christian non-denominational Chicago Hope Academy. The Christian parent of this supposedly secular contract school proudly states it's core values as being:
1. The Triangle Philosophy – CHA invests in the development of the whole person – mind, body, and spirit to the glory of God.
2. Servant Attitude – Students are taught to love God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love their neighbor as themselves. The staff models this principle with passion and conviction. (Mark 9:35; John 15:12,13; Philippians 2:1-8)
3. Christ Centered Education –The Bible is taught as a core subject emphasizing the authority of God’s Word.
4. Academic Excellence – CHA is committed to holding faculty and students to a high academic standard.
5. Family Focus – CHA reaches beyond the student, encouraging family involvement in the education process.
I ask how do you create a secular version of that!
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
[i]One thing that these charters have been doing is onscuring, for some parents, the fact that the charters are not Catholic. In many cases, they leave up all the Catholic statues and other symbols precisely because they want people to view them as that.[/i]
Several years ago (and probably still now) Hedges elementary in Back of the Yards was overcrowded and rented classroom space from the Catholic school/church across the street. It was officially listed as "Hedges Branch". I'm sure there's religious iconography on that building and non-charter cps students spent their days in that building every day. Several new charters that have nothing to do with religion rent space from Catholic schools and churches. Same thing - the church isn't going to remove Christ or a cross from the building because someone's paying to rent some rooms.
So while I have a huge problem with prayer in school and combining church and state, if the only problem is that there are still religious icons on a building (that happen to be an integral part of the building) then I don't think that's a problem. After all, we don't check our wallets at the door so that all of the "In God We Trust" isn't soiling our schools.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
"But having been born and raised a Lutheran in Chicago I am also keenly aware that the Catholic Church has a distinct theology, very different from the one I was raised in. The liturgy of the Catholic Church was profoundly different from the church I was raised in and to a very real degree no matter the ecumenical dialog between Protestants and Catholics these religions are after all still fighting for adherents to their faiths..." (Rod, earlier).
More than a year ago, we published a brief photo essay in Substance showing the Catholic school buildings in Chicago that had been converted into Chicago "public" charter schools without being required to remove any of the Christian iconography that is all over their buildings. Nothing has changed since then.
Chicago has long allowed the charters to do this, and nobody in Chicago has sued on the basis of separation of church and state. Children who are attending "public" charter schools from Chicago Math Science Academy and Chicago International Northtown Campus (on the far north side) to Chicago International Prairie Campus and Chicago International Longwood Campus (on the far far south side) walk into buildings under crucifixes, buildings which, in many cases (most dramatically, CICS Longwood) have statues of specific Catholic saints around and in front of their buildings (e.g., Longwood).
One thing that these charters have been doing is onscuring, for some parents, the fact that the charters are not Catholic. In many cases, they leave up all the Catholic statues and other symbols precisely because they want people to view them as that.
I can't imagine what would happen in Chicago if a group of Muslims (Nation of Islam; other) or Orthodox Jews (any variety, Hassidin intensely) were to open a Chicago charter school in a building that was covered with Islamic or Jewish religious symbols. Only in Chicago is it possible for people to be in denial about what is taking place, under our eyes, at more than 40 of the current Chicago charter schools.
In my opinion, those charter schools have to be told much more explicitly that they must be non-sectarian. This has to include stripping the buildings of their religious iconography if they are to conduct "public" school inside those buildings. Four-, five-, and six-year-olds are not going to have a sophisticated appreciation of the fact that these buildings are not Catholic schools. Let alone understand that that statue of the BVM out front is not officially endorsed by the Chicago Board of Education and the City of Chicago as a plugger for one religion and against all others.
The majority of Chicago charter schools today are advertisements for Roman Catholicism. CPS is doing nothing to stop that from expanding.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
Illinois charter law expressly prohibits conversion of existing private and parochial schools to charters. From the General Assembly website (link can be found at the Illinois Network of Charter Schools site under "Charter Law"):
(c) No charter shall be granted under this Article that would convert any existing private, parochial, or non‑public school to a charter school.
Obviously there's been plenty of fancy dancing going on to get around this, but that is what the law says.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
I am a practicing Catholic who firmly believes in the separation of church and state and has taught in both public and Catholic schools. I know the San Miguel schools quite well--they are indeed Catholic schools that include theology in their curriculum.
My understanding of Catalyst Charter is that it is essentially a secular spinoff of the San Miguel Schools--attempting to provide similar academic standards and climate, but without formal religious instruction.
Because I have no direct experience with Catalyst Charter, I cannot say how effectively they are maintaining church-state separation, but having observed some of their approval process, they did talk the talk at that time.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
Yes Catalyst Schools in Chicago could effectively be called a front organization for the Catholic Church. It was founded by a De La Salle Christian Brother named Ed Siderewicz who wrote the proposal for the charter. There are at least three Brothers teaching at the charter school now. There is a person from the Office of Catholic Education on its board. It claims publicly to teach in the “Lasallian tradition†which is problematic in terms of separation of church and state. The charter school also talks in general terms about “faith.†But unlike the schools Rod is discussing it really was not a converted Catholic School taken in to the charter school system. So maybe Catalyst is a little different.
But here is one definition of Lasallian Schools and the problem of claiming to teach in that tradition becomes apparent:
Lasallian schools - as they have come to be known - are Lasallian because they are based on the teachings and vision of De La Salle. They are transparently Catholic, in order to be, as the Rule of the Brothers states, signs of the kingdom and means of salvation. Their Christian identity involves more than courses of religious instruction and pastoral programs. The Christian dimension permeates and shapes every aspect of school life: tone, atmosphere, spirit, signs, symbols, relationships, curriculum, requirements, policies, regulations. As Catholic schools, they are called to propose - but in no way to impose - Jesus Christ, accepting with love and respect all the young people entrusted to their care, whatever their religious beliefs. An institution can legitimately call itself Lasallian only if it is unambiguously Christian. (Lasallian Schools Today, Br. John Johnston, FSC, Superior General, 1994)
In all honesty Rod may be assuming far too much integrity in Catholic linked charter schools following the rules regarding the separation of church and state. Since Mayor Daley a leading Catholic controls CPS who really will look to see if lines are being crossed. The issue of religion aside the two charter schools San Miguel Schools run effectively educate low income students who are academically behind, but they look a lot like Catholic Schools to this Jewish Chicago teacher. Yes this is a slippery slope. I do think the staff of the school mean very well by the children they teach and care for them greatly.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
Isn't the Catalyst Charter school in north lawndale run by a Catholic order?
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
"But overall that fact does not address the larger issue of the public sector saving failed religious schools and providing indirect fiscal assistance to the Catholic Church."
Who is assisting whom?
In Chicago, there appears to be three types of Catholic schools. Those that are a year or two away from closing due to low enrollment, those that are 3 - 7 years away from closing due to low enrollment, and those (like FXW) that will likely sustain themselves in the long run due to, what I would argue, enlightened and well-funded school management teams that seem to know how to recruit well enough to keep their enrollment from falling below 200 students.
If/when the first two sets of Catholic schools (the vast majority) close, the families of those children lose AND the families of neighborhood public school students lose. Why? Because the majority of those Catholic school students will show up on the doorstep of their neighborhood public school where there is very little or no space to accommodate them.
So if Catholic schools start "charterizing" themselves, I would not call this the Catholic church benefitting from public taxpayers. It's the other way around. Public school families benefit more, because they avoid further overcrowding AND there is one or more new public school options coming on line nearby.
I realize I'm bypassing the whole secularization argument. I think the supply-and-demand argument is much more compelling. Public school families lose out when their neighborhood school is overcrowded and the nearby Catholic school is only half-full. Let's move on and start charterizing all that are interested (Lutheran, Evangelical Christian, Jewish, non-denominational). We can learn a thing or two from Canada.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
From the perspective of at least this non-Catholic it matters very little whether or not a particular religous order of the Catholic church has formal title to the school. In fact if you go to the Archdiocese of Washington's education website you will note that St. Anselm’s Abby School is seen as part of the Catholic school system with the order listed in parenthesis. Theologically speaking the orders and the Archdiocese have the same boss in Rome.
The Catholic school system in Washington does have a unified vision, which is exactly why the former leader of the Consoritium on Chicago School Research Tony Bryk believed Catholic schools were working. Part of that vision, which Tony did not discuss much in his book, is to proselytize for the Catholic faith. Archbishop Wuerl who leads the Washington Archdiocese is very honest about this he states simply:
"It is by celebrating ourstrengths, identifying areas for improvement and working together that Catholic education will flourish for generations to come, bringing them Christ's gospel and helping them grow in their encounter with the living Lord."
I fully support the Archbishop in his honesty about an important mission of Catholic schools, Lutheran schools do the same thing. His vision of Christ's gospel is not the same as the one I was raised in, nor is it consistent with the beliefs of those who are not christians at all. That is fine, but the overall mission of the Catholic Church is to proselytize for the Catholic faith. If it is an order that runs a school or not, the larger mission is the same.
What I find intresting in Matt's post is he somehow sees the fact that the coversion is taking place among elementary schools as opposed to middle schools as somehow being significant. I don't. The issue is that Catholic schools that can not survive in the private educational market place are being placed into the public sector in Washington, New York, and eventually Chicago, but those that can survive in the private sector remain in it. Is this some type of charterized version of TARP, or what?
Another thing that I find interesting is that when I was doing my M.Ed. at Chicago's Catholic St. Xavier Univ there were very serious debates among Catholic educators about secularization of Catholic schools and how that was weakening them. Even many lay Catholic educators were very concerned about this issue. Many believed the requirement that students attend mass should never be dropped. I respected the perspectives of these teachers and understood how they saw education linked to faith. I suspect that less religious Catholic teachers may have seen the issue differently, but generally they did not speak up during these seminars.
All of this does not mean I am accusing any of the seven converted schools in Washington DC of being Trojan horses for Catholic conversion. I believe that they are honestly attempting to purge themselves of religion. I will go so far as to say that I think the staff at the converted schools will not even advise young women on the Catholic position on birth control or abortion. (By the way Lutherans from the Missouri Synod share the Catholic position on abortion those from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America do not.) But overall that fact does not address the larger issue of the public sector saving failed religious schools and providing indirect fiscal assistance to the Catholic Church.
Rod Estvan
PS it is Frances Xavier Warde School not St. Xavier Ward as I wrote above.
Should Charters Include Converted Catholic Schools?
Rod-
I think your argument falls flat because, much like you claim the NYT did in it's article, you don't mention a couple of key facts:
1. St. Anselm's Abbey (not Abby) is under the auspices of the Benedictines, not the Archdiocese. That means that the Archdiocese could never convert it to a charter school even if it wanted to.
2. It is also a middle school and a high school, unlike the schools that have been converted, which are all grade schools.
3. Questioning why convert certain schools but not a school like St. Anselm's is (to use a Chicago analogy) is like asking why they are converting certain parochial schools, but not Loyola High. They're simply not comparable.
4. Washington Jesuit Academy...again, under the auspices of an order (the Jesuits), not the Archdiocese...is totally supported by sponsorships. The "tuition" is not paid by the students', but by sponsors and donors.
5. So your claim the tuition is $15,000 is disingenuous because WJA, like all Nativity model schools, is tuition-free for its student body.
I think there is a valuable discussion to be had regarding charter schools in general and specifically Catholic charter schools, but some of the central points of your argument are flawed.