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The eight Catholic elementary schools located in the Northeast Deanery of the Archdiocese of St. Louis will together host a Community Open House to kick-off Catholic Schools Week on Sunday, January 26.  Each school location will be open from 1 – 3 p.m. Visitors will have the opportunity to tour the schools, meet teachers and staff, learn about the curriculum and programs that each school offers, and review application and enrollment procedures.

“We invite parishioners, families of all faiths, community leaders and all members of the North County community to celebrate Catholic Schools Week with us by visiting one or more of the schools located in our neighborhoods,” said Cara Koen, Director of Advancement for the Federation of Catholic Schools in the Northeast Deanery.  “Come and see our facilities, meet families and students who attend our schools, and learn about the positive ways Catholic schools impact North County.”

At the Open House, visitors will have a chance to meet with educators who view their teaching service in Catholic schools as a ministry as well as a profession.  These teachers continue their work together, outside of their individual schools, in Professional Learning Teams (PLTs).

These PLTs gather monthly throughout the school year, by grade level in lower grades and by subject area in the upper grades.  This year’s focus has been a book study of education standards, and using protocols for fine tuning lesson plans to improve student learning.

Principals are observing a positive impact from their teachers’ participation in PLTs. “Our Lady of Guadalupe is definitely a better school because of our faculty’s participation in the PLTs,” said Peggy O’Brien, principal at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic School. “The PLTs provide a network for the teachers where they can share ideas, successes and challenges with one another, providing a source of encouragement and problem-solving that did not previously exist for our teachers. Over the past few years this has brought a new level of excellence to our classrooms.”

The Alive in Christ Scholarship Program for 2014-15 will also launch during Catholic Schools Week.  This Archdiocesan-wide program offers scholarships of $1,000-$2,000 based on financial need to students entering a Catholic elementary school in the Archdiocese in Kindergarten – 4th grade, as well as to those students currently enrolled in a Catholic school whose families qualify.  The scholarships are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, with applications being accepted beginning January 27, 2014. Funding for the scholarships is from an assessment paid into the fund by every parish of the Archdiocese. Each school can provide additional details for how to apply for the scholarships, and more information is available at www.archstl.org/ttef.

The Federation of Catholic Schools is a formal agreement between the pastors of the eleven parishes in the Northeast Deanery of the Archdiocese of St. Louis to work more closely together in support of the mission of Catholic education in the North County community.  To learn more about the programs and goals of the Federation, please visit www.FederationofCatholicSchools.org.