Research on Catholic Schools

Principal’s Corner

Research on Catholic Schools

•          Overall academic achievement is higher (Coleman, Hoffer, & Kilgore, 1982; Sander, 1996)

• Graduates are: 
• More likely to vote (Dee, 2005).
• More likely to earn higher wages (Neal, 1997).
• More civically engaged, more tolerant of diverse views, more committed to service as adults (Campbell, 2001; Wolf, Greene, Kleitz, & Thalhammer, 2001).

• With attendance in any Catholic school for any period of time, students are:
• 4x’s more likely to be attending church at age 45, 3x’s more likely to be confirmed, 2x’s more likely to be married in Church (Georgetown research noted by Sr. M. Paul McCaughey, O.P., Back to School Kick-Off,  2009)

• The longer students attend a Catholic school:
• the more regular their church attendance, the more generous they will tend to be, the more they will tend to give back to the community through service (the Catholic School Effect noted by Fr. Ron Nuzzi, ACE Leadership Mentor Workshop, 2005)

• Did you know that currently, 6 of the 9 Supreme Court Justices went to Catholic school? (Boston.com)

• In the year 2000, the Barna Research group did a nationwide study to determine the probability of making a major life decision to “believe in Jesus as one’s  Savior”
• 33% reported making that decision between the ages of 6-13 (K-8)
• 4% between the ages of 14-18 (9-12)
• 6% after the age of 19
• Of the 43% that will ever make that decision, 37 of the 43% happen in their K-12 years
• That translates to better than 86% of all people make this decision when they are school age

In Christ,

Scott Czarnopys

Saint Patrick School - Principal