More than 6,600 students in 30 Catholic schools across the Diocese of Grand Rapids celebrated National Catholic Schools Week from January 28 – February 3, 2018. This year’s theme is “Catholic Schools: Learn. Serve. Lead. Succeed” with events highlighting how Catholic education provides lifelong benefits for students and their communities.
In honor of Catholic Schools Week, the diocese announced that Welcome Scholarships will be available for new families for the 2018-19 school year. Welcome Scholarships provide $250 at the preschool level, $750 for K-8, and $1,000 in grades 9-11 to students who are new to Catholic schools. Welcome Scholarships originally were offered through the three-year Bishop’s Catholic Schools Initiative (2015-16 through 2017-18) and will continue under the “Catholic Schools: Bridging Faith and Future” strategic plan. Catholic schools in the diocese are also celebrating three straight years of enrollment growth and the decision to open the new independent St. Robert Catholic School in Ada this fall.
Catholic Schools Week is an opportunity to thank the families, faculty, school leaders, clergy and supporters who make our Catholic schools a success,” said David Faber, superintendent of Catholic schools in the diocese. “Every day, I am grateful for their year-round dedication and service.
Catholic Schools Week activities at different schools included food drives for those in need, assembling thank-you baskets for emergency responders and open houses just to name a few. Additionally, several hundred student representatives and educators from across the diocese gathered for Mass at the Cathedral of Saint Andrew on Tuesday, January 30 to give thanks for the gift of Catholic school education.
