Category: Operational Vitality

The following blog was contributed by Dale McDonald, PBVM, Ph.D., NCEA Director of Public Policy and Educational Research. Not another survey! I often hear that from busy Catholic school educators to whom surveys and other appeals for information seem ever-present. Requests to complete surveys often require several follow-up pleading reminders to those being asked for […]

The following blog was contributed by ShopWithScrip, the largest gift card fundraising platform in the United States, supporting Catholic schools and other organizations to raise money to use where it’s needed the most—whether it be family tuition credit, classroom enhancements, class trips, operating funds, scholarship needs, or more. A safer and easier way for your […]

The following blog was contributed by Rachel Rell, University of Notre Dame student and 2020 NCEA marketing intern. Stories move us. Emotional connection draws us deeper and forces us to better remember and identify with a cause. This fact has been proven in psychology time and time again. Although all consumers may not sit in […]

The following blog was contributed by Amelia Riedel, Senior Consultant for FADICA, (Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities), which partners with NCEA to support the sustainability of Catholic schools. (Photo courtesy of St. James School, Archdiocese of Cincinnati.) One of the most important lessons that I think we have learned from the pandemic is […]

The following blog was contributed by Megan Fangmeyer, product manager for FACTS Grant & Aid Assessment. Megan recently hosted a webinar on how schools should refine their financial aid strategies for the upcoming school year. She has worked at FACTS for 11 years and spends most of her time researching, interviewing financial aid professionals and […]

The following blog was contributed by Cathy Stephen, assistant superintendent of Operational Vitality, Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. As Operational Vitality covers finance, function, facilities and funding, making sure that the right personnel is in place is critical to a sustainable and balanced budget. The rule of thumb for school budgeting matches the classic 80/20 rule. Salary […]

The following blog was contributed by Philip Dujardin, a theology teacher at Matignon High School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Our daughters’ Catholic school was in a crisis. At one particular intense meeting, a priest assigned to hearing parent concerns made mention of a philosophy that is gaining popularity among Catholic leaders: Every school must financially support […]

The following blog was contributed by Kevin Baxter, chief innovation officer for the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) in Arlington, VA. It was a sad time when NCEA was compelled to cancel the convention scheduled to take place in Baltimore in the middle of April. The gathering of Catholic educators from across the U.S. and […]

The following blog was contributed by Melodie Wyttenbach, Ph.D., executive director for the Roche Center for Catholic Education and a faculty member for the Lynch School of Education and Human Development. She and co-author Benjamin Potts wrote Seven Steps to Strategic Planning for Catholic School Leaders. The times of relative stability, where change was incremental […]

The following blog was contributed by Clare Kilbane, Ph.D., a faculty member, senior learning designer, and Catholic school liaison at the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame. Follow her on Twitter @clarerkilbane Right now it is not hyperbole to say, “the whole world is under quarantine.” Although It is difficult […]