Catholic Schools Week - January 29 - February 3
Post date: Jan 27, 2012 3:50:46 PM
Catholic Schools Celebrate Faith, Academics and Service
During Annual Observance
Catholic Schools Week Jan. 29 through Feb. 4 Focuses on Benefits of a Catholic Education
Arlington, VA—Catholic schools across the nation are preparing to celebrate National Catholic School Week beginning Jan. 29. This one-week observance is an annual celebration of the important role that Catholic elementary and secondary schools across the country play in providing a values-added education for America's young people.
This year Catholic Schools Week begins Jan. and concludes Feb.4.
The theme of 2012 Catholic Schools Week is “Catholic Schools: Faith. Academics. Service.” The theme focuses on three priorities that Catholic schools establish that make them stand out from other educational institutions: Children are taught faith— not just the basics of Christianity, but how to have a relationship with God; academics, which in Catholic schools are held to very high standards and help each child reach his or her potential; service, the giving of one’s time and effort to help others, is taught both as an expression of faith and good citizenship.
The Catholic Schools Week 2012 logo is a rectangle, with the words Catholic Schools in red across the bottom of the rectangle. The “t” in Catholic is a purple cross and from the right top corner of the T/cross is an undulating green banner with words in white lettering that proclaim “Faith. Academics. Service.”
The purpose of Catholic Schools Week is to build community awareness of, and involvement in, Catholic schools throughout the country. During this week, many dioceses and schools encourage parents to take full advantage of the benefits of local Catholic schools by enrolling their children in those schools.
The national Catholic Schools Week celebration became an annual event in 1974. The observance is a joint project of the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Individual dioceses and local Catholic elementary and secondary schools develop and promote their own CSW activities each year.
Often schools will celebrate the parish family on Sunday (this year, Jan. 29); the community on Monday (Jan. 30); students on Tuesday (Jan. 31); and religious and clergy on Thursday (Feb.2.) In addition, schools often set aside time during the week to honor grandparents.
National Appreciation Day falls on the Wednesday of Catholic Schools Week (Feb. 1)
This event was founded in 1990 to encourage Catholic school supporters nationwide to showcase the great accomplishments and contributions of Catholic schools to our country. On this day in particular, advocates are urged to wear a button showing their support.
NCEA, founded in 1904, is a professional membership organization that provides leadership, direction and service to fulfill the evangelizing, catechizing and teaching mission of the church. NCEA's members include elementary schools, high schools, parish religious education programs and seminaries.
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