The seven tenets of Catholic social teaching are core components within the religion curriculum of Catholic schools throughout the United States. But how do we integrate these components into an intentional series of lived experiences for our students so they will become more engaged, compassionate servant leaders after their time with us? This question served as the foundation for a vertical alignment of activities for our third through twelfth grade students in the Diocese of Austin.
Aligning curriculum between grade levels is a full-time job for curriculum specialists. Pulling the different religion, social studies and English language arts curriculum standards from each grade level that speak to our Catholic social teaching seemed like an insurmountable task that wouldn’t necessarily assist classroom teachers. But what if instead we designed social teaching experiences at each grade level that continued to build on one another throughout the years that our students were in our Catholic schools? That seemed like a more reasonable task that could be achieved by finding the right partners for these experiences. While this alignment of experiences is an ongoing and ever-developing project, a few partnerships fell into place relatively quickly and allowed our diocese to begin creating an alignment plan.
Catholic Charities of Central Texas began hosting Social Teaching Fairs for our third-grade students throughout the Diocese of Austin about two years ago. They come to each school and set up seven stations where students move through with their “passports” to learn about each of the seven tenets of Catholic social teaching. Each station includes a short, hands-on activity concluding with a stamp in each student’s passport. After all seven stations have been visited, students receive an activity to complete with their parents at home. Catholic Charities also supports our sixth and seventh grade students with a Refugee Simulation, a new and exciting addition to our alignment activities this school year. Allowing students to participate in this simulation in a compassionate and non-threatening environment creates a reminder for these middle school students that God created each one of us in His image.
Another exciting partner for our social teaching alignment project is Speak Up, Speak Out, an annual civics education program sponsored by The University of Texas Annette Strauss Institute. This program encourages teams of students to identify, research and propose a possible solution to a community problem. Students then compete with other teams across the state of Texas for a chance to fund their proposal. The Diocese of Austin Catholic schools encourage our fourth and fifth grade classes to participate in this project using a Catholic social justice lens.
Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops Education Department (TCCB ED) has been a strong supporter and natural fit for our project from the beginning. TCCB ED hosts an Advocacy Day at the Texas Capitol when the Texas Legislature is in session. Catholic students in middle school and high school throughout the state participate in a mock committee hearing that helps students understand the process a bill takes. In March 2023, over 1,300 Catholic school students listened to poverty advocacy specialists and participated as “committee members” and “committee witnesses” for a mock bill on payday lending loans. Over 500 sixth through twelfth grade students from the Diocese of Austin participated in this interactive experience in one of the large committee rooms within the state capitol.
The Close-Up Foundation is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that provided additional support for Advocacy Day last March and has teamed with the Diocese of Austin for two additional civics engagement/social justice projects for our eighth graders and eleventh and twelfth graders. Last spring, Close-Up provided a customized, inaugural program for our eighth graders in Washington, D.C. Over seventy-five students and their chaperones toured historical landmarks and museums including the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. After visiting this powerful memorial, students and their chaperones attended Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. This coming March, we will have close to 100 eighth graders participate in the trip, which will also include a visit with United States representatives from Texas and a private tour of the Basilica.
The Close-Up Foundation is also supporting a new pilot program for our juniors and seniors that will be rolled out during the Spring 2024. Close-Up will provide professional development for 50 juniors and seniors and their teachers to help them research issues and potential bills that could address some of the effects of poverty within the state of Texas. Students will develop questions for state legislators based on their research and discussions. TCCB ED will then assist us by reaching out to state legislators to get a variety of viewpoints on these questions that can then be discussed among teachers and their students.
While this alignment of social teaching experiences is still being built and expanded, the enthusiasm for these activities is already evident throughout our schools. In addition to creating these opportunities for students, the Diocese of Austin’s Office of Catholic Schools has also identified curriculum standards in religion, social studies and English language arts at each of the grade levels so teachers can easily add them to their lesson plan documentation.
The goal of every Catholic school should be to develop the next generation of servant leaders for our Church and our community. Catholic schools in the Diocese of Austin believe one of the best ways to develop this next generation is with intentional experiences that build on one another and allow them to learn about and practice the tenets of Catholic social teaching. Partnering with local groups can help Catholic schools and dioceses be intentional about social teaching activities and also allow opportunities for students to truly experience their faith in action.
Kelly Laster is the assistant superintendent for the Diocese of Austin, Office of Catholic Schools.
Kelly Lasterkelly-laster@austindiocese.org