Dear Member:
There is a person and a school behind every story we share in Momentum, and we connect our own stories to the stories we read here. Reading Dr. Elena Sada’s article for this issue makes me think of my firsthand experience with a Dual Language Immersion (DLI) school, St. Philomene School in Sacramento, CA.
During my time as superintendent in Sacramento, St. Philomene’s enrollment had fallen to dangerously low levels and the school faced significant competition from other schools in the area. I had already come into contact with Boston College and learned about the Two-Way Immersion Network for Catholic Schools (TWIN-CS). We needed a new model and based on my conversations with our friends at Boston College, DLI seemed like an innovation that could revitalize St. Philomene.
As part of the process, we toured All Souls School in Alhambra, CA, which had closed for lack of enrollment and then reopened as a flourishing DLI school. I was impressed by not only the school’s operational vitality but also by how the program had helped build a new intentional community: multicultural, multilingual, ecumenical. All Souls attracted families that never would have otherwise considered the school and brought vitality to a parish whose school had been closed.
We saw that with some investment, St. Philomene School could emulate All Souls, resulting in new energy for the parish, too. We started the program with one grade and immediately attracted many new students from both Spanish-speaking and English-speaking families. The lift was considerable for the parish, faculty and staff, but today, St. Philomene continues to thrive as a DLI school, forming a unique community supported by a new charism.
I never cease to be impressed by the impact that our contributors have on our Catholic schools. Dr. Sada shares her craft knowledge with St. Philomene and dozens of schools via the TWIN-CS network, with individual educators through a Bilingual Education Certificate Cohort and now with you via this issue of Momentum. Dr. Sada and her colleagues are unique in their gifts, but just like so many other Catholic school educators in their zeal for our common mission. They share their gifts in the hopes of bringing more students the good news of Jesus’ love. At NCEA, we take joy in connecting Catholic school educators so they can find the people and ideas that will help them continue to grow and succeed in His name.
Peace,
Lincoln Snyder
President/CEO, NCEA