Dear Colleagues in Catholic Education,
My heart is still full, from the grace-filled days of the Jubilee of the World of Education when NCEA joined with Fordham University to lead a U.S. delegation of Catholic school leaders and educators to Rome. Nestled between our annual Catholic Leadership Summit and our inaugural School Building Leader Summit, this pilgrimage was a lived encounter with the hope that animates Catholic education around the world.
From the very beginning, I was struck by the joy and commitment of those serving the global Church. Our early conversations with Scholas and the Vatican Dicastery for Culture and Education revealed just how deeply our challenges and hopes are echoed around the world. Whether in the United States or abroad, the mission of Catholic schools remains the same: to form young people in communities focused on faith and truth. It is humbling to recognize that NCEA’s work contributes to something far larger than us.
A highlight of the trip was when Archbishop Vincenzo Zani celebrated Mass for our group in the quiet of the Clementine Chapel near the Tomb of St. Peter. His joy was contagious. He later guided us through a quiet, not yet open to the public, St. Peter’s Basilica, where we prayed at the tombs of St. John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, and walked prayerfully through the Holy Door. Here, I felt the weight and beauty of our tradition. It was a reminder that our mission as Catholic school educators is built on the witness of saints who gave everything to proclaim the light of Christ.
And those moments of grace kept coming. Praying with pilgrims at the tombs of St. Monica and Pope Francis, celebrating Mass in a room of St. Ignatius and entrusting all Catholic school educators to his intercession, and discovering stories of modern Christian martyrs at the Basilica of St. Bartholomew on the Island. Each experience deepened my gratitude for those who accompany our young people in faith.
But no moment compared to the joy of witnessing St. John Henry Newman proclaimed a Doctor of the Church and co-patron of Catholic education. To stand with pilgrims from around the world as Pope Leo XIV honored a saint whose life’s work still shapes Catholic formation today was a profound gift. Newman understood that knowledge alone is not enough; education must also cultivate virtue, so that the human person may grow in clarity of mind and generosity of spirit. The Holy Father’s proclamation felt like a blessing over every Catholic school and every educator who continues that sacred work.
Again and again during this pilgrimage, I felt renewed hope. I return home deeply grateful to all those who join NCEA in this holy ministry of our church. Though the Jubilee has ended, may our hope endure as we form disciples, build community, and lead our students to Christ.
Sincerely,
Dr. Steven F. Cheeseman
President/CEO
National Catholic Educational Association