Archdiocese of Denver Catholic Schools launch

Catholic school in black and white (Credit: Via Unsplash: Austrian National Library)

The Archdiocese of Denver Catholic Schools recently launched a special program. It aims to further equip its Catholic educators.

According to Catholic News Agency (CNA), the new program collaborated with the Institute for Catholic Liberal Education. It is called the "Catholic Educator Formation and Credential Program."

Institute's Executive Director Elizabeth Sullivan said that the teachers deserve a special program. According to the church, it will help them fulfill their role.

She noted that teachers "deserve to be fed spiritually and intellectually to help them fulfill their ministerial role." That is, "to form joyful disciples of Jesus Christ."

Currently, the Archdiocese of Denver reportedly has 36 affiliated schools. Under which are more than 8,000 students and 800 teachers.

Meanwhile, the Institute for Catholic Liberal Education is based in Ventura, California. Established in 1999, its mission is to renew its education.

For them, they aim to practice "liberal learning." As explained, this is when teachers put "Jesus Christ, the Logos, at the center of the content, pedagogy, and school culture."

Sullivan was confident that their decade of experience in teacher formation had helped schools. Primarily, the Catholic schools claimed to achieve a more vibrant community of faith and learning.

Catholic Educator Formation, Credential Program

As CNA reported, the partnership launched the pilot program in August. A total of 28 teachers joined the initial program.

The Institute said the new program aims for teachers to be nationally recognized. It would only be possible if all dioceses acknowledged the credentials.

Sullivan explained that the goal of the program is to provide an alternative to state teacher licensure. It would also equip teachers with a practice of Catholic teaching, different from the secular approach.

Others who have no teaching licenses can complete the credential program instead, as the church mentioned.

What to Expect?

As reported, the Catholic educators' credential program consists of several requirements. It includes 18 months of supervised teaching, two retreats or workshops, and five courses.

Teachers who will complete the program will also receive the Institute's Catholic Educator Credential.

Sullivan further noted that many do not know that "contemporary education fails to form students who can think well, speak well, and write well."

According to Director Dr. Alyysan Barnes, Catholic educators will also learn the basics of teaching in the event. They will learn to create a lesson plan, literacy instruction, and effective pedagogy.

She added that it goes beyond a practical sense of "best practices." Instead, it promotes the essentials in the human person made for holiness.

"What we are doing in Catholic schools is exactly that: caring for the upcoming saints of the next generation," Barnes told CNA.

She explained that children in Catholic schools need "more than what the public school" offers. For her, that is what's unique about their schools. Thus, a "different paradigm" needs to be implemented in order for teachers to convey that "gift."

According to ABC News, the number of enrolled Catholic students has dropped due to the pandemic. As mentioned, the population decreased by 110,000 between the school year 2019-2020.