There’s nothing like a good first impression. Earlier this month, in one of his first major moves, new Archbishop Donald Wuerl proposed to hand over eight parochial schools to the District’s failing public school system because they are “no longer financially viable.”
Turning these schools into charter schools will be an enormous disservice to families who want Catholic faith—or intellectual rigor—to be a part of their kids’ schooling. Parents of any denomination should have the opportunity to give their children a religious education.
These eight schools are the only access most of these students have to subsidized private education, religious or otherwise. In addition to serving mostly low-income, majority black neighborhoods, the schools slated for closure actually serve a mix of Catholic and non-Catholic students, according to the Washington Post. A strong commitment to education and values, without excluding students based on religion, is a hallmark of Catholic education; even Georgetown attempts to attract a diverse student body.
When these schools become charter schools, the commitment to high-quality education would most likely dissipate. D.C.’s infamous public school system is in alarmingly bad shape. Although charter schools are not under the direct administrative auspices of the DCPS central office, funding eight more schools will put an extra strain on the system, and the quality of the education in the formerly parochial schools will sink to the low standard of the rest of the school district. As the Post’s Jay Mathews has reported, the District’s charter schools leave a lot to be desired.
Students should not suffer because of the Church’s sins. The Archdiocese of Washington spent relatively little on sex-abuse settlements, avoiding the cover-up scandals that plagued other dioceses like Boston. But in recent years, nationwide disillusionment over the number of sex-abuse scandals has precipitated a steady decline in donations among Catholics. Although money for settlements and legal fees came out of the diocese’s insurance fund and not out of school and parish operating budgets, priests’ misdeeds have still hurt the Church financially, and that pain carries over to school funding.
Wuerl seems bent on writing off the schools with little consideration for alternatives. Previously Archbishop of Philadelphia, he closed a third of the diocese’s 260 schools, earning him a reputation as a strict auditor.
But the students at these eight schools should not be allowed to fall by the wayside. Georgetown’s administrators could even offer a helping hand to their fellow Catholics in need by sponsoring one of the schools. Helping these kids would exemplify the Jesuit values of education and social justice. Georgetown students, many of whom already choose to dedicate time to community service, could act as daycare providers, tutors and teaching assistants in the schools. Archbishop Wuerl may have given up on these schools, but we don’t have to.
