ARCHDIOCESE OF PHILADELPHIA

Cluster 17 Pastoral Plan

Goal #3: "To develop Cluster-wide processes to insure the

maintenance and development of quality Catholic Schools."

(Parish Release - April 12-13, 2003)

One of the seven goals of Cluster 17's Pastoral Plan, which was accepted by His Eminence, Cardinal Bevilacqua, on January 21, 1998, is "to develop Cluster-wide processes to insure the maintenance and development of quality Catholic Schools." During the past five years, each of the parish elementary schools in Cluster 17 have worked with their parish communities to market the quality Catholic education in each of their schools and to promote and increase enrollment. However, most of the parish elementary schools, especially the five schools in Manayunk, have experienced a gradual decline in enrollment over the past five years. These five schools in Manayunk include: Holy Family, St. John the Baptist, St. Josaphat, St. Lucy and St. Mary of the Assumption.

The next phase in the implementation of the Cluster Goal # 3 is to assess the quality of Catholic Education offered by those schools who have experienced a gradual decline in their enrollment. To that end, each of the five schools in Manayunk will begin a self-study, based on the guidelines established by the Office of Catholic Education of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. The self-study will look at Catholic identity, educational programs, demographics, temporalities and school facilities.

The Catholic Parishes of Cluster 17 are committed to supporting quality Catholic education for every child in our Cluster who desires it. We are confident that the outcomes of this self-study will highlight the many strengths of these schools, as well as identify those areas that need to be improved. We are excited by the possibilities of how we might be able to improve and strengthen the quality of Catholic Education, which meets the changing Cluster needs.