The crisis of Catholic school closure – particularly in our inner-cities – is very real, and its effects have been devastating to American K-12 education. Enrollment has declined 50% since its peak in the 1960s. Almost 1 in 5 Catholic schools has closed since 1999. Similarly, more than 500 non-Catholic faith-based schools were closed in American inner-cities from 2000 to 2006.
In response to this crisis, the University of Notre Dame’s Institute for Educational Initiatives and Seton Educational Partners co-hosted a historic conversation among ecclesial, civic, and intellectual leaders on systematically protecting the faith-based school sector. This site chronicles the broad menu of financing options for revitalizing at-risk Catholic and faith-based schools discussed during the conference, and offers Notre Dame’s strategic recommendations and proposed next steps to respond to this national crisis.