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| More schools move toward tuition covenant By Hilary Anderson Special Contributor Kathleen Kowalski believes in Catholic education. The St. Viator School principal is one of many archdiocesan educators and officials looking at ways to make Catholic schools more viable in the future while keeping tuition affordable. St. Viator is among a growing number of archdiocesan schools that are moving toward a “tuition covenant.” Others include the recently opened Cardinal Bernardin School, St. Ambrose and St. Barnabas. The tuition covenant is a form of cost-based pricing, charging the actual cost of educating a student. The concept may include eliminating discounts for more than one child in school and two-tier rates; i.e., one for parishioners and one for non-parishioners. It is an initiative that studies indicate will help keep Catholic schools open and yet provide Catholic education to the children of families who previously could not afford it. The model includes a standardized method for the pastor to determine actual financial need. The tuition covenant also is seen as a means of increasing teachers’ salaries and maintaining quality educational programs. A form of it now exists in Cleveland, Cincinnati and Washington D.C. “Many consider the tuition covenant a fairer, more equitable way of charging tuition for all families,” said Kowalski. “Not every school family does their fair share to support the parish with either Sunday envelopes or participation in fund-raising activities.” Others echo her comments. “We are exploring the possibility of implementing a form of the tuition covenant in terms of justice,” said Father Larry Sullivan, pastor of St. Celestine in Elmwood Park and member of the advisory board to the superintendent of Archdiocesan Catholic Schools. “Whatever portion of the actual cost of educating the child that is not paid by the parent is subsidized by the parish. That money could be put to better use increasing teachers’ salaries, providing more and better educational programs, or using the funds within the parish for other needs.” Sullivan adds that a tuition covenant makes more financial sense particularly when some family incomes are in the higher income brackets. “Those with the financial means should pay what it costs to educate their children,” he said. “The difference could be used to help a family who otherwise couldn’t afford the tuition. All Catholics should be able to provide their children a Catholic education, regardless of financial status.” Sullivan reminds families that Catholic school education still is a bargain. “Expenses vary according to parishes but it costs approximately $3,000 to educate a student in a Catholic school because we don’t have the bureaucracy and overhead,” he said. “The average cost of educating a student in a public school is $7,000. But we have been too dependent on parish and archdiocese subsidies from the past. We now must find new ways to pay the costs to continue that tradition.” Tuition costs have risen in part due to the declining numbers of men and women religious who previously taught in Catholic schools sometimes for small subsidies. Sullivan adds that teachers in Catholic schools now make only 48 percent of their peers in public schools. As the seniority of teachers increases, so do the variances in pay. “If we charge more, we can pay more,” said Sullivan. “Teaching in a Catholic school still is a ministry. We provide a better atmosphere. It is a place where teachers want to teach but now we must be aware that in order to maintain our high quality of teachers, we must pay them more. Single individuals or heads of households cannot afford to live independently on the single salary of a Catholic school teacher. Gone are the times in two-family households where the second income of a Catholic school teacher was for frivolities. Our teachers are grossly underpaid. This tuition covenant is a way to make that right.” A part of the tuition covenant model suggests an outside financial assessment service—such as those used to designate financial aid for college students—determine the true financial need of a family. “We would bring those financial aid forms down to the high school and grade school level,” said Sullivan. “The information would be kept confidential and only given to the pastor. He then would use this material and any other information at his disposal to determine which families would receive tuition aid. This system would prove objective and fair.” Although some parishes already have moved towards a tuition covenant, archdiocesan school officials want parishioners to know the covenant is only one of many possible ways to keep schools viable. “The tuition covenant is a choice, not a mandate,” said St. Joseph Sister Judy Cauley, interim co-superintendent of Catholic Schools. “There are many ways for schools to be viable. The tuition covenant is one of them. What is done to make a school more viable really starts at the parish level. The pastor and parish leadership know their area best and what works for them.” Cauley says her office hopes that parishes and schools in a given geographic area work together in a collaborative effort to keep Catholic education viable. “We want to promote collaboration and not competition.” Cauley adds the tuition covenant concept is an outgrowth of a study initiated by the late Cardinal Bernardin and continued by Cardinal George to determine what should be done to keep Catholic education viable throughout the entire archdiocese. Her office consulted with the Diocese of Cleveland, and the archdioceses of Cincinnati and Washington D.C., which have implemented some form of cost-based tuition and needs-based assistance during the past two to three years. “The purpose of the Chicago Archdiocese study was to identify different strategies that needed to be put in place to sustain and strengthen Catholic schools going forward,” Cauley said. “Similar recommendations arose in models around the country: Make Catholic education viable in all areas of the diocese; use a form of cost-based pricing for tuition; institute a method by which parishes could determine authentic need; and make teachers’ salaries more equitable.” She adds that feedback from Cleveland says the model was generally well-received. “The message [from dioceses that already have implemented a form of the tuition covenent] for those considering it is to work collaboratively with other parishes in their area to help create joint school educational programs and projects,” Cauley said. “They also suggest the formulation of a good, on-going communications program about the tuition covenant among parishioners, school families and the public.” Much investigation also was done at the archdiocese’s grassroots level. “We did not look at the concept of a tuition covenant lightly,” said Kowalski. “There was a lot of dialogue, searching and praying. Our parish decided the idea simply was good stewardship.” Front Page | Digest | Cardinal | Interview |
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