Catholic schools create Catholic social teaching vision
The seven themes of Catholic social teaching are core components within the religion curriculum of Catholic schools throughout our country. But how do we integrate these components into an intentional series of lived experiences for our students so they will become more engaged, compassionate servant leaders after their time with us? Two years ago, the Office of Catholic Schools began designing social teaching experiences that build on one another throughout the years students are in Catholic schools. This alignment of experiences is an ongoing and ever-developing project that has allowed our diocese to create a Catholic social teaching vision for our students.
The seven themes of Catholic social teaching are core components within the religion curriculum of Catholic schools throughout our country. But how do we integrate these components into an intentional series of lived experiences for our students so they will become more engaged, compassionate servant leaders after their time with us? Two years ago, the Office of Catholic Schools began designing social teaching experiences that build on one another throughout the years students are in Catholic schools. This alignment of experiences is an ongoing and ever-developing project that has allowed our diocese to create a Catholic social teaching vision for our students.
Social Teaching Fairs in third grade classrooms throughout our diocese began about two years ago with the help of Catholic Charities of Central Texas. They visit each school and set up stations where students move through with their “passports” to learn about the seven themes of Catholic social teaching. Each station includes a short, hands-on activity like guiding a partner through a series of unknown steps. After the seven stations have been visited, students receive an activity to complete with their parents at home.
Speak Up, Speak Out, is an annual civics education program sponsored by the University of Texas’ Annette Strauss Institute. This program encourages teams of students to identify, research and propose a possible solution to a community problem. Students then compete with other teams across Texas for a chance to fund their proposal. Our Catholic schools encourage fourth and fifth grade classes to participate in this project using the lens of Catholic social justice. Our sixth and seventh grade students have an opportunity to experience a Refugee Simulation, created by Catholic Charities of Central Texas, that allows students to participate in a compassionate and non-threatening environment. It also creates a reminder for these middle school students that God created each one of us in his image.
Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops Education Department (TCCB ED) has been a strong supporter and natural fit for our vision from the beginning. TCCB ED hosts an Advocacy Day at the Texas Capitol when the state legislature is in session. Catholic school students in middle and high school throughout the state participate in a mock committee hearing that helps students understand the process a bill takes on its way to becoming a law. In March 2023, over 1,300 Catholic school students listened to poverty advocacy specialists and participated as “committee members” and “committee witnesses” for a mock bill on payday lender loans. Over 500 sixth through 12th graders from the Diocese of Austin participated in this interactive experience in one of the large committee rooms within the state capitol.
Another opportunity for understanding our roles as Catholic social justice leaders is a customized field trip for eighth graders to the nation’s capital. For the last two years, students and their chaperones have toured historic landmarks and museums, participated in civil discourse sessions, and have visited with a U.S. House Representative from Texas. The highlight of this trip is always a private tour and Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.
Last spring, we piloted a new program for juniors and seniors that helped them research issues and potential bills that could address some of the effects of poverty within the state of Texas. Students developed questions for state legislators based on the students’ research and discussions. TCCB ED assisted us by reaching out to state legislators to get a variety of viewpoints on these questions that were then discussed among teachers and their students.
This alignment of social teaching experiences continues to expand, and the enthusiasm for these activities is evident throughout our schools. Catholic schools in the Diocese of Austin believe the best way to develop our next generation is with intentional experiences that build on one another and allow them to learn about and practice the themes of Catholic social teaching.
To learn more about Catholic schools in our diocese, visit csdatx.org.
Kelly Laster serves as the assistant superintendent of Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Austin. She can be reached at kelly-laster@austindiocese.org or (512) 949-2497.
