From students to stewards: Catholic schools teach stewardship through focus on faith, service, learning, official says

Inside the 48 Catholic schools spanning seven counties in the Archdiocese of Louisville, students are learning to be good stewards, said Amy Nall, superintendent of Catholic schools, in a recent interview.

“As Catholics and as disciples of Jesus Christ, we are to be good stewards of the gifts we’ve been given,” she said. “A key part of a Catholic education is the teaching of stewardship, that we are called to share our gifts.”

And that comes straight from the pope.

In an apostolic letter released Oct. 28, “Drawing New Maps of Hope,” Pope Leo XIV writes about how Catholic education teaches students they have a “responsibility toward others.”

“Education is not merely the transmission of content but an apprenticeship in virtue,” he writes. “It forms citizens capable of serving and believers capable of bearing witness.”

Nall said Catholic education introduces — and develops — the practice of stewardship through the three pillars of its mission: faith, service and learning.

In a Catholic school, a child’s personal relationship with Jesus Christ is nurtured, she said.  Through opportunities for service, they’re taught to live their faith in action by being disciples who “make a difference” in the world, she said. 

And they’re formed to be life-long learners, so they can “continue to develop their own God-given talent” that, when shared, will “make the world a better place,” she said.

Each Catholic school engages its students in faith, service and learning in different ways, depending on the needs of its community, Nall added.

“When I think of our schools and the variety of locations, the variety of sizes, the variety of programming, what I see is that we are one body with many parts, and we’re so fortunate to be able to meet the needs of those communities,” she said.

“A key part of a Catholic education is the teaching of stewardship, that we are called to share our gifts.”

— Amy Nall, superintendent

Catholic school educators make that mission possible, noted Dr. Trevor Timmerberg, assistant superintendent of schools.

Educators steward their own talents by “shepherding” their students and investing in their lives, said Timmerberg. In the archdiocese, “we have leaders that are responding to the needs of their students and their parish school communities,” he said.

Catholic schools are inviting families to consider a Catholic education for their child during Discover Catholic Schools Week, Nov. 16 to 22.

Each of the 48 Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Louisville offers a variety of opportunities for its students to engage in the mission of Catholic schools. Here are some of the ways the schools are nurturing a commitment to faith, service and learning.

Faith

Every first Monday of the month, kindergarten through eighth-grade students at St. Athanasius School, 5915 Outer Loop, gather in the church for adoration and the recitation of the rosary. 

The older students sit alongside their younger “Mass buddies,” modeling the faith for them, said Kristen Blankenship, principal. 

“They seem to enjoy it. School is go, go, go all day long,” she said, noting that this time of prayer allows students to put everything else aside to focus on the presence of God.

“The overall hope, of course, is that we have a student body that has a strong connection with God. That is the ultimate goal. That every child knows … God is a friend, God is somebody you can turn to,” she said.

During adoration, Father Matthew Hardesty, pastor of St. Athanasius Church, leads the students in the rosary. 

“We want to make sure that our kids can pray the rosary,” said Blankenship. “The rosary is something that a lot of Catholics, old and young, know how to pray, and it’s something that if you have nothing else to fall back on — you can’t remember any other prayers — typically, you’ll remember the rosary.”

But the students also have time for silent prayer. “We want to foster that sense . . . that unspoken prayer is prayer too,” she added.

Service

At St. Agnes School, 1800 Newburg Road, eighth-grade students are stepping out of the classroom for a real-world service experience.

Twice a month, four St. Agnes eighth-graders serve lunch at the Cathedral of the Assumption’s Daily Lunch Program, accompanied by parent volunteers and Aundrea George, director of youth ministry at St. Agnes. Throughout the academic year, all eighth-graders will have an opportunity to participate.

The collaboration between the school and the cathedral is one of the reasons why Laura Durbin, a St. Agnes parent, chose the school for her child, she said.

“When I was looking at schools, I remember touring St. Agnes and hearing about the lunch program they did at the cathedral and thinking, ‘Wow, it’s really amazing that a school values service so much to take time out of the school day to go and do service,’ ” she said. 

Volunteering provides students the opportunity to “see the face” and acknowledge the humanity of the people they are serving, said Durbin.

“So many of our other service opportunities, you don’t see the face of the person you are serving. You’re collecting something or you’re gathering money for something,” said Durbin.

This opportunity gets the students out of their comfort zones, she said. At the beginning, the students are shy, said George. 

“But as the hour goes on, it’s exciting to see the students begin to engage more with each person,” George noted.

Durbin hopes the students will be able to look back on the experience and be reminded “to continue to make an effort,” she said.

Learning

This fall, Notre Dame Academy, 1927 Lewiston Drive, opened a new classroom for kindergarten through third-grade students with autism and developmental delays.

The classroom — nicknamed “The Trailblazers” — follows an adapted curriculum and integrates its students into parts of their grade level’s mainstream classroom, depending on each student’s needs and capacities, said Ashley Titus, principal.

The classroom — which has “been several years in the making” — is a way the school is stepping up to meet the learning needs of their school families, said Titus. 

It’s a response to parents’ comments “wishing that all of their kids could come to Notre Dame,” she said. “It’s about giving these students what they need and giving them this Catholic environment.”

The new classroom is also providing a “great learning experience” for the wider student body, said Titus.

“What they are learning from being able to interact with students that are different than them has been absolutely amazing,” she said.

Tammy Thomson, a learning coordinator at the academy, said, “We really used it as an opportunity to educate our other students. Education is key, and exposure is key to help them become more understanding and better advocates.”

A group of seventh and eighth-graders helps in the Trailblazers’ adaptive P.E. class, said Thomson. 

“There’s two middle schoolers with each one of the Trailblazers. And so once a week, they plan activities and participate in P.E. with them,” she said.

To view a listing of the Archdiocese of Louisville’s Catholic schools or to learn more, visit www.louisvillecatholicschools.com.