The Flourishing of the Individual and their Salvation

Catholic schools are an education model rooted in the recognition of the inherent dignity of every person. “The goal of Catholic education is the flourishing of each individual and their ultimate salvation,” said Bishop David O’Connell, the chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Catholic Education, as Catholic Schools Week was observed earlier this year. Catholic Schools Week is observed during the last week of January, where parish and school communities celebrate the history and contributions of Catholic education in the United States and in their local communities. The Church emphasizes the critical role of families in Catholic education, recognizing the primacy of parents as the first educators of their children.

Here in Lake County, after two years of comprehensive discussion and planning, the Lake County Catholic School Network, LLC (LCCSN) was recently launched. This is a partnership between our own parish of St. Noel and five other parishes: Immaculate Conception, Willoughby; Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Wickliffe; St. John Vianney, Mentor; St. Justin Martyr, Eastlake; and St. Mary Magdalene, Willowick. This initiative is modeling a significant multi-parish commitment of time, talent, and treasure to sustain Catholic education in Western Lake County, particularly at All Saints School and Mater Dei Academy. Led by a network President and supported by an operations staff responsible for school finance, enrollment, development, and facilities, the LCCSN will leverage the support of all member parishes and strengthen these areas of school governance vital to the success of Catholic education in our community. Effective February 2, Barbara Mancari was selected as its first president. Barbara currently serves as the operations manager of All Saints School of St. John Vianney, in addition to being an adjunct professor of business at Lakeland Community College since 2017. She has an undergraduate degree in management and systems engineering from the United States Military Academy West Point, and a degree from Franklin University in public administration.

In his 2023 “Keeping the Faith” initiative, Bishop Malesic stresses that Catholic education is the responsibility of the entire Catholic community, and expects every parish to be associated with a school as part of its mission to evangelize our youth. Saint Noel is proud to be part of this rather innovative model for Lake County. This weekend, to further demonstrate our support, Karen Trunk, Principal, Mater Dei Academy, has been invited to represent their mission as a school and the benefit of LCCSN.

Fr. Terry