Tools To Help Catholic Schools Measure Their Catholic Identity

The Catholic Education Initiative offers a variety of tools and services to help Catholic Schools assess and strengthen their core identity as Catholic institutions.

Catholic School Identity Assessment

This tool developed by the CEI helps schools assess and determine how thoroughly their Catholic identity permeates every area of school life. The school can choose from one of three levels of assessment, depending on the depth of analysis it desires.

Silver Assessment Level

Cost: $1000-$2000

Phase I: Self-assessment

• Administered online to all paid employees
• School’s administration receives online access to their school’s questionnaires

Phase II: Report

• Written report with an overview summary including observations, strengths, areas for growth
• Concrete and Conceptual Recommendations

Gold Assessment Level

Cost: $3000-$5000 plus expenses

Phase I: Self-assessment

• Administered online to all paid employees
• School’s administration receives online access to their school’s questionnaires

Phase II: Report

• Written report with an overview summary including observations, strengths, areas for growth
• Concrete and Conceptual Recommendations

Phase III: On-site Visitation

• Assess physical campus, buildings, general milieu
• Interviews
  • All administrators
  • Department Chairpersons
  • Theology Department faculty
  • Campus Ministry staff
  • Student leaders
• Written reports by the evaluators with an overview summary including observations, strengths, areas for growth

Platinum Assessment Level

Cost: $8500-$10,000 plus expenses

Phase I: Self-assessment

• Administered online to all paid employees
• School’s administration receives online access to their school’s questionnaires

Phase II: Report

• Written report with an overview summary including observations, strengths, areas for growth
• Concrete and Conceptual Recommendations

Phase III: On-site Visitation

• Assess physical campus, buildings, general milieu
• Interviews
  • All administrators
  • Department Chairpersons
  • Theology Department faculty
  • Campus Ministry staff
  • Other faculty may volunteer to be interviewed
  • Staff representing various departments
  • Student leaders
  • Other students may volunteer to be interviewed
  • School Board members (if applicable)
  • Parent representatives
  • Alumni representatives
• Written reports by the evaluators with an overview summary including observations, strengths, areas for growth

Phase IV: Catholic School Group Facilitation

• Follow-up visit to the school by CEI staff to present the report and facilitate a program tailored to the school’s goals

Catholic School Group Facilitation

This program would ideally follow completion of CSIA. A trained CEI staff member would come to the school and provide an in-service or series of in-services focusing on a school’s particular CSIA report or general principles for promoting Catholic culture throughout a school’s activity and life, ways to strengthen Catholic identity in a Catholic School. Fees would be based on the types and number of in-services given.

Catholic School Student Faith Inventory

This instrument would be administered to each student a minimum of two times during their time at the school: when matriculating into the school and again upon graduation (or upon leaving the school if this occurs before graduation). It is an objective questionnaire that measures a student’s level of faith, both generally and with regard to specific Church teachings. By comparing the two questionnaires, a student’s objective beliefs can be measured over time. This cannot be used to identify a specific student but should be used in aggregate to determine the general patterns of student faith development while enrolled at the school.