The coming year promises to be an ambitious one for the newly formed Faith Alive education committee for the Greater Green Bay Area. At the initial meeting earlier this month, the 24-member panel tentatively set four goals:

1. To update data gathered during the 2005 and 2006 planning processes. The data will touch on subject matters such as demographics (number of parish families and school enrollment) as well as tuition trends. The data will be an important building block as planning progresses for the new Catholic school system in the Greater Green Bay Area.
   
2. To review and expand its study of successful Catholic school systems in this Diocese and elsewhere.
   
3. To develop three to four school system models. The models will be presented for feedback to the 23 participating parish communities. The number of models will be narrowed to two and, after more feedback, then one.
   
4. To identify as soon as possible what, if any, noticeable changes will be implemented during the 2008-09 school year so that parents can make enrollment decisions in a timely manner.
   

"There is a lot of work ahead of us but I believe the committee is up to the task," says Mark Salisbury, diocesan superintendent of schools and temporary coordinator of the project.

Earlier this year, Bishop David A. Zubik approved the concept to create a Catholic school system for the Greater Green Bay Area. It will serve the 11 Catholic elementary schools whose enrollment is approximately 3,000 (preK to grade 8) and Notre Dame de la Baie Academy’s 730 students. The system will be fully operational no later than the 2012-2013 school year.

Catholic school education is one of two components of the Faith Alive project which was designed to more effectively deliver Catholic ministries and services in the Greater Green Bay Area. The other component is parish-based ministries which includes Adult Faith Formation, Evangelization, Pastoral Care, Peace and Justice, Prayer and Worship, Religious Education for Children, Stewardship, and Youth and Young Adult Ministry.

One of many responsibilities Salisbury has in this project is to work with parish, school and diocesan leaders to form committees composed of key stakeholders as well as people who can lend an expertise to areas such as curriculum, technology, finances, planning, marketing and development.

"As we looked at potential committee members, we worked hard to involve people who can bring skills in addition to representing one or more of our key constituents, such as pastors, principals, teachers, parents and parishioners," says Salisbury. "While there are two appointments that still need to be filled, I think we are accomplishing our goal to have a diverse and effective committee."

The full slate of committee members will be released in September when the final two members are on board.

At this month’s meeting, the committee also discussed certain deliverables such as ensuring that the project is a grassroots effort; that the new school system is accessible to all families regardless of income or location; that the funding of the system is fair to all parishes; that the system delivers a Catholic education that is even better than what is currently offered; and that the school system is a good partner in each parish’s ministerial goals.

The committee is scheduled to meet again on Sept. 11 and Oct. 9. Progress reports will be given to parishes to print in their weekly bulletins and will be posted to the diocesan web site (www.gbdioc.org) and the diocesan newspaper, The Compass.

The Faith Alive process began a year ago. It examined all parish ministries, including Catholic schools, offered by the Green Bay area parishes. Hundreds of parish leaders and laity from all 23 parishes in the Greater Green Bay Area participated through meetings, discussions and surveys.