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School counselors are needed now more than ever. Providing Catholic school counselors the specialized formation they need to be effective in the Catholic school context is essential. This study addressed two research questions in this regard: (1) What competencies (e.g., understanding, incorporating) and topics do Catholic school principals and school counselors believe are important for school counselors to fully contribute to the educational and faith-based mission of Catholic schools; and (2) How might the research findings inform pre-service education and/or continuing education and formation of school counselors for the Catholic school context? Online surveys were developed using the "Defining Characteristics of Catholic Schools" from NSBECS and researchbased, mission-centered competencies and topics. The surveys were sent to the 40 principals and 54 school counselors at the schools in one mid-size U.S. diocese that employ school counselors. The survey response rates were 87.5% for principals and 91% for school counselors. Findings confirmed high levels of support from both groups for school counselors understanding mission-related topics and incorporating these competencies into counseling practices and activities, although principals often rated the importance higher than did school counselors. Some between group differences were statistically significant on items such as the importance of incorporating Catholic teaching with current student and school issues. To reduce differences in perceptions, the authors recommend increased collaboration between principals and counselors to achieve unity of vision. Other recommendations to help school counselors contribute to mission include embedding mission-related topics or adding specialized courses to school counseling programs at Catholic universities, designing mission-centered professional development opportunities, and building networks of school counselors to support them in their complex and evolving role in support of Catholic school mission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Preparing employees to become stewards of Marianist values has become a priority at Marianist institutions because employees impact the institutions' environment, and faculty and staff directly impact student learning. To date, there is a lack of research conducted among employees of Marianist institutions on how new understandings of the institutional mission get transferred to their jobs. Additionally, there is a lack of empirical studies that examine what enhances and hinders the transfer of such understanding. Using the Multidimensional Model of Learning Transfer as a theoretical framework, the purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the extent to which employees attending a formation are able to transfer the newly acquired knowledge to their professional lives and to understand what inhibited and supported their transfer of knowledge. Findings reveal that participants did transfer some knowledge to their positions. Based on these findings, the research team offers recommendations to increase the transfer of new religious understanding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Central to the mission of Catholic higher education are the themes of Catholic social teaching. This contribution to the Education in Practice section recounts a 15-week undergraduate course that deepened student engagement in Catholic social teaching themes through comparative education studies and a study abroad experience to Japan. A detailed description of the course's main segments draws on artifacts of student coursework and post-interviews. The contribution of comparative education is that students are provided a platform upon which they can explore deeper, underlying principles to individual Catholic social teaching themes. This contribution further provides practitioners step-by-step guidance in how to develop similar learning experiences for students in their university context. This report of Catholic Education at the classroom-level fits into the existing knowledge of how universities in the United States are engaging undergraduates in Catholic social teaching themes, as an expression of Catholic mission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the mission statements of Catholic schools place emphasis on faith formation, Catholic schools are more often identified with high-quality academics and less with the development of faith. A qualitative descriptive study was designed to understand how Rhode Island Catholic secondary school graduates described the influence of the Catholic educational mission on the formation of faith and personal life values. The results of the study indicate that the graduates of Catholic secondary schools in Rhode Island recognized the strength of the academic programs at the four identified Catholic secondary schools. Participants also profusely described the influence of the Catholic educational mission on the development of personal life values, but the results were less conclusive regarding graduates' perceptions of the faith formation experience. Graduates who described faith as a process and personal journey had a more positive attitude regarding the influence of the Catholic educational mission on faith formation. In contrast, those who described faith as the practice of religious ritual as well as obedience to the dogma of the Catholic Church, both positively and negatively, were less effusive regarding the Catholic educational mission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the students entering U.S. colleges and universities become increasingly diverse, the number of Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI's) continues to increase. Catholic colleges and universities, similarly, are seeing an increase in student diversity on campus, with an emergence of Catholic HSIs as well. As the number of Catholic colleges and universities in the United States that are HSI-eligible increases they must grapple with what it means to be both Catholic and Hispanic-serving. The purpose of this article is to propose a U.S. Catholic HSI (CHSI) identity that brings together the extensive literatures on Catholic identity and HSI identity through the lens of decolonial theory and Latinx theologies. We argue that in order to effectively serve students of color who have intersectional identities, Catholic HSIs must intentionally recognize the ways of knowing (epistemologies) and being of these groups, which includes a collective understanding of the theo-political, social, historical, and economic forces that have subjugated them since before the founding of the present day United States and long before the founding of the first Catholic institution in the country. Building off the Catholic Identity and Mission Models (CIMA) currently used by the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities to assess mission integration, we propose a C-HSI model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The challenge to include students with disabilities in Catholic schools requires a comprehensive system of service delivery to meet student need and avoid pathologizing individuals as problems. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of Multi-tiered Systems of Support (MTSS), a framework for organizing resources, delivering services, and measuring success that directly addresses the mission of Catholic Schools to truly serve all students. MTSS is a researchbased and systematic service delivery model that provides tiered supports based on individual learner need. MTSS is defined and contextualized to address both academic and behavioral supports for all students. A brief review of evidence to support the framework is provided. Finally, specific features of the framework are presented with examples to illustrate how Catholic educators might implement across the entire school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Catholic schools are called to serve all of God's children, including students with disabilities who require and benefit from inclusive practices. Inclusionary practices align with Catholic Social Teaching (CST), Catholic identity, and the mission of the Catholic schools. This article frames CST's foundation for inclusive practices in Catholic schools, defines disabilities and explains relevant educational terms, summarizes models of inclusion, and debunks five common misperceptions about inclusion of students with disabilities in Catholic schools. Educators will be heartened through greater clarity of theological motivation for admitting students with disabilities, provided insight about various disability characteristics to inform instructional planning, and invited to reflect on how to deliver services to all students across a continuum of least restrictive environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]