Dec 15, 2022
Is There Room at the Inn for Catholic Teachers in Catholic Schools Today? by Sheila Fullerton at Crisis Magazine. Surely, the promotion of Christ’s commandment to “love one another as I have loved you” addresses all anti-bullying issues in a truly inclusive manner and, as such, negates the need to invite into Catholic schools such external agencies whose agenda, as outlined on their own website, contravenes and conflicts with Catholic doctrine? And so, as I continue to contemplate (and question) my place as a Catholic teacher in a Catholic school, it is my experience—no, strike that—it is my testimony that there is another powerful agenda at play within the corridors of our schools; an agenda that seeks to colonize the landscape of Catholic schools; an agenda that can only be described as an affront to the inclusivity attested to by Christ in His Greatest commandment. Read
Heisman Winner Caleb Williams: Catholic School Made Me a ‘Man For Others’ by Peter Pinedo at National Catholic Register. When Caleb Williams stood up to the podium to accept the Heisman Trophy Saturday, the University of Southern California (USC) quarterback gave credit to his Catholic education for showing him how to be a “man for others.” A graduate of Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C., Williams made clear that he has not forgotten his roots. He expressed his gratitude for his time at the Jesuit-run all-boys' Catholic school. Read
San Francisco Public Schools Partnered with Local Children's Hospital for Transgender Trainings by Jeremiah Poff at Washington Examiner. The University of California, San Francisco’s Benioff Children's Hospital has provided trainings to the staff of the San Francisco Unified School District for at least four years on responding to transgender students and their parents' concerns, new internal documents shows…. The trainings were developed by the Benioff Children's Hospital's Child and Adolescent Gender Center, which provides a laundry list of services to "transgender, nonbinary and gender-diverse children and adolescents" and accepts patients as young as 3 years old. Read
Keep Sex Toys Out of Children's Classrooms by Debra Soh at Washington Examiner. Last week, Project Veritas released a video of an undercover reporter talking to a Chicago private school dean about his school's sex education policy. The Dean describes having an "LGBTQ+ health center" come in to teach 14- to 18-year-olds about a variety of non-family-friendly topics, including sex toys like anal plugs and dildos, "queer sex," and "using lube versus using spit." He also discusses students in the class passing the toys around and playing with them, asking, "How does this butt plug work?" He says he hasn’t run these lessons by school trustees because they would say, "That’s wonderful." Read
Oregon Gov’t Student Health Survey Asks 11-Year-Olds If They Are Trans by Reagan Reese at Daily Caller. The Oregon Department of Education is administering a 2022 student health survey that asks 11-year olds if they are transgender, according to the Oregon government website…. The 2022 survey asks sixth grade students if they are transgender and provides seven different gender identify options. The sixth grade students were given several gender identity options including, two spirit, girl/woman, boy/man, demigirl, which is to feel both female and agender, demiboy, the feeling of being both male and agender, nonbinary, gender fluid, agender, which is having a lack of gender, and nogender. The two spirit option is only to be chosen if the student identifies as American Indian or Alaska Native, the survey said. Read
Ohio Board of Education Approves Resolution Requiring Schools to Honor Biological Sex Rather than Gender Identity by Reagan Reese at Daily Caller. The Ohio Board of Education passed a resolution Tuesday that opposes the Biden administration Title IX revisions.... The Ohio Board of Education voted 10-7 to approve a resolution which requires that students compete in sports and use bathrooms, locker rooms and restrooms on the basis of biological sex. The resolution opposes the Biden administration’s proposed Title IX revisions that prohibits schools from discriminating on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation. Read
Throwback Thursday
The Saving Nature of a Liberal Education by Ashley G. Miller at The 5 Marks of a Truly Catholic School by Elisabeth Sullivan at CatholicLink on February 1, 2021. Authentically Catholic education is not merely about college and career readiness; it must also feed the souls of children as they discover truth, goodness, and beauty in the world around them. The “formation of the whole child” teaches them how to live, not just how to earn a living. The dominant secular approach to education focuses mainly on facts and skills. It cannot reveal the wonder that “heaven and earth are filled with His glory.” But when the discovery of the meaning and purpose of things are restored to the classroom, students of all abilities and backgrounds are suddenly excited to learn. Parents grasp the value of this deeply human formation. Their children are seeing the world through the eyes of faith. Results have been striking. Dying schools have been rescued, and now have waiting lists. New schools have been launched. Families are returning to the Church. Read