Faith And Academic Excellence Thrive in Diocese of Joliet Schools

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has recently shown that Catholic school students have had steady or increased scores in math and reading and the highest scores in the nation on all four NAEP tests, something public school peers cannot say.

With the classroom success, enrollment in Catholic schools has stabilized across the nation – and the Diocese of Joliet reflects that trend.

In a recent survey of Diocese of Joliet families, the majority said they chose their Catholic school for its religious and moral foundation, overall academic performance, and Christian community atmosphere.

“We are pleased our families noted the importance of our faith-filled communities and academic achievement,” said James Quaid, Ph.D., Superintendent for Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Joliet. “We are truly living our mission.”

However, the need for financial assistance, particularly among low-income families, is a growing concern. This is especially true in Illinois, where state lawmakers failed to extend the Invest in Kids Act, cutting off $75 million in scholarships statewide and nearly $8 million in scholarship funds in the Diocese of Joliet.

To bridge this gap and ensure uninterrupted education for students who previously received Invest in Kids scholarships, the Catholic Education Foundation (CEF) of the Diocese of Joliet has committed an additional $1 million for the 2024-25 school year.

“Even with the additional funding from the Invest in Kids Act, the CEF was forced to turn away one eligible student for every student we were able to provide with a scholarship,” said Jennifer Georgis, Executive Director of the CEF. “Now with the loss of the Invest in Kids scholarship funds and more families seeking to place their children in the safe and nurturing environment of Catholic schools, we are seeing a surge in financial aid requests.”

For more information, or to make a donation to CEF, please contact:

Catholic Education Foundation : 815.221.6127 : 16555 Weber Road, Crest Hill, IL 60403: http://cefjoliet.org/