Many Catholic schools in our country today are lead by religious who were trained in the charism of their founders and who insure that sound Catholic traditions and teachings are a part of every school day. The reality of that situation, however, is that more and more religious are reaching the golden age of retirement, with few to take their places. Does this mean that our schools are in danger of losing their Catholic identity? Will the generations of children born in the twentieth-first century have "real" Catholic schools to attend? What happens when Sister/Brother is no longer there?

This was a concern for some of the parents in my current school when I took over as principal six years ago. I was the first lay person to lead this school and it took several months for people to remember to put a "Mrs." In front of my name. As time went on, it did become abundantly clear to everyone that our school was going to be just as Catholic as it was before. We would have all of the same liturgical and para-liturgical opportunities, and even several additional things that had not been a part of their faith life in the past. As my parents and teachers gave the faith to me, so I must now be a part of handing it down to my students.

The key to all of this is a strong faith commitment on the part of the principal, who is first a spiritual leader. Everything else follows. Maintaining your own prayer life is essential, and should not be the first thing to go when the "to do" list gets too long. We principals can be guilty of putting everything and everyone else first. God can’t fall into that category. Daily prayer must be a part of every school day and time for special spiritual events needs to be scheduled, just like other programs. Students need to be presented with opportunities for Christian service and to do good works. We Christians were the original "pay it forward" people, long before the movie by that name made it cool!

Many Catholic schools in our country today are led by lay people who were trained in the charism of their mentors and who insure that sound Catholic traditions and teachings are a part of every school day. Make it happen in your school!

Colette Vail, Principal
St. Joseph School
Oradell, New Jersey