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The school in question is an online charter school targeting extremely rural families who, as a practical matter, have no alternative to the public school system, period, regardless who is paying. Physical in-person schools require a minimum population density to provide sufficient potential customers (students). The creation of the charter school creates an option where none existed beforehand, and that's a good thing.
The school also targets special needs & at-risk students. That's also a good thing.
So, unlike the AFT's hand-wringing & pearl-clutching about charter schools siphoning off the best & well-behaved students leaving behind the dregs, in this case that doesn't appear to be the case at all.
The trustees of the school are not unaware of the constitutional issue. They believe they have crafted the new online charter school in such a way as to pass muster. The courts will decide, of course.
The school in question is an online charter school targeting extremely rural families who, as a practical matter, have no alternative to the public school system, period, regardless who is paying. Physical in-person schools require a minimum population density to provide sufficient potential customers (students). The creation of the charter school creates an option where none existed beforehand, and that's a good thing.
The school also targets special needs & at-risk students. That's also a good thing.
So, unlike the AFT's hand-wringing & pearl-clutching about charter schools siphoning off the best & well-behaved students leaving behind the dregs, in this case that doesn't appear to be the case at all.
The trustees of the school are not unaware of the constitutional issue. They believe they have crafted the new online charter school in such a way as to pass muster. The courts will decide, of course.
The school in question was approved by the “Statewide virtual charter school board.” This name suggests that it is responsible for approving statewide virtual charter schools, which would presumably include the entire state. It seems unlikely that they’d have an entire school board just for this school, as that would be quite self serving to create the board to approve only one school.
First of all, Catholic school do not require students to be Catholic. My son's Catholic high school had Muslim students. Muslims venerate Mary as the Mother of Jesus They also share many traditional values with Catholics.
Your first sentence is incorrect, many religious schools, including catholic schools, require both the student and parents to be of the same faith as is of the school itself, as a condition of student admittance.
Your first sentence is incorrect, many religious schools, including catholic schools, require both the student and parents to be of the same faith as is of the school itself, as a condition of student admittance.
Can Anyone Attend Catholic School?
While many parents assume you have to be Catholic to attend Catholic school, that is not the case.
“Anyone may apply and many non-Catholic students are admitted to our schools,” says Sister Dale McDonald, vice president of public policy at the NCEA.
In fact, about 1 in 5 students enrolled in Catholic schools come from other faiths, she says.
“Non-Catholics are admitted with the understanding that they are seeking admission to a Catholic institution and are expected not to actively oppose its values,” says McDonald. “Most schools require non-Catholic students to take religion classes as an academic subject, but do not require or request acceptance of the faith.”
McDonald says typically each school sets its own admissions criteria “and that may be developed in collaboration with the diocesan education office that may have some broad parameters for all the schools, perhaps a diocesan-wide entrance exam.”
She says families apply directly to the school and preference may be given to families that have another student already enrolled.
Your first sentence is incorrect, many religious schools, including catholic schools, require both the student and parents to be of the same faith as is of the school itself, as a condition of student admittance.
There MAY be religious schools out there that require membership in a particular religion to attend, but that is NOT true of the Catholic schools OR any other private religious schools in my area.
The Catholic high school in Sioux Falls has almost 40% of the enrollees being NON-Catholic. My oldest daughter who is Catholic, attended a Christian high school that is primarily supported by the Christian Reformed and First Reformed churches. Approx. 15% of this high school were members of other religious denominations, primarily Lutheran.
Your first sentence is incorrect, many religious schools, including catholic schools, require both the student and parents to be of the same faith as is of the school itself, as a condition of student admittance.
Well, I was there and you weren't.
The Jewish and Muslim boys were not required to attend daily Mass. I know my Catholic son never attended daily Mass either! I think that in Westchester NY, single sex catholic schools are easier for religious Jews or Muslims to attend than liberal public schools. At least Catholics can define what a woman is.
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Q. Do you have to be Catholic to attend a Catholic school?
A. No, we welcome children of all faiths. Everything we do is rooted in dignity for the human person and our Catholic faith tradition, and we offer this to everyone.
The school in question is an online charter school targeting extremely rural families who, as a practical matter, have no alternative to the public school system, period, regardless who is paying. Physical in-person schools require a minimum population density to provide sufficient potential customers (students). The creation of the charter school creates an option where none existed beforehand, and that's a good thing.
The school also targets special needs & at-risk students. That's also a good thing.
So, unlike the AFT's hand-wringing & pearl-clutching about charter schools siphoning off the best & well-behaved students leaving behind the dregs, in this case that doesn't appear to be the case at all.
The trustees of the school are not unaware of the constitutional issue. They believe they have crafted the new online charter school in such a way as to pass muster. The courts will decide, of course.
I wasn't aware that this school served a far-flung student population. Interesting. Then in this case, public funding supporting this school makes sense.
I assume that the AFT's "hand-wringing and pearl-clutching" is more about the precedent this situation sets. Public money supporting private schools is a slippery slope.
Your first sentence is incorrect, many religious schools, including catholic schools, require both the student and parents to be of the same faith as is of the school itself, as a condition of student admittance.
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Originally Posted by YorktownGal
Well, I was there and you weren't.
The Jewish and Muslim boys were not required to attend daily Mass. I know my Catholic son never attended daily Mass either! I think that in Westchester NY, single sex catholic schools are easier for religious Jews or Muslims to attend than liberal public schools. At least Catholics can define what a woman is.
I think this is entirely dependent on the Diocese or even the individual school. Louisville, KY has a very robust Catholic school system, the schools there have rules about religious adherence that runs the gamut with most seeming to be in the middle of the extremes. They do ALL have priority admittance for parish families, including the four highly selective high schools once the academic criteria is met, with secondary priority to those of the Catholic faith, regardless of parish. Those of different faiths are third in line. Whether a lackluster parish student gets in before a highly qualified non-Catholic is a crapshoot, but they tend to err on the side of Catholic affiliation. I do know one thing for certain, becauseI personally know of a case where it became an issue, Catholic students are expected to practice their Catholic faith and will not be excused from religious obligations. But then again, some of those schools are the best in the state and have quite long wait lists, so they can afford to be particular.
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... Whether a lackluster parish student gets in before a highly qualified non-Catholic is a crapshoot, but they tend to err on the side of Catholic affiliation.
For a lot of Catholic schools (I would say the Diocesan schools) turning away students is a luxury. Some of the elite schools like Don Bosco Prep turn players -- I mean, students -- away if they don't make the cut.
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I do know one thing for certain, becauseI personally know of a case where it became an issue, Catholic students are expected to practice their Catholic faith and will not be excused from religious obligations. But then again, some of those schools are the best in the state and have quite long wait lists, so they can afford to be particular.
In my experience we got a $1,000 annual tuition credit if our parish priest signed off that we were regular attendees at Mass. Not every week, but pretty regular. But our kids went to a Diocesan school that was threatened with closure by the Bishop in November 2011 due to falling enrollment. The elite prep schools don't have that problem and may hand out scholarships to needy families but not discounts to church-going Catholics.
Also in my experience not all the kids were Catholic but obviously most were. And gay students were tolerated and not bullied by other students or the administration. My younger one graduated in 2016.
Your first sentence is incorrect, many religious schools, including catholic schools, require both the student and parents to be of the same faith as is of the school itself, as a condition of student admittance.
That's not our experience even a little.
Both our kids attended Catholic K-12......I'm an atheist. My son's two best friends in HS were Hindu and Muslim. My daughter's good friends included Hindu, Protestant girls and one Shintoist girl.
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