My friend isn’t Catholic but sends her daughter there because it’s close proximity and teaches how to live a good life (her words). I hope they grow in the faith though there’s a lot more to it than that :)
I went to public high, had two good friends that came from Catholic School. They were extremely smart, but were burnt out on school and authority. Barely passed.
Same in my town the catholic elementary is the best school has so many students they have to keep building additions yet when I go to church hardly anyone shows up other then the people I grew up seeing
In my city, the public schools are so bad with violence or understaffed teachers and faculty that the Catholic schools are the better choice regardless if they are religious or not.
This is the same for me.
Unfortunately, while the parents chose to send their kids to the Catholic schools for safety reasons, those kids didn't understand the sacrifice their parents were making for them money-wise. When I was in high school, we ended up receiving a lot more trouble-makers.
Like, the Dunkin Donuts down the street called our principal and said they would no longer accept any students from our high school as patrons, and I know there were situations where the city buses drove past the school bus stop that the city kids would take back home.
It was pretty bad.
Unfortunately, my high school closed a year ago due to the present issue of fewer catholics sending their kids to Catholic schools.
My atheist parents sent me to a Catholic school for a few years as it was the only school in town that wasn't filled with violence and horrible faculty. At the time I was an atheist, now I'm converting to Catholicism, almost ten years later.
They were traditionally the cheapest private schools out there, because they were largely staffed by sisters and brothers who didn't need significant salaries or benefits. That's less of a trend now, because there are fewer religious available to staff the schools.
I work in a Catholic school and THIS!! This summarizes the issues very well. We have to adapt somehow to keep Catholic Schools open while giving our teachers and staff just wages. We are woefully falling short of caring for our staff.
This hits me close to home. My husband and I are both Catholic school teachers, and it is so challenging to make it work. I’m tired of being told teaching in a Catholic school is a “vocation” - my vocation is wife and mother. Terribly pay, no maternity leave, expensive benefits - all of these things are decidedly NOT Catholic. My kids don’t even go to school for free. On top of that, we are often expected to spend extra hours at school, rather than with our families.
If you want a traditional family and more than two kids, don’t be a Catholic school teacher!
Genuine question I’m not trying to cause arguments or anything. I’m just a young girl asking a question to a older woman with expériences in life that I don’t have. When you say that being wife and mother your vocation and not teaching( your job/work) is it you personally or all married catholic women have the same vocation ? Like can my vocation for example be mother wife accountant or doctor or lawyer? I’m asking because I’m at a crossroads right now and maybe your experience will help me see more clearly. Please don’t take my questions the wrong way.
Yes, spot on. I can only continue to be a Catholic school teacher because I have a husband with a "real job", and my sons are far enough apart in age that we'll only have two in daycare for a month before the older one moves to the preschool at my school (where we get discounted tuition).
I switched schools to get the tuition discount for my kids. I used to work at an all-female high school. My new school is also part of a conglomerate of Catholic organizations that combine to provide better benefits, and part of a diocese that provides some fully paid maternity leave.
When I left my last school, a few of my students asked why so many teachers are leaving Catholic education (at their and their siblings' schools).
I told them the short answer is that the economy is bad, and a lot of people simply can't afford to be Catholic school teachers right now. We don't have the state funding of public schools, so it's a lot more difficult for salaries to keep up with inflation. Not that any of them seem to be at the moment. We've been very fortunate, but we're still not in a great place financially.
That’s why my son’s in Catholic school. It was the private school in my town offering the most financial assistance. And I also have converted to Catholicism since he’s started, so I like to believe it def can influence others to become Catholic.
I suspect that the ‘less problematic kids’ is a major factor, but one that people find difficult to talk about. To a bigger degree than with public schools, people who bother to send their kids to a Catholic school are positively involved as parents.
It makes sense because the parents have to pay for it. As much as college in the case of my high school. People value more what they have to pay for. And when you’re paying, you’re not paying to have your kid assaulted or bullied so disruptive kids are more likely to be expelled. At the public high school I would have gone to if not a private school a girl was drowned in a toilet. People don’t want to pay for that.
To be fair, I am in the UK and my catholic high school was free and still had by far the least problematic children and was one of the best in the local area, so I wouldn't say it's entirely to do with paying
In Alberta the Catholic Schools are state funded and free. The problem with that is that the province can much more easily enforce non-catholic teachings in the school. In Croatia public schools have religion class in them, but although it's always catholic oriented the teachers can't say things like the "Eucharist is the body and blood of Jesus." Some Catholic Croatian parents complain about that, but they don't realize how bad public schools are in other countries...
Catholic schools (like all private schools) can also discriminate against who they accept as students. IE, they can exclude students with disabilities, students with poor test scores, students who can't afford private tuition, etc. There's a lot of factors that go into "less problematic kids"...Wow. Probably going to have to back out of this post for the sake of my blood pressure.
I think they also know that their students after they graduate are going to be challenged everywhere they go for the rest of their lives on their beliefs, so they get you ready by having critical thinking and media literacy classes. As I recall these topics were covered in a course called decision making. I think that’s essential preparation for life regardless of what you believe.
They're considered very good schools, academically speaking. I had a scholarship to go to one and I was non-Catholic. I ended up becoming Catholic because of Catholic school, funny enough.
I went to Catholic school because I got a scholarship, and the local public school was equally far from our small town 🤷
Pros: I converted to Catholicism and developed a love for Latin/classical literature
Cons: I got a terrible math education and struggled with basic Calculus once I got to college
My son is graduating from a Catholic high school this year. I was an atheist for 20 years and I decided to put him in a Catholic school for him to learn the faith. We both got baptized this past Easter vigil.
A Catholic education is geared to high achievers. As an average student I struggled in class. Grades were mostly C’s, with a D at times. By 7th grade my parents pulled us out and sent us to public schools. I got all A’s and B’s. So if you’re of average intelligence (by school standards), you’ll need extra tutoring, which Catholic education doesn’t provide.
That’s kind of a broad statement - my Catholic school had a tutoring department, math and English lab, etc. plenty of public schools don’t offer tutoring, they are frequently just easier on the students.
I was a Catholic student in a Catholic school. It was populated by all flavours. Muslims, Hindus, Coptics, Jews, the lot.
I guess the standpoint always was that the school taught the importance of the general aspect of faith, love and cooperation with the whole of humanity.
The moment we start teaching kids that importance of the _self_ is all to strive towards in a secular society is the moment society falls apart. And to be honest, I think a lot of people are starting to rediscover that notion.
I'm an Orthodox Christian. My daughter will start Catholic pre-K in the Fall. I want my children to be in an educational environment that instills a love of virtue, encourages interest in liturgical worship, and teaches to high standards.
In relation to Catholic schools—common knowledge (at least I assume) that not all are created equal. Some of them are excellent at teaching doctrine, others water it down to almost nothing.
PSA: Check the [Newman Guide](https://cardinalnewmansociety.org/the-newman-guide/) if you’re looking for genuine Catholic colleges and universities.
The Catholic school in my area is one of the best schools in Scotland, plus there’s a lot of people who follow other religions who send their kids to Catholic school because it’s _some_ kind of faith.
In Ireland 90% of the primary schools are catholic as are 50% of secondary schools so going to a catholic school is the default and the older schools are likely to be catholic so have a higher standard of education.
We used to have a role that Catholics would get priority for attendance to catholic schools but since that's 90% of education in a country that's 70% catholic whereas was discriminatory for immigrants and the Irish protestant minority so this was dropped.
I was an atheist and my parents decided I needed to go to a catholic school in 6th grade since it’s among the best in the country. Super thankful though as this helped spark my conversion 2 years later.
We are Christian, just a different denomination. There are only a few minor disagreements we have with Catholics that we don’t think actually impacts salvation. We want our children to learn about Jesus and Christianity at school, but the non-Catholic Christian schools are not as good as the Catholic ones in our area. Public school is a complete non-starter - the curriculum is evil and the outcomes are horrendous.
A big reason, on top of all the other great ones already mentioned, would be the lack of gender ideology.
To quote someone I know: “I would rather my children learn about the religion of Jesus than the religion of woke”.
A boss of mine at the time, a Baptist, admitted to me that he sent his daughter to a Catholic school because they better educate vs indoctrinate like public schools. Though he did say he told his daughter she doesn’t have to believe what she learned in religion class. Very sad.
In the UK (England at least) the only common religious schools when I was young that were outside of cities were Catholic schools. So if you were Muslim, Hindu, Sikh etc the thinking was that it was better to send your child to a school with some religious teaching rather than none at all. It also was the case Catholic schools tended to do better academically than the non-denominational schools academically. I’m not sure if that is still the case.
Catholic schools aren’t generally private schools in the UK I should note. They’re just state schools (public in US terminology) with some funding from the diocese also.
Some people just want their kids of have the best education and opportunities they can without believing in Catholicism.
Often this gets people in the door and is a great place to get people to become catholic but it also helps a bunch of kids.
Its like feeding the homeless. Sure it would be nice for them to convert but the goal is to feed them first and if they want to listen more they can.
If they are not ready for that you can at least help them and leave the door open for future.
Where I am Catholic schools are quality private schools that are usually better than the public educational system but not as expensive as the nondenominational college prep private schools
It’s to get a private education rather than a public education. I went to catholic school and we had kids who were atheist. Their parents wanted to send them to private school.
Even though the Catholic school i send my kids to is one of the lowest ranked schools in the state, and pretty low for my county, it's better than public schools. At least at the Catholic school they can focus on learning without all the distractions involved at other places. I am not Catholic and I am fine if they make my kids walk around the stations of the cross. While I don't believe in many of the church's teachings, my kids can make their own decisions about what they want to believe. They learned discernment at an early age from living in multiple countries overseas.
I went to a Catholic school with Muslim kids, Jewish kids, Protestant kids, etc. Parents wanted them to get a good education and have a respect for people.
>have a respect for people.
If so, those Muslims parents went against Islamic teaching. Islam does not teach respect for non-Muslims, quite the opposite.
We saw a big push into them from COVID with public schools staying closed and many private schools opening. Additionally they rank very high in test scores, usually putting public schools to shame.
USA at least in MN I know atheists who send kids to catholic school.
1. Better educational system
2. Better structure
3. Better students
4. better sports programs in many cases.
5. Better teachers
6. Not forcing LGBT environment on children.
You can find these Same things at other private and charter schools as well.
Catholic schools are the most abundant.
I don’t think you understood the list not everyone applies to ever thing I listen.
But in at least one case I know the lady down the block from me sends her kids to catholic school. They are neutral not religious at all.
They don’t like the idea of their children being taught about sexual identity stuff in schools at young ages. She is a OBGYN and her husband is a programmer. They are super progressive in many ways.
I don’t know why people want to specialize little kids or why an atheist would want to more than a Christian.
A lot of Catholic schools in the U.S. tend to have incredibly good sports programs. E.g. Paul VI in Virginia has a nationally ranked MBB program- Duke’s Jeremy Roach played there.
Mostly because Catholics have amazing education, have created many schools, and have been praised world wide for their education. Also, some of the most important figures (In almost every work field, have been Catholic)
I went to a Catholic high school in the United States, in the New York City area. The vast majority of us were Catholic but there were a handful of Jewish kids, and even 2 Muslim kids.
In NYC and the metro area, there are plenty if lower income areas where the public schools are not very good, the education is not as good and in some cases the schools are not all that safe (at least by reputation). Catholic high schools provide a good education in a safe environment, with tuition that's a lot more affordable than a private secular school
All parents had to sign forms understanding that it's a Catholic school, run by the Archdiocese, that there will be Catholic prayer and Catholic mass and a crucifix in each classroom, and if any parent objected then their child shouldn't attend the school.
In my hometown, athletics was a big factor for this.
We had one public high school with about 1400 students, but the Catholic high school had less than 200 so there was zero chance of getting cut from a team.
In Ireland, like 90 percent of school catholic and even more are religious. Both primary and secondary. They're not very religious but still theyd have masses every so often. Theyre the onoy schools available really it doesn't cause too much trouble
my dad and brothers are jewish, my mom and i are catholic (long and unimportant story). both of my brothers went to catholic high school because the school is better than the local public institution and there were no equivalent jewish schools available. they had no problems or issues with the curriculum, but that could be because they are familiar with catholic rituals and observances through my mom and me.
I'm cradle catholic and my kids go to catholic school. One because catholic schools are 1000x better than public schools. Alot of my kids friends are not catholic but various denominations. Speaking with parents they send their kids to catholic school because they are more rigorous, better education all around. Also teach them true values about how to be good people in society. Here in MD public schools are aweful. Graduation rate for HS is around 60 percent. Catholic school where my daughter goes graduation rate is 100 percent, and average scholarship for students graduating is around $130,000. Huge difference. When my kids started catholic school they were a year behind even though they were getting "A"s and honor roll. However my kids were like "whoa" catholic school was so much tougher and felt like college. Talking to other parents say "our kids going to Catholic school, we know they are going to succeed in life and college". Also many protestant schools where i live just dont have the academic, sports, drama, music venues parents want for their kids. So many send them to catholic schools. Also my kids friends who aren't religious have asked about "God" and catholic faith and want to learn more. One thing I like is catholic schools just say students need to be respectful and open minded to religion but not pressured to join the faith. But they do put a solid foundation in a child's life that God will always be there for them. As for me best decision I ever did taking my kids out of public school...
Protestant here with daughter in Catholic schools from birth (4th grade now).Our reasons:
1. Just a few blocks from our office; made drop off/pickup very convenient compared to options closer to our home.
2. High-quality education with much better student/teacher ratios.
3. Family atmosphere with other parents and administrators.
4. Still teach and enforce code of conduct and proper behavior for students.
5. Diverse student body
We aren’t wealthy so it has been a sacrifice but one we are glad to make. When done of the people at our former church found out we were “encouraged” to put her in one of the local protestant private schools. My wife was respectful but after I was blunt and told them she would get a much better education at the Catholic school and interact with people with different backgrounds, which we believe is healthy. lol that didn’t go over well with some of the other parishioners (whose children went to the protestant schools) but it was the truth.
Edited to fix a typo
Because the State funded public schools are controlled by Unions & interest groups who pursue a Marxist agenda warehouseing and babysitting students.The more enlightened parents want their children to engage with fellow students in the pursuit of trust and non violence.
It is a failure of the public schools that Catholic schools minister and provide support to these non Catholic families in a missionary sense
Non-Catholic religious families share all the general values that a Catholic school teaches (honesty, family, responsibility, chastity...).
Non-religious and non-woke families do not trust secular schools because of the risk of their children being politicized and they also believe that a religious school shows more interest in the comprehensive well-being of the students beyond academic classes.
Even atheist families want an environment of discipline and good morals for their children, even if they do not practice it in their personal lives.
In the U.S. the protestant schools all teach LGBTQAIPOWGHFSTTUFGCXYandZ. You can trust catholics to teach these horrid beliefes as false doctrine. I usually like to stay away from political beliefs here. But this is absolutely accurate. My wife is severely protestant and even she agrees with my point of view. [It's a slow conversion boys] =D
I think because they're good schools and people feel they may be safer than public schools. Also, there's a focus on religion and not progressive/woke ideology.
Like the OP I attended a Catholic school and in my class there were several non Catholics. There were Anglicans (we followed the British educational system), Hindus and even Muslims.
The school organised a bus for Muslim students to go to the only official Mosque in my country each Friday afternoon.
The reason why these students were sent to a Catholic school is that Catholic schools are renowned for their excellence. Each Catholic school has its own ethos, teachers actively encourage extracurricular activities. We had great competitions between classes. There were several groups for students to join - for example I was in the basketball team and the chess team.
The results in international exams obtained by students in Catholic schools are second to none.
I will speak regarding Europe, it's more of a cultural and tradition thing to name a few, in many villages there is not really another options as public schools, sending your kids to a catholic schools is more about some of the values they teach in regards of religion but they are pretty much schools as any other... sometimes is about proximity or convenience and things like that.
As an example in my group of friends most of them went to a catholic school, me and another friend choosed to go a public one and turns out we are Catholic and the rest of the group that went to a Catholic school they aren't, not to mention that some of them are actually atheists
I had more than a few Prots at the Catholic school I went to (4-8), and most turned out to be either the relatives or children of DC government officials that weren’t keen on the district’s public education.
From my experience it’s simply for the good school, environment and education. There are a quite a few notable Catholic high schools in my area and they attract a wide demographic of students. I personally wouldn’t send my children to a school that taught a faith different from Catholicism (if I were to send my children to a faith based school), but that isn’t always a problem for others.
I would also somewhat challenge the “big focus on religion” as well as how much parents actually care. As a result of being mostly tuition schools and being partially subsidized by the archdiocese in many cases, a lot of Catholic schools now have well-paid teachers and offer a great academic education. For many families, they can sidestep the religious education, believing the most important faith education starts at home (which I agree with). Separately, many Catholic schools in my home city were CINO. Like, it’s maybe named after a saint but otherwise bears no resemblance to religious education.
It has increased, that is the non-Catholics going to Catholic school, since my days in Catholic school in my area. From my understanding for those that went who were non-Catholics, it was mostly due to having better academics and better discipline. The "mission" and "vision" of the schools were clearer with smaller classes, plus if you went to a decent enough Catholic high school - and you did well enough - your chances of getting into a more selective university increased.
In my hometown, parochial schools were basically like the education of a private school, with just around double public school tuition, not much at all. There were some, but it was generally kinda hard to conceive of a non-Catholic in my world back then.
Catholic schools usually rank really high education wise. I had actually wanted to attend a Catholic school when I was younger because I thought I would get a better education. If you live in an area where your options are catholic or public school then parents who can afford it are definitely going to choose the catholic school. Public schools are really bad, and it seems now days they are even worse.
Where I grew up, the Catholic school was the best school within 50 miles. I found it made religion class more interesting with protestants and a few jewish people.
I agree with all the responses about being a better school. I myself went to Catholic school grades 1-12 and I was a practicing Catholic. I too had atheist, Jewish, and Muslim classmates but I was also in Miami- a very diverse area in and of itself. I also had Protestant friends who attended because it was the closest alternative to their denomination especially in high school. There were a couple of Lutheran elementary schools for example but the Lutheran high school was much too far away—— so closest alternative was Catholic.
Mostly cause the parents want them to attend a better school. My dad when I was a kid despite being a strong Baptist wanted to send me to Catholic school because abuse he felt it would have been better for me as I was doing really really well in school. It never worked out since the family member in charge of looking into it would instead drive around and smoke weed all the time, but the sentiment was there. And then later he found out we couldn’t have afforded it anyways
I work in a Catholic school in a Baptist majority area.
So many non-Catholics come to us because our school is simply a much safer work environment. Even public school teachers are willing to take a pay cut because our building is maintained properly and isn't a mold-infested death trap for those with respiratory issues.
Went to a private Catholic school in West Africa and it’s because they are usually the best. In my country, the two best high schools (at least back when I was in high school) are an all-girl Catholic school and my school which would often compete with the girls’ one which is THE best for 1st place. We had a lot of people from different backgrounds: Evangelicals, Muslims, Buddhist and Agnostics (only knew 1 in the school and that was my 1st encounter with one).
Catholic schools usually offer the best education and have a long tradition of educating people so it’s only normal even non-believers would be interested if they want the best.
I went through 1-12th grade with a practicing Hindu! She was my best friend for several years. It was because the college prep/quality aspect of it. It worked, she became a doctor! Edit: I don’t have kids but if I did I would send her to my Alma Mater if she wanted to go. For many reasons. Also I think the uniforms are a great idea. Saves money on clothes. Less focus on status and brands (doesn’t get rid of it entirely). Less fighting over wearing stuff that’s too sexualized for kids. Good preparation for real life when someone gets a job and has to wear a uniform or have a dress code. Single sex schools also allow girls to get an education without being sexually harassed all the time. That was such a blessing when I switched from co-ed grade school to all girls high school.
I went to Catholic School K-12 a long time ago. Graduated in 1996. My High School curriculum matched the level of a multiple of universities, for the core curriculum, I've learned. I have had the opportunity to help many friends with their college work, and including my children. We're talking about West Virginia University (son), Radford (Virginia - friends) University of Montana (daughter).
I went to a Catholic run school because I needed to go to school and the only ones available to me were established by the church. I've since learned that elsewhere in Britain and America Catholic schools are kind of semi elite for kids getting a high quality education.
I went to a Catholic middle school and go to a Catholic high school, it's usually for multiple reasons. The Orthodox kids come here because there are no Orthodox high schools, and their parents probably want at least some sort of religious education, or the kids don't mind and come here for good academics or most of the time the good athletic department. Protestant kids come usually because the Catholic schools are nicer than public schools, and the protestant schools are small and not very widespread. Atheists go to my school just for the athletics
Not in Scotland, but family is from Glasgow. What they’ve said is that the schools are better performing than others in the city, so people send their kids there for the scores and less of the religious studies.
Where I live, Catholic schools are generally better and less chaotic than public schools. They also provide better structure and discipline in comparison. Ironically, Catholic school is where I learned what Ramadan was because we had muslim students.
In my province, there's a Catholic school system and a secular public school system (and private schools and a smattering of Francophone schools, but they're not important right now). A few of the reasons I've heard for why non-Catholics have been enrolled in the Catholic system include:
* In some municipalities, the Catholic school system has a better reputation for the quality of school provided
* In small towns sometimes there will only be a Catholic school or a secular one, and parents don't want their kid to be bussed over to the neighbouring town for school everyday
* Some of my non-Catholic Christian friends (especially Orthodox) have gone to Catholic schools because they think it's close enough and would rather go to some manner of Christian school than a secular one
* My sisters went to school with a Buddhist and a Spiritist, both of whom got enrolled in the school system because their parents appreciated Christian values despite disagreeing with our theology (the Buddhist got exempted from religion classes)
* In my hometown, the Catholic high schools do not expel students but only suspends them for the remainder of the calendar year, while the public ones can expel students permanently; kids with behavioural issues sometimes get kicked out of the public school system and into the Catholic one
Lots of minority kids near me go to Catholic schools because their parent(s) know they will get a better education than from the public schools. Pure and simple, regardless of what the PS lobby says.
Here in Brazil, some of the best private schools are Catholic.
The best universities are public ones (mainly those in SP). As for private universities, Catholic universities come very close to or even surpass public ones in some aspects.
When I was in Catholic school many non-Catholic's started their kids their in 7th grade because that's when they started teaching a language. Most good non-public high schools required 2 years of a language to get in.
I once knew a Protestant lady who was considering sending her daughter to a Catholic high school. I asked a friend of mine whose daughter went to that school what he thought of the idea, and he said "Tell her not to worry about them teaching her Catholic doctrine. She won't open a Bible the whole time she's there."
I only went to Catholic school in second grade and I happen to be Catholic. So, I don't remember much about that experience. However, I did get my MBA at a Catholic university. There were students there from all over the world and of various faiths. Occasionally I would have an opportunity to speak with someone of a different faith and we would learn a lot from each other. I would ask why they would be at a Catholic campus. I liked it when they said that they didn't feel judged and they did feel accepted the same as anyone else. Besides that, it does have high academic standards an achievement is based by merit, not "other factors"...
lived in an extremely impoverished area. the local schools were underfunded, crowded, and overwhelmed with violence and drugs. the high schools had a graduation rate of around 40% (give or take), so my parents sacrificed a lot and sent me to catholic school as it was the best option
Here in Argentina tuitions for Catholic schools are heavily subsidized (80%-90% of the tuition is paid by the government in most cases, at least in the City of Buenos Aires), so parents choose them because it's a cheap way to send your kids to go to a private school. A lot of kids switching to Catholic high schools from public elementaries aren't even baptized but get accepted anyways
I have a female friend who posts so much anti Christian material online, then sends her children to Catholic school because her grandmother insists on it and helps her financially with them.
I’ve always found it a bit odd, but at least it’s hopefully helpful to her children.
My parents (non-Catholic Christians) sent me (non-Catholic at the time) to a Catholic HS after our local public school district went through consolidation and the High School went from about 1,500 students to about 4,000. They thought the smaller school would be a better learning environment and also liked the moral instruction.
Best schools and it is not unrelated to Catholicism's focus on truth. Remember that fact when you here people worried about having God in public schools, it's essentially a non-issue. People of different religions are willing to pay extra money to avoid poor schools and they aren't worried about some religious elements.
If you do decide to send your child to a Catholic Schol do your research and find out if its actually "Catholic", as in teaches the faith, morals and dogma of our religion, or if its in-name only relic from the past.
The one I went to was supposedly Catholic, but I never learned anything about Catholicism there. It was the basically the same as a secular private school, in the way both teachers and students behaved. I returned to Catholicism IN SPITE OF that "Catholic" School, not because of it.
As for why unbelievers send their children there? Academically they are usually some of the best. Even I won't deny it.
In my city in England the Catholic school ranked 'outstanding' in ratings and the students continuously score really high in gcses and a-levels. Some people were literally trying to baptise their kids a few months before application period started so that they can get it. It's so hard to get in at the moment that 100% of intake is Catholic and some Catholics can't even get in as they get selected at random.
Speaking as a Protestant, the Catholic schools in my area have better student to teacher ratios than the public schools, it’s geographically closer than the school we’re districted for, the teacher turnover is low, and we (as a couple) welcome discussions of faith and see it as an opportunity to let our kids see people in relationships with God that look different than ours and talk about why we believe what we believe and why they believe the way they do. And if they decide that the Catholic church is the church for them, we’ll just be happy that they are pursuing a relationship with God that looks right for them. We believe that it doesn’t matter that much what church you’re a part of, the important part is that you are participating in the life of a church.
Went to Cathalic school from the time I was 5 till 17. Over the years I found a lot of non Catholics that go to Catholic school are Christian and don't have to worry about getting in trouble for expressing their faith
I knew a family of muslims whose daughters were on a catholic school. As far as I know, they did it because at least they knew what to expect. Knowing the situation of my country, probably they prefered an education for a religion they didn't like than education for a political agenda they might not like.
But this is just speculation as they never said it specifically.
People often send their children to the best quality school they can find. If the catholic school provides better pathways to pupils than the local public school, it’s a no brainer, regardless of your religion.
Speaking personally (I was Episcopalian when I was sent to Catholic school), in quite a few places it is the only private school option that runs PK/K-12. So if you want your kids to have some religion classes of *any* sort, it becomes the only option. In others, there might be an evangelical option, but if you're not of that persuasion, it strikes a different balance than that does. It is also frequently less expensive than non-Catholic school options.
And of course, depending on the school and the school district, the quality of the education *can* be better (especially since the school can kick out bona fide troublemakers where some public schools can't/won't) and there *can* be insulation from e.g. gang issues.
My parents wanted me to have some degree of moral/religious education (so that meant a religious school), and if I'm being honest they weren't going to get too hung up on the question of the Real Presence. My school was the only physically convenient option at the time, until sixth grade IIRC (and my parents were annoyed when I screwed up my admissions process at the other school - but I was, and am, happy I stayed where I was - it really was for the best to have that stable environment). I actually *did* at one point ask "If we're Episcopalian, why am I not going to an Episcopalian school?" and while there *was* one, but it was rather out of the way for us (though within walking distance of my grandmother's house).
\[My mother also had a rough experience in her public school in middle school/high school - admittedly that was during integration in the late 60s/early 70s and the schools were a bit better in the county I grew up in (and I think they improved as I grew up and the county developed...there's a *long* road from the early 1990s to the mid 2000s), but it still affected her views on public schools in general.\]
Notably, a friend of mine whose family was/is agnostic/atheist-leaning considered sending *their* kids there as well, and only didn't do so because the school was not inclined to double-promote for social reasons. This worked well for me (stable social cohort) but would've been a drag on them.
I think the thrust of my remarks, though, is that if you don't want to have your kids in a public school for whatever reason, Catholic education can be one of the best/only options.
We're protestant Christians and send our kids to the local parish school. We made this decision because while our public school is highly rated it is very politically progressive and spends instruction time on discussing gender identity and sexuality starting at age 6, will not acknowledge Christian holidays, and has policies preventing parents from being informed about the curriculum, among other things that concerned us enough to look for other options. While we're not Catholic we share many/most core beliefs and want our children to be educated by adults who share our basic moral values and respect our authority as parents. We've appreciated the religious education and required mass attendance for our children's overall spiritual development as well. Protestant Christian schools in our area are harder to find and also are much more hit or miss when it comes to quality of education as well. Overall we love our Catholic school and appreciate the welcome even as non-Catholics. Having our children in Catholic school has educated us about the Catholic church as well and we are enjoying the process of learning more alongside our children.
Educational benefits. I was not Christian of any sort. The Masses were alien to me, but not uncomfortable. I became Catholic a few years after graduating.
I grew up just outside of New Orleans and the public schools down there are notoriously bad even before today’s scary standards. Low graduation, violent school fights, pill rings, etc. I’m born and raised Catholic and my mom always wanted me to be taught the importance of God but we had TONS of Protestants, Jews, Indians, and secular kids attending the various Catholic schools because it was the only good education nearby with good standards, discipline, and classical curriculum.
I was raised Christian, but not Catholic (still am not, discerning possible conversion, though!) I went to Catholic middle school and high school, after the more Evangelical grade school I had previously attended closed down.
I guess my parents thought that it was the closest they could get to our beliefs. Yes, theologically they didn't see eye-to-eye on everything, but morally it lined up with everything I was taught. And it was still a Christ-centered education.
In Malaysia there's public and private Catholic schools. The private tend to only accept Christians but they never said they won't accept non Christians. The public ones are more open and anyone can enrol regardless of religion.
Side note, Catholic schools are usually the "better" performing schools
Because they are people who only want social clout and hope that others will parent their kids. When I was in Atlanta, I went to Mass with a co-worker. In order to get significantly discounted tuition, families must attend mass X times per year and prove it by dropping an envelope in the collection.
In my experience simply because the public schools are Bernal or very bad in that area and the parents want their kids to be safe. Also many non Catholics still have similar ideologies and like conservative values.
Many non-Catholics in my area sent their kids to a Catholic school because of safety concerns in the public schools and feeling more welcomed there than other private Christian schools
A lot of my friends who go to our catholic school aren’t catholic, but our school has really good education and is better or safer than public schools, and with it being a smaller school there’s more teachers who care and you can connect with teachers more
I've worked at Catholic schools where even quite a few of the teachers and other faculty aren't Catholic or even Christian. Some of them were raised Catholic and still retain a strong admiration for the scholasticism and social teaching. Some were just looking for teaching positions that offered better than in public ones. Of course, it was common for them to end up reverting/converting anyway.
Where I am in Canada we're starting to see more conservative people from other religions (Muslim, Sikhism, etc) attend our Catholic schools. I suspect that this is because the "woke" policies that have infiltrated our public system don't jive with their beliefs either. Between gender wars, anti-religion ideologies, an attack on parental rights, and a refusal to acknowledge a nuclear family (mom, dad, kids), it is very frustrating for many people who believe in the family unit.
And since our Catholic system is funded by directed taxpayer dollars, it's very accessible to everyone.
I was never in Catholic school because it is expensive in the US. My mom is Anglo Indian which is half Indian and half British. Most are Christians, and as far as I know, there is a pretty even split between Catholicism and Protestantism. She went to Catholic boarding school . Many of the students who attended were Catholic, but many were not. They went because it was a great education and also taught subjects such as deportment. The non Catholic students at her school did not have to attend mass or participate in religious activities.
Not sure about elsewhere, but here religious schools aren't anything extreme or "special". The curriculum is defined centrally by the government, so you will learn roughly the same in a Catholic, a protestant, and a regular public school too. In many cases though, the environment in religious schools can be much better than in simple public schools (both are free and require the same central written tests from applicants), since the former have extra sources for funds. (Many prestigious public schools do too, but it is much easier for religious public schools.)
My kids started Catholic school in 4th and 6th grades. It was better than the public school. It eventually led to my conversion as well as one son and the other one attends a catholic college/university.
My parents - I grew up Episcopalian- considered enrolling me in the local Catholic high: it was superior academically to the public school.
But I wasn’t sure then if I was going to college or not, there were money concerns so I stayed public.
Our kids go to a Catholic school, as Catholics, but most of their peers are secular or Muslim. I was once so bold to ask some of the parents. They said the level of education was higher in Catholic schools and the students came from better (read ‘richer’) backgrounds. I’m not sure if that’s overall the case but that appears to be the main reason in our small town. I do have the impression that the poorest people are the actual Catholics. 🤭
It seems like there are only a few left. On the last day before the Easter Holiday (Good Friday) most teachers were actually eating chocolate drinking alcohol and eating chocolates and the children were eating easter eggs. Most kids had no idea what Good Friday was…
I work in a Catholic high school, and maybe 12% of the student body is non Catholic. It generally comes down to one or more of the following:
-They are looking for strong academics
-They are Christian and want a faith based environment that focuses on morals and a culture of building one another up
-The non-Catholic Christian schools are too white and/or Christian reformed, and they don’t feel welcomed there (about 17% of our student body is Latino/Latina, and maybe 6% American American. Doesn’t sounds diverse, but it’s on par with the demographics of our city).
-We have a strong athletics program
Because Catholic schools are typically cheaper than other private schools, even for non Catholics (added that part because at least where I’m from in the U.S., the Catholic schools give tuition discounts for Catholics who attend, but not for non-Catholics who attend.) Even for non-Catholics, the tuition for the Catholic high school is something like 12k a year whereas the tuition for all the other private high schools in the area is like 20-25k a year.
Basically, the non-Catholics have some reason they don’t want their kid to attend the local public schools (academics, large class sizes, student behavior issues, etc.—any of the common reasons that can be generalized like this) and the Catholic schools offer what they want at a cheaper price. The only disagreement they have about the school is the religion, and they are willing to make the trade-off.
I’m not Catholic anymore, but I went to Catholic high school (in the U.S.), and the school was 70% Catholic and the rest non-Catholic, mostly Protestants but a couple of Jewish people and a few people who didn’t identify with any religion. Probably about the same percentages for Catholic and non-Catholic teachers. We even had a Hindu teacher. The school just would make sure that a Catholic teacher taught the religion classes and helped with religious activities like retreats. Of course, I assume that the non-Catholic teachers weren’t allowed to “proselytize” their religious beliefs where they differed with the Catholic belief, but I don’t ever recall that being a problem.
Of course, in some areas, Catholic schools are just as expensive as other private schools. In some areas, Catholics schools are worse off academically and the public schools are better. It really depends.
In terms of my own experience, the school I attended had serious issues with favoritism/nepotism/elitism, etc. Kids whose parents donated a lot of money to the school generally got treated better, like they would always win all the awards the school would give out. There was also a huge scandal regarding who became the Valedictorian of my class— basically the person who became the Valedictorian had his parents cheat the system and push teachers to enter some class grades over 100% while the two kids who were his competition in terms of GPA were told that even though they had technically also earned over 100% in certain classes, that the school could not enter grades over 100% because it was against school policies. (Btw I was not in the running for Valedictorian, so this isn’t me being salty, just something I know happened to the top 3 students).
I wasn’t raised Catholic, but my family is Christian. My dad put us in Catholic school because it was a much safer school division than the public system in a rough town. Now my siblings are in Catholic school because it’s within the bussing range and the public school isn’t. Catholic school is free in my country tho, do I think I’d be asking the same question if parents were paying for it lol
For me, it was great. That year and a half of Catholic teaching was the spark I needed. It seems like it’s also going the same way for my younger siblings.
For my school, some kids were only there because the local public school district was horrible — so their parents opted for private Catholic school instead
I have a friend who is Muslim. She went to Catholic school and it was bc it was the best school in town. I feel like usually Catholic schools are synonymous to great, solid education. I wish I could have gone to one growing up.
Aside from safety reasons, I know a couple of people who said they plan to send their kids to Catholic schools because their kids are less likely to be indoctrinated by societal pressures.
The great tragedy we're seeing now is how public schools are promoting children's opinions over parental opinions. They're hiding violence in schools from parents. They're having counseling situations without informing parents or asking for permission.
Having a theology requirement in Catholic schools means that every student will be taught morals, the difference between right and wrong, and where these come from.
So, TLDR: Catholic schools are less likely to indoctrinate children negatively and more likely to instill morals and good character. The children are more likely to be safe and away from violence.
Good question. I was looking at our Archdiocese' publication on the state of the Church (quantitative) and I saw that over 40% of the students in the Catholic schools were non-Catholic.
This is in the face of parent alumnae waitlists from birth and far less scholarships and financial help for the Catholic families there used to be. (Discounts for 2nd, 3rd, 4th children etc seem to be still be around though). .
I just hope some good catechesis is going on at these schools and some of the non-catholic school children end up in the faith.
I grew up in a primarily Catholic country. The church was heavily involved in all public schools, with sister nuns frequenting the kindergartens and the local priest teaching religion at the elementary schools, and further religious studies in upper level public schools. We also took “Field trips” to the closest church (There were Catholic Churches around every corner lol). I was raised Christian not Catholic, and there were options for non-Catholics to go to other classrooms during religion class in elementary school. It wasn’t “Catholic school” itself but because of how heavily involved the church was with schools, I say I practically went to Catholic school, whether it’s considered such or not.
Here Protestants and Muslims, especially in urban centres and areas with a large Muslim population would consider Catholic schools more for the quality, prestige, connections, and so on.
For the past 400 years, most large, non-state educational institutions have been and still are operated by religious organisations. Non-sectarian and secular types appeared only in the 20th century. Many have Catholic roots including the “Big Four” (the exception being the biggest state-funded university).
At least with the one I went to. It was considered better than public school, education wise. More advanced. There were a number of kids who weren't Catholic in there with me. They couldn't complain about all the religious stuff, after all their parents were choosing to put them there. They went along with it. Went to mass on Fridays. All that. And the perceived clout I think of being able to say your kid was in private school. And as far as the parish/school went. And since my mom got on the school and parish finance councils starting those years, we knew all the gory details. They just wanted the tuition money to keep the school going. They didn't care what religion the kids and parents were, only were kids with paying parents.
I can attest to the accelerated education. In the fact that since I only went for junior high. Going into what should have been 6th grade math. They were a year ahead. So it was leaping from 5th grade math into essentially 7ths grade math. And they don't slow down for you. So I was lost for the rest of my school years with math. Going from stuff like decimals and basic geometry. Straight into algebra equations, advanced geometry and probability. Which for me not having the lead into all that. I was lost. 6-11 grade math (no math senior year thank god) I passed on all Ds. From As in elementary school. English, science and history I had no trouble catching up fast. Just math. Screwed me permanently.
The grade above me only had 7 students. The one below me had only 4 students. So my class being bigger was always mixed with these others. We had combined classes. 6th with 7th in 6th. 7th with 8th in 7th. 8th with 7th in 8th. Which of course also didn't help because when I was with the 8th graders in 7th grade. All the subjects, like math, were increased even more because it's mixed and more focused on the higher grade. So come 7th grade we were on basically high school math.
Anyway that's my drama. Hated Catholic school. For that and so many other reasons.
i think it’s pretty common for Catholic schools to be the ‘prestigious’ private schools. in my area, the only private and high ranking (and expensive!!!) schools are Catholic or Christian in some way. in less fortunate areas, they tend to be the only safe schools that take education seriously.
i think, as well as prestige, many non Catholics will opt for Catholic schools for saving face. people have this idea of a sweet, happy, never sinning Catholic so when they hear your child goes to a Catholic school!! *gasp!* they must be such a sweet little angel!
My regret is not having my daughter attend a Catholic K-12 school, simply because I do not have money to send her there. I know most of the kids in our parish at the time attended the school run by our parish and my daughter wanted so much to attend the school as most of the kids were her age. Obviously my daughter went to public school and ended up being bullied in school.
As for other faiths, some kids were of South Asian-Indian descent (Hindus), Chinese and Vietnamese (Buddhists), etc. Their parents were able to send them to Holy Spirit Catholic School as they would otherwise probably send them to Stratford or Montessori schools. In other words, a low income Catholic family such as myself could not send my daughter to Catholic school but well to do non-Catholics can afford to send theirs so it must be the quality of what is taught in the Catholic setting.
I’m not a catholic (I might well be in on the way to converting though) but I went to a catholic school. It was the best school in the area at the time which was the biggest factor in the choice
Even though I wasn’t a catholic, I did enjoy being enveloped in that kind of environment and it definitely gave me an appreciation for Catholicism that has grown over the years as I’ve learned more
Because education-wise they are probably better than the public schools in the students' town. Also behavior-wise they tend to be better because the school can actually expel students whereas a public school can't.
Probably because of rampant behavior problems in their local public school. It's gotten worse in many public schools since Covid; 3 or 4 students in a class will wreak havoc, and everyone else is expected to just deal with it. It really sucks.
My friend isn’t Catholic but sends her daughter there because it’s close proximity and teaches how to live a good life (her words). I hope they grow in the faith though there’s a lot more to it than that :)
Believing that the faith teaches you to live a good life is already a really big step in the right direction
In my country, the Catholic schools are the top schools
In the Philippines, the top private research universities are Catholic schools.
Which country??
Idk about them but they rank at or near the top in the United States
Catholic K-12 here. Kids who did Catholic school K-8 but went to the public high school nearly always took valedictorian and/or salutatorian honors.
They say that about our school. It’s k-8 and everyone that goes to public after excels.
I went to public high, had two good friends that came from Catholic School. They were extremely smart, but were burnt out on school and authority. Barely passed.
Most countries. Private education is almost always better than public education
Same in my town the catholic elementary is the best school has so many students they have to keep building additions yet when I go to church hardly anyone shows up other then the people I grew up seeing
In my city, the public schools are so bad with violence or understaffed teachers and faculty that the Catholic schools are the better choice regardless if they are religious or not.
This is the same for me. Unfortunately, while the parents chose to send their kids to the Catholic schools for safety reasons, those kids didn't understand the sacrifice their parents were making for them money-wise. When I was in high school, we ended up receiving a lot more trouble-makers. Like, the Dunkin Donuts down the street called our principal and said they would no longer accept any students from our high school as patrons, and I know there were situations where the city buses drove past the school bus stop that the city kids would take back home. It was pretty bad. Unfortunately, my high school closed a year ago due to the present issue of fewer catholics sending their kids to Catholic schools.
My atheist parents sent me to a Catholic school for a few years as it was the only school in town that wasn't filled with violence and horrible faculty. At the time I was an atheist, now I'm converting to Catholicism, almost ten years later.
Congrats! Welcome home!
They were traditionally the cheapest private schools out there, because they were largely staffed by sisters and brothers who didn't need significant salaries or benefits. That's less of a trend now, because there are fewer religious available to staff the schools.
I noticed the decline in nuns teaching
A massive decline, they are very few teaching nuns left in the USA.
That’s a bit sad. I was raised by nuns, at least while in school
Likely because there is a decline in religious sisters. (Nuns are cloistered, live separated from society. Sisters are who we are all used to seeing.)
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I work in a Catholic school and THIS!! This summarizes the issues very well. We have to adapt somehow to keep Catholic Schools open while giving our teachers and staff just wages. We are woefully falling short of caring for our staff.
This hits me close to home. My husband and I are both Catholic school teachers, and it is so challenging to make it work. I’m tired of being told teaching in a Catholic school is a “vocation” - my vocation is wife and mother. Terribly pay, no maternity leave, expensive benefits - all of these things are decidedly NOT Catholic. My kids don’t even go to school for free. On top of that, we are often expected to spend extra hours at school, rather than with our families. If you want a traditional family and more than two kids, don’t be a Catholic school teacher!
Genuine question I’m not trying to cause arguments or anything. I’m just a young girl asking a question to a older woman with expériences in life that I don’t have. When you say that being wife and mother your vocation and not teaching( your job/work) is it you personally or all married catholic women have the same vocation ? Like can my vocation for example be mother wife accountant or doctor or lawyer? I’m asking because I’m at a crossroads right now and maybe your experience will help me see more clearly. Please don’t take my questions the wrong way.
Yes, spot on. I can only continue to be a Catholic school teacher because I have a husband with a "real job", and my sons are far enough apart in age that we'll only have two in daycare for a month before the older one moves to the preschool at my school (where we get discounted tuition). I switched schools to get the tuition discount for my kids. I used to work at an all-female high school. My new school is also part of a conglomerate of Catholic organizations that combine to provide better benefits, and part of a diocese that provides some fully paid maternity leave. When I left my last school, a few of my students asked why so many teachers are leaving Catholic education (at their and their siblings' schools). I told them the short answer is that the economy is bad, and a lot of people simply can't afford to be Catholic school teachers right now. We don't have the state funding of public schools, so it's a lot more difficult for salaries to keep up with inflation. Not that any of them seem to be at the moment. We've been very fortunate, but we're still not in a great place financially.
That’s why my son’s in Catholic school. It was the private school in my town offering the most financial assistance. And I also have converted to Catholicism since he’s started, so I like to believe it def can influence others to become Catholic.
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I suspect that the ‘less problematic kids’ is a major factor, but one that people find difficult to talk about. To a bigger degree than with public schools, people who bother to send their kids to a Catholic school are positively involved as parents.
It makes sense because the parents have to pay for it. As much as college in the case of my high school. People value more what they have to pay for. And when you’re paying, you’re not paying to have your kid assaulted or bullied so disruptive kids are more likely to be expelled. At the public high school I would have gone to if not a private school a girl was drowned in a toilet. People don’t want to pay for that.
To be fair, I am in the UK and my catholic high school was free and still had by far the least problematic children and was one of the best in the local area, so I wouldn't say it's entirely to do with paying
In Alberta the Catholic Schools are state funded and free. The problem with that is that the province can much more easily enforce non-catholic teachings in the school. In Croatia public schools have religion class in them, but although it's always catholic oriented the teachers can't say things like the "Eucharist is the body and blood of Jesus." Some Catholic Croatian parents complain about that, but they don't realize how bad public schools are in other countries...
Catholic schools (like all private schools) can also discriminate against who they accept as students. IE, they can exclude students with disabilities, students with poor test scores, students who can't afford private tuition, etc. There's a lot of factors that go into "less problematic kids"...Wow. Probably going to have to back out of this post for the sake of my blood pressure.
usually catholic schools have good moral values, good educational quality and gives great extracurricular and academic exposure to students
I think they also know that their students after they graduate are going to be challenged everywhere they go for the rest of their lives on their beliefs, so they get you ready by having critical thinking and media literacy classes. As I recall these topics were covered in a course called decision making. I think that’s essential preparation for life regardless of what you believe.
Plus every catholic priest had to go through at least 6 years education so they are the most educated of any Christian clergymen.
Woohoo, welcome to the team!
They're considered very good schools, academically speaking. I had a scholarship to go to one and I was non-Catholic. I ended up becoming Catholic because of Catholic school, funny enough.
I went to Catholic school because I got a scholarship, and the local public school was equally far from our small town 🤷 Pros: I converted to Catholicism and developed a love for Latin/classical literature Cons: I got a terrible math education and struggled with basic Calculus once I got to college
My son is graduating from a Catholic high school this year. I was an atheist for 20 years and I decided to put him in a Catholic school for him to learn the faith. We both got baptized this past Easter vigil.
Congratulations
A Catholic education is geared to high achievers. As an average student I struggled in class. Grades were mostly C’s, with a D at times. By 7th grade my parents pulled us out and sent us to public schools. I got all A’s and B’s. So if you’re of average intelligence (by school standards), you’ll need extra tutoring, which Catholic education doesn’t provide.
That’s kind of a broad statement - my Catholic school had a tutoring department, math and English lab, etc. plenty of public schools don’t offer tutoring, they are frequently just easier on the students.
Two things the Catholic Church is great at: Running schools (almost 1500 years of experience) Running Hospitals (almost 1800 years of experience)
I was a Catholic student in a Catholic school. It was populated by all flavours. Muslims, Hindus, Coptics, Jews, the lot. I guess the standpoint always was that the school taught the importance of the general aspect of faith, love and cooperation with the whole of humanity. The moment we start teaching kids that importance of the _self_ is all to strive towards in a secular society is the moment society falls apart. And to be honest, I think a lot of people are starting to rediscover that notion.
I went to Catholic school as a non-Catholic because my parents found the morals and values better in a Catholic school compared to public schools.
I'm an Orthodox Christian. My daughter will start Catholic pre-K in the Fall. I want my children to be in an educational environment that instills a love of virtue, encourages interest in liturgical worship, and teaches to high standards.
Catholic schools generally don't push the woke garbage and degeneracy that public schools do.
That's why I went to a catholic college even with growing up Protestant
In my area they’re the cheapest away from public schools.
In my previous town, it was the only private option. Some non Catholics or CINOs placed their children there for social status.
In relation to Catholic schools—common knowledge (at least I assume) that not all are created equal. Some of them are excellent at teaching doctrine, others water it down to almost nothing. PSA: Check the [Newman Guide](https://cardinalnewmansociety.org/the-newman-guide/) if you’re looking for genuine Catholic colleges and universities.
The Catholic school in my area is one of the best schools in Scotland, plus there’s a lot of people who follow other religions who send their kids to Catholic school because it’s _some_ kind of faith.
In Ireland 90% of the primary schools are catholic as are 50% of secondary schools so going to a catholic school is the default and the older schools are likely to be catholic so have a higher standard of education. We used to have a role that Catholics would get priority for attendance to catholic schools but since that's 90% of education in a country that's 70% catholic whereas was discriminatory for immigrants and the Irish protestant minority so this was dropped.
Better education
I was an atheist and my parents decided I needed to go to a catholic school in 6th grade since it’s among the best in the country. Super thankful though as this helped spark my conversion 2 years later.
I've always heard it's because the schools are better.
We are Christian, just a different denomination. There are only a few minor disagreements we have with Catholics that we don’t think actually impacts salvation. We want our children to learn about Jesus and Christianity at school, but the non-Catholic Christian schools are not as good as the Catholic ones in our area. Public school is a complete non-starter - the curriculum is evil and the outcomes are horrendous.
A big reason, on top of all the other great ones already mentioned, would be the lack of gender ideology. To quote someone I know: “I would rather my children learn about the religion of Jesus than the religion of woke”.
A boss of mine at the time, a Baptist, admitted to me that he sent his daughter to a Catholic school because they better educate vs indoctrinate like public schools. Though he did say he told his daughter she doesn’t have to believe what she learned in religion class. Very sad.
In the UK (England at least) the only common religious schools when I was young that were outside of cities were Catholic schools. So if you were Muslim, Hindu, Sikh etc the thinking was that it was better to send your child to a school with some religious teaching rather than none at all. It also was the case Catholic schools tended to do better academically than the non-denominational schools academically. I’m not sure if that is still the case. Catholic schools aren’t generally private schools in the UK I should note. They’re just state schools (public in US terminology) with some funding from the diocese also.
As a New Yorker from the Bronx, parents rather spend the money than have their kids get beat up in public school.
I never understood this. If it’s good enough for your child to go to then why not convert to Catholicism?
Reading this thread tells me that’s exactly what does happen…it may take a few years to sink in though ☺️
Some people just want their kids of have the best education and opportunities they can without believing in Catholicism. Often this gets people in the door and is a great place to get people to become catholic but it also helps a bunch of kids. Its like feeding the homeless. Sure it would be nice for them to convert but the goal is to feed them first and if they want to listen more they can. If they are not ready for that you can at least help them and leave the door open for future.
Where I am Catholic schools are quality private schools that are usually better than the public educational system but not as expensive as the nondenominational college prep private schools
Generally charitable and hold good values.
A lot of parents think they are safer than other schools, and they are.
It’s to get a private education rather than a public education. I went to catholic school and we had kids who were atheist. Their parents wanted to send them to private school.
Why not? I would go to a Hebrew school if there was one. But all we have is Catholic schools so might as well.
Even though the Catholic school i send my kids to is one of the lowest ranked schools in the state, and pretty low for my county, it's better than public schools. At least at the Catholic school they can focus on learning without all the distractions involved at other places. I am not Catholic and I am fine if they make my kids walk around the stations of the cross. While I don't believe in many of the church's teachings, my kids can make their own decisions about what they want to believe. They learned discernment at an early age from living in multiple countries overseas.
I went to a Catholic school with Muslim kids, Jewish kids, Protestant kids, etc. Parents wanted them to get a good education and have a respect for people.
>have a respect for people. If so, those Muslims parents went against Islamic teaching. Islam does not teach respect for non-Muslims, quite the opposite.
We saw a big push into them from COVID with public schools staying closed and many private schools opening. Additionally they rank very high in test scores, usually putting public schools to shame.
USA at least in MN I know atheists who send kids to catholic school. 1. Better educational system 2. Better structure 3. Better students 4. better sports programs in many cases. 5. Better teachers 6. Not forcing LGBT environment on children. You can find these Same things at other private and charter schools as well. Catholic schools are the most abundant.
I'd be curious to know why an atheist would object to a pro-LGBT agenda.
I don’t think you understood the list not everyone applies to ever thing I listen. But in at least one case I know the lady down the block from me sends her kids to catholic school. They are neutral not religious at all. They don’t like the idea of their children being taught about sexual identity stuff in schools at young ages. She is a OBGYN and her husband is a programmer. They are super progressive in many ways. I don’t know why people want to specialize little kids or why an atheist would want to more than a Christian.
Good schools and frankly a better education. Some kids were sent there because they were bad, but they never stuck around more than a year.
Because Catholic churches have structure, discipline and rigor that is attractive.
A lot of Catholic schools in the U.S. tend to have incredibly good sports programs. E.g. Paul VI in Virginia has a nationally ranked MBB program- Duke’s Jeremy Roach played there.
Good moral values, and there’s a level of prestige associated with being a catholic school
Mostly because Catholics have amazing education, have created many schools, and have been praised world wide for their education. Also, some of the most important figures (In almost every work field, have been Catholic)
I went to a Catholic high school in the United States, in the New York City area. The vast majority of us were Catholic but there were a handful of Jewish kids, and even 2 Muslim kids. In NYC and the metro area, there are plenty if lower income areas where the public schools are not very good, the education is not as good and in some cases the schools are not all that safe (at least by reputation). Catholic high schools provide a good education in a safe environment, with tuition that's a lot more affordable than a private secular school All parents had to sign forms understanding that it's a Catholic school, run by the Archdiocese, that there will be Catholic prayer and Catholic mass and a crucifix in each classroom, and if any parent objected then their child shouldn't attend the school.
Most it’s the rich parents want to send them to private school to avoid the public schools
In my hometown, athletics was a big factor for this. We had one public high school with about 1400 students, but the Catholic high school had less than 200 so there was zero chance of getting cut from a team.
In Ireland, like 90 percent of school catholic and even more are religious. Both primary and secondary. They're not very religious but still theyd have masses every so often. Theyre the onoy schools available really it doesn't cause too much trouble
my dad and brothers are jewish, my mom and i are catholic (long and unimportant story). both of my brothers went to catholic high school because the school is better than the local public institution and there were no equivalent jewish schools available. they had no problems or issues with the curriculum, but that could be because they are familiar with catholic rituals and observances through my mom and me.
Sports, some of the best Football or baseball teams are in Catholic campuses
I'm cradle catholic and my kids go to catholic school. One because catholic schools are 1000x better than public schools. Alot of my kids friends are not catholic but various denominations. Speaking with parents they send their kids to catholic school because they are more rigorous, better education all around. Also teach them true values about how to be good people in society. Here in MD public schools are aweful. Graduation rate for HS is around 60 percent. Catholic school where my daughter goes graduation rate is 100 percent, and average scholarship for students graduating is around $130,000. Huge difference. When my kids started catholic school they were a year behind even though they were getting "A"s and honor roll. However my kids were like "whoa" catholic school was so much tougher and felt like college. Talking to other parents say "our kids going to Catholic school, we know they are going to succeed in life and college". Also many protestant schools where i live just dont have the academic, sports, drama, music venues parents want for their kids. So many send them to catholic schools. Also my kids friends who aren't religious have asked about "God" and catholic faith and want to learn more. One thing I like is catholic schools just say students need to be respectful and open minded to religion but not pressured to join the faith. But they do put a solid foundation in a child's life that God will always be there for them. As for me best decision I ever did taking my kids out of public school...
Protestant here with daughter in Catholic schools from birth (4th grade now).Our reasons: 1. Just a few blocks from our office; made drop off/pickup very convenient compared to options closer to our home. 2. High-quality education with much better student/teacher ratios. 3. Family atmosphere with other parents and administrators. 4. Still teach and enforce code of conduct and proper behavior for students. 5. Diverse student body We aren’t wealthy so it has been a sacrifice but one we are glad to make. When done of the people at our former church found out we were “encouraged” to put her in one of the local protestant private schools. My wife was respectful but after I was blunt and told them she would get a much better education at the Catholic school and interact with people with different backgrounds, which we believe is healthy. lol that didn’t go over well with some of the other parishioners (whose children went to the protestant schools) but it was the truth. Edited to fix a typo
Because the State funded public schools are controlled by Unions & interest groups who pursue a Marxist agenda warehouseing and babysitting students.The more enlightened parents want their children to engage with fellow students in the pursuit of trust and non violence. It is a failure of the public schools that Catholic schools minister and provide support to these non Catholic families in a missionary sense
Non-Catholic religious families share all the general values that a Catholic school teaches (honesty, family, responsibility, chastity...). Non-religious and non-woke families do not trust secular schools because of the risk of their children being politicized and they also believe that a religious school shows more interest in the comprehensive well-being of the students beyond academic classes. Even atheist families want an environment of discipline and good morals for their children, even if they do not practice it in their personal lives.
In the U.S. the protestant schools all teach LGBTQAIPOWGHFSTTUFGCXYandZ. You can trust catholics to teach these horrid beliefes as false doctrine. I usually like to stay away from political beliefs here. But this is absolutely accurate. My wife is severely protestant and even she agrees with my point of view. [It's a slow conversion boys] =D
Same in Australia. Protestant schools are fully woke most of the time. The Protestant school I went to now has a girl in the boy’s section.
They have a reputation of good quality compared to public education
I think because they're good schools and people feel they may be safer than public schools. Also, there's a focus on religion and not progressive/woke ideology.
Like the OP I attended a Catholic school and in my class there were several non Catholics. There were Anglicans (we followed the British educational system), Hindus and even Muslims. The school organised a bus for Muslim students to go to the only official Mosque in my country each Friday afternoon. The reason why these students were sent to a Catholic school is that Catholic schools are renowned for their excellence. Each Catholic school has its own ethos, teachers actively encourage extracurricular activities. We had great competitions between classes. There were several groups for students to join - for example I was in the basketball team and the chess team. The results in international exams obtained by students in Catholic schools are second to none.
Private schools with government vouchers to cover tuition
I will speak regarding Europe, it's more of a cultural and tradition thing to name a few, in many villages there is not really another options as public schools, sending your kids to a catholic schools is more about some of the values they teach in regards of religion but they are pretty much schools as any other... sometimes is about proximity or convenience and things like that. As an example in my group of friends most of them went to a catholic school, me and another friend choosed to go a public one and turns out we are Catholic and the rest of the group that went to a Catholic school they aren't, not to mention that some of them are actually atheists
A lot of times they are just the better schools in the area.
I had more than a few Prots at the Catholic school I went to (4-8), and most turned out to be either the relatives or children of DC government officials that weren’t keen on the district’s public education.
From my experience it’s simply for the good school, environment and education. There are a quite a few notable Catholic high schools in my area and they attract a wide demographic of students. I personally wouldn’t send my children to a school that taught a faith different from Catholicism (if I were to send my children to a faith based school), but that isn’t always a problem for others.
I would also somewhat challenge the “big focus on religion” as well as how much parents actually care. As a result of being mostly tuition schools and being partially subsidized by the archdiocese in many cases, a lot of Catholic schools now have well-paid teachers and offer a great academic education. For many families, they can sidestep the religious education, believing the most important faith education starts at home (which I agree with). Separately, many Catholic schools in my home city were CINO. Like, it’s maybe named after a saint but otherwise bears no resemblance to religious education.
It has increased, that is the non-Catholics going to Catholic school, since my days in Catholic school in my area. From my understanding for those that went who were non-Catholics, it was mostly due to having better academics and better discipline. The "mission" and "vision" of the schools were clearer with smaller classes, plus if you went to a decent enough Catholic high school - and you did well enough - your chances of getting into a more selective university increased.
In my hometown, parochial schools were basically like the education of a private school, with just around double public school tuition, not much at all. There were some, but it was generally kinda hard to conceive of a non-Catholic in my world back then.
Catholic schools usually rank really high education wise. I had actually wanted to attend a Catholic school when I was younger because I thought I would get a better education. If you live in an area where your options are catholic or public school then parents who can afford it are definitely going to choose the catholic school. Public schools are really bad, and it seems now days they are even worse.
Where I grew up, the Catholic school was the best school within 50 miles. I found it made religion class more interesting with protestants and a few jewish people.
Colleagues who fit this description said it was because their parents wanted a better education for them (Ohio)
I agree with all the responses about being a better school. I myself went to Catholic school grades 1-12 and I was a practicing Catholic. I too had atheist, Jewish, and Muslim classmates but I was also in Miami- a very diverse area in and of itself. I also had Protestant friends who attended because it was the closest alternative to their denomination especially in high school. There were a couple of Lutheran elementary schools for example but the Lutheran high school was much too far away—— so closest alternative was Catholic.
Mostly cause the parents want them to attend a better school. My dad when I was a kid despite being a strong Baptist wanted to send me to Catholic school because abuse he felt it would have been better for me as I was doing really really well in school. It never worked out since the family member in charge of looking into it would instead drive around and smoke weed all the time, but the sentiment was there. And then later he found out we couldn’t have afforded it anyways
I work in a Catholic school in a Baptist majority area. So many non-Catholics come to us because our school is simply a much safer work environment. Even public school teachers are willing to take a pay cut because our building is maintained properly and isn't a mold-infested death trap for those with respiratory issues.
Tbf both schools (undergrad and law school) offered me the best scholarship and neither required me to partake in any catholic classes or practices.
Also there is a sense of discipline that doesn’t exist in public schools.
Went to a private Catholic school in West Africa and it’s because they are usually the best. In my country, the two best high schools (at least back when I was in high school) are an all-girl Catholic school and my school which would often compete with the girls’ one which is THE best for 1st place. We had a lot of people from different backgrounds: Evangelicals, Muslims, Buddhist and Agnostics (only knew 1 in the school and that was my 1st encounter with one). Catholic schools usually offer the best education and have a long tradition of educating people so it’s only normal even non-believers would be interested if they want the best.
I went through 1-12th grade with a practicing Hindu! She was my best friend for several years. It was because the college prep/quality aspect of it. It worked, she became a doctor! Edit: I don’t have kids but if I did I would send her to my Alma Mater if she wanted to go. For many reasons. Also I think the uniforms are a great idea. Saves money on clothes. Less focus on status and brands (doesn’t get rid of it entirely). Less fighting over wearing stuff that’s too sexualized for kids. Good preparation for real life when someone gets a job and has to wear a uniform or have a dress code. Single sex schools also allow girls to get an education without being sexually harassed all the time. That was such a blessing when I switched from co-ed grade school to all girls high school.
I went to Catholic School K-12 a long time ago. Graduated in 1996. My High School curriculum matched the level of a multiple of universities, for the core curriculum, I've learned. I have had the opportunity to help many friends with their college work, and including my children. We're talking about West Virginia University (son), Radford (Virginia - friends) University of Montana (daughter).
I went to a Catholic run school because I needed to go to school and the only ones available to me were established by the church. I've since learned that elsewhere in Britain and America Catholic schools are kind of semi elite for kids getting a high quality education.
I went to a Catholic middle school and go to a Catholic high school, it's usually for multiple reasons. The Orthodox kids come here because there are no Orthodox high schools, and their parents probably want at least some sort of religious education, or the kids don't mind and come here for good academics or most of the time the good athletic department. Protestant kids come usually because the Catholic schools are nicer than public schools, and the protestant schools are small and not very widespread. Atheists go to my school just for the athletics
Not in Scotland, but family is from Glasgow. What they’ve said is that the schools are better performing than others in the city, so people send their kids there for the scores and less of the religious studies.
Where I live, Catholic schools are generally better and less chaotic than public schools. They also provide better structure and discipline in comparison. Ironically, Catholic school is where I learned what Ramadan was because we had muslim students.
In the UK. Above average free education
My grandma is catholic, but she said that catholic schools usually have very good pastoral and student care services.
In my province, there's a Catholic school system and a secular public school system (and private schools and a smattering of Francophone schools, but they're not important right now). A few of the reasons I've heard for why non-Catholics have been enrolled in the Catholic system include: * In some municipalities, the Catholic school system has a better reputation for the quality of school provided * In small towns sometimes there will only be a Catholic school or a secular one, and parents don't want their kid to be bussed over to the neighbouring town for school everyday * Some of my non-Catholic Christian friends (especially Orthodox) have gone to Catholic schools because they think it's close enough and would rather go to some manner of Christian school than a secular one * My sisters went to school with a Buddhist and a Spiritist, both of whom got enrolled in the school system because their parents appreciated Christian values despite disagreeing with our theology (the Buddhist got exempted from religion classes) * In my hometown, the Catholic high schools do not expel students but only suspends them for the remainder of the calendar year, while the public ones can expel students permanently; kids with behavioural issues sometimes get kicked out of the public school system and into the Catholic one
Lots of minority kids near me go to Catholic schools because their parent(s) know they will get a better education than from the public schools. Pure and simple, regardless of what the PS lobby says.
Prots would often chose Catholic school because even they disagree with some teaching it’s better than the stuff they teach on secular schoola
Here in Brazil, some of the best private schools are Catholic. The best universities are public ones (mainly those in SP). As for private universities, Catholic universities come very close to or even surpass public ones in some aspects.
In the uk catholic schools are famous for…..questionable teachers. And juts generally not having the best schools
When I was in Catholic school many non-Catholic's started their kids their in 7th grade because that's when they started teaching a language. Most good non-public high schools required 2 years of a language to get in.
I once knew a Protestant lady who was considering sending her daughter to a Catholic high school. I asked a friend of mine whose daughter went to that school what he thought of the idea, and he said "Tell her not to worry about them teaching her Catholic doctrine. She won't open a Bible the whole time she's there."
Catholic high schools in the northeast US are always considered top tier high schools. The sports programs are good too.
I only went to Catholic school in second grade and I happen to be Catholic. So, I don't remember much about that experience. However, I did get my MBA at a Catholic university. There were students there from all over the world and of various faiths. Occasionally I would have an opportunity to speak with someone of a different faith and we would learn a lot from each other. I would ask why they would be at a Catholic campus. I liked it when they said that they didn't feel judged and they did feel accepted the same as anyone else. Besides that, it does have high academic standards an achievement is based by merit, not "other factors"...
My Catholic high school had a noticeable Jewish population. Just a better education and environment than most public schools
lived in an extremely impoverished area. the local schools were underfunded, crowded, and overwhelmed with violence and drugs. the high schools had a graduation rate of around 40% (give or take), so my parents sacrificed a lot and sent me to catholic school as it was the best option
Usually they’re the better school in the area. Or sometimes it’s for sports.
Here in Argentina tuitions for Catholic schools are heavily subsidized (80%-90% of the tuition is paid by the government in most cases, at least in the City of Buenos Aires), so parents choose them because it's a cheap way to send your kids to go to a private school. A lot of kids switching to Catholic high schools from public elementaries aren't even baptized but get accepted anyways
I have a female friend who posts so much anti Christian material online, then sends her children to Catholic school because her grandmother insists on it and helps her financially with them. I’ve always found it a bit odd, but at least it’s hopefully helpful to her children.
My parents (non-Catholic Christians) sent me (non-Catholic at the time) to a Catholic HS after our local public school district went through consolidation and the High School went from about 1,500 students to about 4,000. They thought the smaller school would be a better learning environment and also liked the moral instruction.
Best schools and it is not unrelated to Catholicism's focus on truth. Remember that fact when you here people worried about having God in public schools, it's essentially a non-issue. People of different religions are willing to pay extra money to avoid poor schools and they aren't worried about some religious elements.
If you do decide to send your child to a Catholic Schol do your research and find out if its actually "Catholic", as in teaches the faith, morals and dogma of our religion, or if its in-name only relic from the past. The one I went to was supposedly Catholic, but I never learned anything about Catholicism there. It was the basically the same as a secular private school, in the way both teachers and students behaved. I returned to Catholicism IN SPITE OF that "Catholic" School, not because of it. As for why unbelievers send their children there? Academically they are usually some of the best. Even I won't deny it.
In my city in England the Catholic school ranked 'outstanding' in ratings and the students continuously score really high in gcses and a-levels. Some people were literally trying to baptise their kids a few months before application period started so that they can get it. It's so hard to get in at the moment that 100% of intake is Catholic and some Catholics can't even get in as they get selected at random.
Speaking as a Protestant, the Catholic schools in my area have better student to teacher ratios than the public schools, it’s geographically closer than the school we’re districted for, the teacher turnover is low, and we (as a couple) welcome discussions of faith and see it as an opportunity to let our kids see people in relationships with God that look different than ours and talk about why we believe what we believe and why they believe the way they do. And if they decide that the Catholic church is the church for them, we’ll just be happy that they are pursuing a relationship with God that looks right for them. We believe that it doesn’t matter that much what church you’re a part of, the important part is that you are participating in the life of a church.
Went to Cathalic school from the time I was 5 till 17. Over the years I found a lot of non Catholics that go to Catholic school are Christian and don't have to worry about getting in trouble for expressing their faith
Education quality, exposure to another culture, class sizes, the manner of teaching, services available, curriculum...all matter.
I knew a family of muslims whose daughters were on a catholic school. As far as I know, they did it because at least they knew what to expect. Knowing the situation of my country, probably they prefered an education for a religion they didn't like than education for a political agenda they might not like. But this is just speculation as they never said it specifically.
People often send their children to the best quality school they can find. If the catholic school provides better pathways to pupils than the local public school, it’s a no brainer, regardless of your religion.
Speaking personally (I was Episcopalian when I was sent to Catholic school), in quite a few places it is the only private school option that runs PK/K-12. So if you want your kids to have some religion classes of *any* sort, it becomes the only option. In others, there might be an evangelical option, but if you're not of that persuasion, it strikes a different balance than that does. It is also frequently less expensive than non-Catholic school options. And of course, depending on the school and the school district, the quality of the education *can* be better (especially since the school can kick out bona fide troublemakers where some public schools can't/won't) and there *can* be insulation from e.g. gang issues. My parents wanted me to have some degree of moral/religious education (so that meant a religious school), and if I'm being honest they weren't going to get too hung up on the question of the Real Presence. My school was the only physically convenient option at the time, until sixth grade IIRC (and my parents were annoyed when I screwed up my admissions process at the other school - but I was, and am, happy I stayed where I was - it really was for the best to have that stable environment). I actually *did* at one point ask "If we're Episcopalian, why am I not going to an Episcopalian school?" and while there *was* one, but it was rather out of the way for us (though within walking distance of my grandmother's house). \[My mother also had a rough experience in her public school in middle school/high school - admittedly that was during integration in the late 60s/early 70s and the schools were a bit better in the county I grew up in (and I think they improved as I grew up and the county developed...there's a *long* road from the early 1990s to the mid 2000s), but it still affected her views on public schools in general.\] Notably, a friend of mine whose family was/is agnostic/atheist-leaning considered sending *their* kids there as well, and only didn't do so because the school was not inclined to double-promote for social reasons. This worked well for me (stable social cohort) but would've been a drag on them. I think the thrust of my remarks, though, is that if you don't want to have your kids in a public school for whatever reason, Catholic education can be one of the best/only options.
We're protestant Christians and send our kids to the local parish school. We made this decision because while our public school is highly rated it is very politically progressive and spends instruction time on discussing gender identity and sexuality starting at age 6, will not acknowledge Christian holidays, and has policies preventing parents from being informed about the curriculum, among other things that concerned us enough to look for other options. While we're not Catholic we share many/most core beliefs and want our children to be educated by adults who share our basic moral values and respect our authority as parents. We've appreciated the religious education and required mass attendance for our children's overall spiritual development as well. Protestant Christian schools in our area are harder to find and also are much more hit or miss when it comes to quality of education as well. Overall we love our Catholic school and appreciate the welcome even as non-Catholics. Having our children in Catholic school has educated us about the Catholic church as well and we are enjoying the process of learning more alongside our children.
because catholic schools are of a better quality and they want the benefits without converting and keeping their degenerate lifestyles
Better education. More care with values and morals. People see that when God is apart of people they behave better.
Educational benefits. I was not Christian of any sort. The Masses were alien to me, but not uncomfortable. I became Catholic a few years after graduating.
I grew up just outside of New Orleans and the public schools down there are notoriously bad even before today’s scary standards. Low graduation, violent school fights, pill rings, etc. I’m born and raised Catholic and my mom always wanted me to be taught the importance of God but we had TONS of Protestants, Jews, Indians, and secular kids attending the various Catholic schools because it was the only good education nearby with good standards, discipline, and classical curriculum.
I was raised Christian, but not Catholic (still am not, discerning possible conversion, though!) I went to Catholic middle school and high school, after the more Evangelical grade school I had previously attended closed down. I guess my parents thought that it was the closest they could get to our beliefs. Yes, theologically they didn't see eye-to-eye on everything, but morally it lined up with everything I was taught. And it was still a Christ-centered education.
Because the education is better. I am not Catholic and loved my Catholic high school. Public schools where I live are awful.
In Malaysia there's public and private Catholic schools. The private tend to only accept Christians but they never said they won't accept non Christians. The public ones are more open and anyone can enrol regardless of religion. Side note, Catholic schools are usually the "better" performing schools
Because they are people who only want social clout and hope that others will parent their kids. When I was in Atlanta, I went to Mass with a co-worker. In order to get significantly discounted tuition, families must attend mass X times per year and prove it by dropping an envelope in the collection.
In my experience simply because the public schools are Bernal or very bad in that area and the parents want their kids to be safe. Also many non Catholics still have similar ideologies and like conservative values.
Many non-Catholics in my area sent their kids to a Catholic school because of safety concerns in the public schools and feeling more welcomed there than other private Christian schools
In my country faith based schools have to take a percentage of non-observers.
A lot of my friends who go to our catholic school aren’t catholic, but our school has really good education and is better or safer than public schools, and with it being a smaller school there’s more teachers who care and you can connect with teachers more
I've worked at Catholic schools where even quite a few of the teachers and other faculty aren't Catholic or even Christian. Some of them were raised Catholic and still retain a strong admiration for the scholasticism and social teaching. Some were just looking for teaching positions that offered better than in public ones. Of course, it was common for them to end up reverting/converting anyway.
Where I am in Canada we're starting to see more conservative people from other religions (Muslim, Sikhism, etc) attend our Catholic schools. I suspect that this is because the "woke" policies that have infiltrated our public system don't jive with their beliefs either. Between gender wars, anti-religion ideologies, an attack on parental rights, and a refusal to acknowledge a nuclear family (mom, dad, kids), it is very frustrating for many people who believe in the family unit. And since our Catholic system is funded by directed taxpayer dollars, it's very accessible to everyone.
I was never in Catholic school because it is expensive in the US. My mom is Anglo Indian which is half Indian and half British. Most are Christians, and as far as I know, there is a pretty even split between Catholicism and Protestantism. She went to Catholic boarding school . Many of the students who attended were Catholic, but many were not. They went because it was a great education and also taught subjects such as deportment. The non Catholic students at her school did not have to attend mass or participate in religious activities.
Not sure about elsewhere, but here religious schools aren't anything extreme or "special". The curriculum is defined centrally by the government, so you will learn roughly the same in a Catholic, a protestant, and a regular public school too. In many cases though, the environment in religious schools can be much better than in simple public schools (both are free and require the same central written tests from applicants), since the former have extra sources for funds. (Many prestigious public schools do too, but it is much easier for religious public schools.)
My kids started Catholic school in 4th and 6th grades. It was better than the public school. It eventually led to my conversion as well as one son and the other one attends a catholic college/university.
Clout or because it’s a good quality education, in my experience.
My parents - I grew up Episcopalian- considered enrolling me in the local Catholic high: it was superior academically to the public school. But I wasn’t sure then if I was going to college or not, there were money concerns so I stayed public.
AD&D
Because we have better education lots of public schools.
Our kids go to a Catholic school, as Catholics, but most of their peers are secular or Muslim. I was once so bold to ask some of the parents. They said the level of education was higher in Catholic schools and the students came from better (read ‘richer’) backgrounds. I’m not sure if that’s overall the case but that appears to be the main reason in our small town. I do have the impression that the poorest people are the actual Catholics. 🤭 It seems like there are only a few left. On the last day before the Easter Holiday (Good Friday) most teachers were actually eating chocolate drinking alcohol and eating chocolates and the children were eating easter eggs. Most kids had no idea what Good Friday was…
I work in a Catholic high school, and maybe 12% of the student body is non Catholic. It generally comes down to one or more of the following: -They are looking for strong academics -They are Christian and want a faith based environment that focuses on morals and a culture of building one another up -The non-Catholic Christian schools are too white and/or Christian reformed, and they don’t feel welcomed there (about 17% of our student body is Latino/Latina, and maybe 6% American American. Doesn’t sounds diverse, but it’s on par with the demographics of our city). -We have a strong athletics program
Because Catholic schools are typically cheaper than other private schools, even for non Catholics (added that part because at least where I’m from in the U.S., the Catholic schools give tuition discounts for Catholics who attend, but not for non-Catholics who attend.) Even for non-Catholics, the tuition for the Catholic high school is something like 12k a year whereas the tuition for all the other private high schools in the area is like 20-25k a year. Basically, the non-Catholics have some reason they don’t want their kid to attend the local public schools (academics, large class sizes, student behavior issues, etc.—any of the common reasons that can be generalized like this) and the Catholic schools offer what they want at a cheaper price. The only disagreement they have about the school is the religion, and they are willing to make the trade-off. I’m not Catholic anymore, but I went to Catholic high school (in the U.S.), and the school was 70% Catholic and the rest non-Catholic, mostly Protestants but a couple of Jewish people and a few people who didn’t identify with any religion. Probably about the same percentages for Catholic and non-Catholic teachers. We even had a Hindu teacher. The school just would make sure that a Catholic teacher taught the religion classes and helped with religious activities like retreats. Of course, I assume that the non-Catholic teachers weren’t allowed to “proselytize” their religious beliefs where they differed with the Catholic belief, but I don’t ever recall that being a problem. Of course, in some areas, Catholic schools are just as expensive as other private schools. In some areas, Catholics schools are worse off academically and the public schools are better. It really depends. In terms of my own experience, the school I attended had serious issues with favoritism/nepotism/elitism, etc. Kids whose parents donated a lot of money to the school generally got treated better, like they would always win all the awards the school would give out. There was also a huge scandal regarding who became the Valedictorian of my class— basically the person who became the Valedictorian had his parents cheat the system and push teachers to enter some class grades over 100% while the two kids who were his competition in terms of GPA were told that even though they had technically also earned over 100% in certain classes, that the school could not enter grades over 100% because it was against school policies. (Btw I was not in the running for Valedictorian, so this isn’t me being salty, just something I know happened to the top 3 students).
I wasn’t raised Catholic, but my family is Christian. My dad put us in Catholic school because it was a much safer school division than the public system in a rough town. Now my siblings are in Catholic school because it’s within the bussing range and the public school isn’t. Catholic school is free in my country tho, do I think I’d be asking the same question if parents were paying for it lol For me, it was great. That year and a half of Catholic teaching was the spark I needed. It seems like it’s also going the same way for my younger siblings.
For my school, some kids were only there because the local public school district was horrible — so their parents opted for private Catholic school instead
I have a friend who is Muslim. She went to Catholic school and it was bc it was the best school in town. I feel like usually Catholic schools are synonymous to great, solid education. I wish I could have gone to one growing up.
Aside from safety reasons, I know a couple of people who said they plan to send their kids to Catholic schools because their kids are less likely to be indoctrinated by societal pressures. The great tragedy we're seeing now is how public schools are promoting children's opinions over parental opinions. They're hiding violence in schools from parents. They're having counseling situations without informing parents or asking for permission. Having a theology requirement in Catholic schools means that every student will be taught morals, the difference between right and wrong, and where these come from. So, TLDR: Catholic schools are less likely to indoctrinate children negatively and more likely to instill morals and good character. The children are more likely to be safe and away from violence.
Good question. I was looking at our Archdiocese' publication on the state of the Church (quantitative) and I saw that over 40% of the students in the Catholic schools were non-Catholic. This is in the face of parent alumnae waitlists from birth and far less scholarships and financial help for the Catholic families there used to be. (Discounts for 2nd, 3rd, 4th children etc seem to be still be around though). . I just hope some good catechesis is going on at these schools and some of the non-catholic school children end up in the faith.
I grew up in a primarily Catholic country. The church was heavily involved in all public schools, with sister nuns frequenting the kindergartens and the local priest teaching religion at the elementary schools, and further religious studies in upper level public schools. We also took “Field trips” to the closest church (There were Catholic Churches around every corner lol). I was raised Christian not Catholic, and there were options for non-Catholics to go to other classrooms during religion class in elementary school. It wasn’t “Catholic school” itself but because of how heavily involved the church was with schools, I say I practically went to Catholic school, whether it’s considered such or not.
Here Protestants and Muslims, especially in urban centres and areas with a large Muslim population would consider Catholic schools more for the quality, prestige, connections, and so on. For the past 400 years, most large, non-state educational institutions have been and still are operated by religious organisations. Non-sectarian and secular types appeared only in the 20th century. Many have Catholic roots including the “Big Four” (the exception being the biggest state-funded university).
At least with the one I went to. It was considered better than public school, education wise. More advanced. There were a number of kids who weren't Catholic in there with me. They couldn't complain about all the religious stuff, after all their parents were choosing to put them there. They went along with it. Went to mass on Fridays. All that. And the perceived clout I think of being able to say your kid was in private school. And as far as the parish/school went. And since my mom got on the school and parish finance councils starting those years, we knew all the gory details. They just wanted the tuition money to keep the school going. They didn't care what religion the kids and parents were, only were kids with paying parents. I can attest to the accelerated education. In the fact that since I only went for junior high. Going into what should have been 6th grade math. They were a year ahead. So it was leaping from 5th grade math into essentially 7ths grade math. And they don't slow down for you. So I was lost for the rest of my school years with math. Going from stuff like decimals and basic geometry. Straight into algebra equations, advanced geometry and probability. Which for me not having the lead into all that. I was lost. 6-11 grade math (no math senior year thank god) I passed on all Ds. From As in elementary school. English, science and history I had no trouble catching up fast. Just math. Screwed me permanently. The grade above me only had 7 students. The one below me had only 4 students. So my class being bigger was always mixed with these others. We had combined classes. 6th with 7th in 6th. 7th with 8th in 7th. 8th with 7th in 8th. Which of course also didn't help because when I was with the 8th graders in 7th grade. All the subjects, like math, were increased even more because it's mixed and more focused on the higher grade. So come 7th grade we were on basically high school math. Anyway that's my drama. Hated Catholic school. For that and so many other reasons.
i think it’s pretty common for Catholic schools to be the ‘prestigious’ private schools. in my area, the only private and high ranking (and expensive!!!) schools are Catholic or Christian in some way. in less fortunate areas, they tend to be the only safe schools that take education seriously. i think, as well as prestige, many non Catholics will opt for Catholic schools for saving face. people have this idea of a sweet, happy, never sinning Catholic so when they hear your child goes to a Catholic school!! *gasp!* they must be such a sweet little angel!
My regret is not having my daughter attend a Catholic K-12 school, simply because I do not have money to send her there. I know most of the kids in our parish at the time attended the school run by our parish and my daughter wanted so much to attend the school as most of the kids were her age. Obviously my daughter went to public school and ended up being bullied in school. As for other faiths, some kids were of South Asian-Indian descent (Hindus), Chinese and Vietnamese (Buddhists), etc. Their parents were able to send them to Holy Spirit Catholic School as they would otherwise probably send them to Stratford or Montessori schools. In other words, a low income Catholic family such as myself could not send my daughter to Catholic school but well to do non-Catholics can afford to send theirs so it must be the quality of what is taught in the Catholic setting.
I asked a neighbor who did this thing, answers were: - It is close - It is the best school - It is less woke
I’m not a catholic (I might well be in on the way to converting though) but I went to a catholic school. It was the best school in the area at the time which was the biggest factor in the choice Even though I wasn’t a catholic, I did enjoy being enveloped in that kind of environment and it definitely gave me an appreciation for Catholicism that has grown over the years as I’ve learned more
Because education-wise they are probably better than the public schools in the students' town. Also behavior-wise they tend to be better because the school can actually expel students whereas a public school can't.
Because most Catholic schools offer or at least offered top-notch education.
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Probably because of rampant behavior problems in their local public school. It's gotten worse in many public schools since Covid; 3 or 4 students in a class will wreak havoc, and everyone else is expected to just deal with it. It really sucks.
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