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Catholic schools’ services benefit everyone

By KARA KOCZUR, Globe staff reporter
(Email Kara)

Dividends for life may be what Catholic schools provide its students, but they also provide services to the wider community.

Superintendent Dan Ryan has seen firsthand the effects of Catholic schools reaching out to the community. At his previous two schools, daycares were opened that gave families a place where they could trust leaving their children, as well as gave children a jump start on their education.

Whether it’s through daycare or some other avenue, Ryan said it’s key for Catholic schools to provide services to their communities.

“In one sense it’s a customer service issue to help the families out because there are all types of stresses and to know that you can have a place that’s providing a good and safe environment for their children is reassuring and needed,” Ryan said. “Plus, on our side, we need to keep finding ways to provide services that make us financially viable and that is one of many ways of doing it.”

In Algona, an asset that Bishop Garrigan provides the community at Seton Grade School is an early childhood program that also serves as daycare for many parents. The program varies depending on age. Three year olds have the option of going for half a day, twice a week. Four year olds can go for four half days and five year old kindergarten prep students are able to go for three full days a week. Four and five year olds also have the option of Den, which is the choice of four or five full days. Mornings are more classroom based, while the afternoons include more activities.

“There’s a huge demand for daycare,” said Diane Elbert, Garrigan’s development director. “With the new state requirements for early childhood we just felt it was a perfect option for our families. It’s not just limited to parishioners and the Bishop Garrigan families. It’s open to anyone.”

The demand for child care is also felt for older students, especially during the time between when school gets out and parents get home. That’s why Sacred Heart School in Sioux City offers Beyond the Bell, an after school program that provides activities, nutritious snacks and tutoring.

After school programs are beneficial to both schools and the community, Ryan said, especially when programs are offered in smaller communities where there aren’t many places for children to go.

“There have been studies that say the greatest opportunity for children to have an incident that would get them into trouble is immediately after school when they’re unsupervised,” he said.

Plus, parents benefit from the arrangement.

“Once you’ve been a parent, you always appreciate if the homework’s been done once you get home,” Ryan added.

Catholic schools throughout the diocese also provide services to their communities through service projects. At Bishop Heelan Catholic Schools, each year on the Wednesday during homecoming week, students volunteer from the start of school until lunch doing various projects such as cleaning up Cecelia Park and Military Road, cleaning up Calvary Cemetery, helping out at St. Thomas Episcopal Church and Mary Elizabeth Day Care, assisting with a carnival for Holy Spirit Retirement Home and more.

“It’s to teach our students that we need to think beyond ourselves and we need to be aware that someone is always in need in our community,” said Angie Heller, Heelan’s development director. “It’s just a way of helping them throughout their lives to think about others before they think of themselves. Underneath our logo it says faith, knowledge, values, service and service is something we do for others.”

Students at Remsen St. Mary’s High School also have a fall service day where students help the elderly do their yard work. Periodically, St. Mary’s students will also volunteer at the local nursing home.

Providing opportunities for service is important, said principal John Hughes, because it’s an extension of the students’ Catholic faith.

“It drives home the Catholic identity that we’re all made in God’s image,” he said.

Besides the common ways of reaching out to the community, some schools have also taken a more unique approach. For example, at Garrigan the school facility is used by the wider public.

“Our school is also used for many community sponsored activities several times throughout the year such as relay for life, community speakers, league activities and a huge three-site craft fair in October,” Elbert said.
Garrigan also is a site for the Algona YMCA’s 3-on-3 basketball tournament, volleyball invitationals and an alumni basketball tournament for Algona High School and Garrigan each April, Elbert said.

“Making our building available for these events allows Algona draw larger crowds for these activities,” she said.

Ultimately, Ryan said he’d like to see schools continue to find ways to provide services to the public.