The New Catholic SchoolLeadership: Principals and PastorsWorking TogetherBy continuing to redefine their roles in the areaof Catholic school leadership, principals andpastors can achieve a partnership with regardto school issuesthat is both nurturing anddynamic

Connie H. Urbanski

Father C. Tim Meares, pastor of Out Lady of Perpetual help, visits on the playgroundwith students from the school.

eading a school in today'sdiverse and challengingsociety is a daunting task.It requires an administra-tor with unwavering vision,

••• passionate advocacy for hisor her school, focus on the bottom line,the ability to prioritize, swift and definitedecision making and the skill neces-sary to communicate those decisions toan often unreceptive audience. Add tothese tasks the need to garner the ap-proval and support of the parish priestbefore any decision can be finalizedand you have some idea of the oftenoverwhelming, but equally gratifying,world of the Catholic school administra-tor.

True autonomy often can be nonex-istent for an administrator working ata Catholic parish school. The pastoris in charge of all facets of his parish,including the school that is part of theparish. Because the hierarchy in a par-ish school places the pastor above theprincipal (Walch, 1996), acting upondecisions and policies can becomecumbersome. For most administra-tors, action on a particular issue entailsresearching the topic, determining thecorrect course of action and employingstrategies to best execute the decisionwith as little dissension as possible.

Momentum April/May 2013 31

Kindergarteners and their teacher givethumbs up for their class during theschool field day.

For the principal of a parish school,however, it is necessary to first attainthe approval of the pastor before con-tinuing with the process. This addition-al layer can result in complications.

Priests who become pastors of par-ishes with attached schools are con-sulted about their wishes with regardto taking on such a parish. If a priest isstrongly opposed to being assigned toa parish with a school, his preferencesdo impact his assignments. Therefore,in most cases, pastors who work in par-ishes with schools can be assumed tobe either supportive of Catholic schoolsor at least unopposed to them. Thisshould ensure the parish school princi-pal a certain level of involvement andinterest on the part of the pastor.

However, often pastors are too busywith their own overwhelming respon-

"For some administrators, having a sounding board who can be trusted

and who also has the best interests of the school at heart can be extremely

gratifying. The pastor who is willing to be as available as possible and the

principal who can welcome a different perspective can form a powerful

partnership. Together, their synergy can provide both a system of checks

and balances and a blend of secular and spiritual focus for the school

community."

sibilities to be available readily to theprincipal. Thus, the necessity of procur-ing the pastor's support and keepinghim informed of matters of significancebecomes difficult for logistical reasonsalone. If a matter requires immediateaction, and the pastor is insistent uponbeing a part of the decision-makingprocess, such action is delayed, oftento the detriment of the school, and usu-ally to the frustration of the principal.

Further, many pastors have noformal training in educational admin-istration. Although they may bring tothe discussion a firm moral compass,knowledge of human nature and yearsof experience as a priest, sometimesthey are unaware of best practices ineducation. For some personalities,discovering that there may be a new

32 Momentum April/May 2013

and previously untapped way to frameissues can be disconcerting. For thepastor and the school administrator toview the same issue through differentlenses can create a difference in opin-ion that may result in misunderstand-ing on one or both sides.

Forming a PowerfulPartnership

Yet, for some administrators, havinga sounding board who can be trustedand who also has the best interests ofthe school at heart can be extremelygratifying. The pastor who is willing tobe as available as possible and theprincipal who can welcome a differ-ent perspective can form a powerfulpartnership. Together, their synergy

can provide both a system of checksand balances and a blend of secularand spiritual focus for the school com-munity. This partnership can result ina strong and responsive school thatis guided by a Catholic ethos and amulti-dimensional vision that can bestprepare the school for the demands ofthe present and the challenges of thefuture.

In recognition of the strength of thispartnership, the Diocese of Raleigh re-cently began a series of formal princi-pal-pastor meetings organized by thediocesan superintendent of Catholicschools and Bishop Michael Burbidge.The meetings are an attempt to createa more even distribution of resourcesin a diocese that includes both urbanCatholic schools with student popula-tions numbering more than 1,200 andstruggling rural schools whose studentbody may include fewer than 100.Urged by the principals of some of thestruggling schools to unite to addressthe problem as a systemic responsibil-ity, this diocese has been looking foranswers to questions, including how toattract students to schools located innon-Catholic areas and how to addressfinancial challenges creatively without

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sacrificing educational rigor.Apparent at the first of these meet-

ings was the pastors' differing attitudesboth toward the existence of parishschools and toward their own relation-ship to the school in their individualparishes. Encouraged to brainstormways to help schools in towns withweak economies meet their bills, somepastors expressed the opinion thatsuch schools should simply be closed.Others, however, made constructivesuggestions including group-purchasingcoalitions and shared workforces.

Commitment to Continue theDialogue

One significant result of the meet-ings was the commitment of both pas-tors and principals to a series of meet-ings to continue the dialogue over thefuture of Catholic schools within the Di-ocese of Raleigh. As stated by the prin-cipal of one of the struggling schools,"I have always felt isolated, working at

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Momentum April/May 2013 33

The school welcomes students of diverse backgrounds and works in partnership with parents to maximize eachstudent's spiritual and intellectual growth. Our Lady of Perpetual Help School Photos

the only Catholic school in my county oreven within 50 miles. Although I talk tothe pastor about the issues the schoolfaces, and he has really accepted hisrole as my primary resource, it wasn'tenough. We needed more. This meet-ing, seeing that the pastors and otherprincipals were concerned with ourfuture, has made an impact on me. Ithas made me even more committed toCatholic education. We are not alone.We are Catholic in every sense of theword. We are in this together."

Just as Catholicism draws strength

from its universal nature so, too,

can Catholic school administratorstap into that universality for

wisdom and support.

For the Diocese of Raleigh, thisunity between pastors and principalshas resulted in the identification ofa four-point Action Plan, the focus of

34 Momentum April/May 2013

which is to offer support to all dioc-esan schools, but most particularlyto schools that are in need. This planincludes a comprehensive market-ing strategy, research into alternativesources of funding, more effectivedistribution of diocesan funds and thecreation of a support team that wouldadvise the schools that appear mostvulnerable.

Despite the creation of this re-sponse plan, the Diocese of Raleighdoes not intend to drop the dialoguebetween pastors and principals, recog-nizing the constructive nature of an on-going conversation between these twovital components of a parish school.

For Catholic school administrators,it is this sense that their responsibil-ity can be shared with their pastorsand, if needed, with their diocese, thatis a sustaining force. Just as Catholi-cism draws strength from its universalnature so, too, can Catholic school ad-ministrators tap into that universalityfor wisdom and support. By continuing

to redefine their roles in the area ofCatholic school leadership, principalsand pastors can achieve a partner-ship with regard to school issues thatis both nurturing and dynamic. Thispartnership will reap benefits for theirschools, their dioceses and for Catho-lic education as a whole.

Connie Urbanski has been with theDiocese of Raleigh for 15 years andhas been principal of Our Lady of Per-petual Help Catholic School in RockyMount, North Carolina, for the past sixyears. She holds an Ed.D. from NorthCarolina State University, an M.S.A.from the University of North Carolinaand a M.S. from Wilkes University(principal@olphrm.com)

ReferenceWalch, T. (1996). Parish school:American Catholic parochial educationfrom colonial times to the present. St.Louis, MO: Crossroad Publishing.