In March 2013, the Partnership signed a historic agreement with the Archdiocese of New York granting us broad management authority over a network of six preK-8th grade, inner-city schools. The Partnership was thrilled with the opportunity to operate its own network of schools. This is consistent with its mission to develop outstanding Catholic elementary schools that provide low-income students with the academic preparation, values, and skills they need to break the cycle of poverty and lead fulfilling, productive lives.
The Partnership’s backstory is simple enough. We want to help low-income students break the cycle of poverty. The Partnership appreciates that academic achievement creates opportunities, but that in and of itself, is not sufficient to break the cycle of poverty: children need a broad program that enriches and engages, teaches values and skills, and helps them to understand their strengths, weaknesses and interests. We are devoted to Catholic schools because, given their focus on educating the whole child, they have a long, successful tradition of helping move low-income students into the middle class.
Therefore, our goals for the Partnership network are two-fold:
- Provide low-income students with the academic preparation, values and life skills they will need to be successful throughout their lives
- Develop Catholic schools that are strong operationally and financially by maximizing enrollment, improving efficiency, rationalizing increased costs, and stabilizing revenue sources
The hope and expectation is that, in achieving these goals, our successes at network schools can be shared with other schools in the Archdiocese and other dioceses around the country.