Philadelphia Catholic church passes school management to foundation

The corrupt Catholic Church will stop at nothing to increase its profits. And amazingly, most Catholics don’t view “their” church as a business; which in reality that’s all it is – and a crooked business at that.

The fact that these churches will now be operated by the former CEO of CIGNA is all one needs to know to know that this group will be run by a shark. Insurance companies, along with petroleum companies, banks and pharmaceuticals are among the “best” when it comes to stealing people’s money. In this regard, the Catholic Church made a good move. TGO

Refer to story below. Source: Reuters

ReutersBy Dave Warner | Reuters

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) – The Archdiocese of Philadelphia unveiled plans on Tuesday for the nation’s first independently managed Catholic school system, aimed at increasing enrollment.

The newly created Faith in the Future Foundation will manage 17 high schools and four special education schools, where a total of 16,000 students are currently enrolled, said Archbishop Charles Chaput. Church parishes will continue to operate 123 elementary schools in the Catholic system.

Headed by H. Edward Hanway, a former CEO of the CIGNA insurance giant and a Philadelphia businessman who attended Catholic schools, the independent foundation intends to not just stabilize the hemorrhaging school system but to boost enrollment, Chaput said.

The management change comes after a tumultuous year for the archdiocese, marked by a high profile child sex abuse scandal that cost an estimated $11 million, as well as a scramble to sell properties to head off a $6 million budget deficit.

Philadelphia’s Catholic schools have seen a 72 percent drop in enrollment since 1961, church leaders said previously. According to a 2011 study by Boston College, the Philadelphia experience outpaces what the study called a “daunting” decline of 63 percent nationally since 1963.

The precipitous drop in Philadelphia has been blamed on smaller family size, increasing tuition costs and alternative forms of education such as charter schools.

“This is a historic day for the archdiocese of Philadelphia… but more for Catholic education in the United States,” Chaput said at a news conference at St. Hubert Catholic High School for Girls, recently on a list of schools threatened with closure due to budget deficits blamed in part on declining enrollment.

The foundation, formed by concerned Catholics who urged Hanway to become chairman, will assume strategic and operational control of the schools, will pay any school deficits and will focus on fundraising, marketing and cultivating best practices in leadership and education.

The archdiocese will retain control over curriculum and teacher development as well as ownership of the properties.

Tuition at archdiocese secondary schools is now about $6,000 per year and is likely to stay at that level, Chaput said.

(Editing by Barbara Goldberg and Cynthia Osterman)

About The Great One

Am interested in science and philosophy as well as sports; cycling and tennis. Enjoy reading, writing, playing chess, collecting Spyderco knives and fountain pens.
This entry was posted in Religion and tagged , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Let me know your thoughts...

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.