Superintendent’s Message

Peace be with you.  With great joy and honor, I write to you in celebration of the exceptional gift of Catholic education in the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux.  We are reminded that the traditions of educational excellence in Catholic schools can be traced back over many centuries throughout the world.  We are so blessed to have the opportunity to continue the pursuit of truth and justice while educating our students using the Gospels as our guide.  For centuries, Catholic schools have provided a beacon of light in education, upholding the integrity of our academic programs year after year and decade after decade.  We continue to pursue excellence in education, and we personally invite you to discover Catholic education in the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux.  We are committed to making Catholic education available to all families who aspire to possess one.

Our schools are making a difference.  How do we know, you may ask?  We have studied and measured our structure, process, performance, and outcomes over the last six months as part of an international accreditation process.  We would like to share some of the findings that have emerged.  We are certain that you will be pleased.

Student performance in the Catholic schools of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux exceeds the averages of local, state, and national measures.  For example, the mean composite ACT score of the high school students in the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux is 23.  This score exceeds local, state, and national ACT averages.   Each subject measured by ACT shows student performance in our high schools which exceeds the averages of local, state, and national comparisons.  All of our high school students graduate, and 86% of our graduates receive TOPS scholarships providing access to free tuition at public colleges in the state of Louisiana.

Our younger students are impressive as well.  87% of our students in grades three through seven have mastered or exceeded grade level mastery in English.  Excellence in Mathematics is evident as well with 63% of our students having mastered or exceeded grade level mastery.  Additionally, less than 5% of our students are in need of support in mathematics which is well below the national average.  

Our schools use the ACRE assessment to measure knowledge of the faith, liturgical life, moral formation, prayer, communal life, and missionary spirit.  We are pleased to report that findings indicate that our students perform well; also, assessing the religious knowledge of our students identifies areas of need allowing our teachers to focus on specific areas of formation to effectively drive classroom instruction.  We yearn for our students to be real life models of the gospels right here in our communities.

Our self-study provided us the opportunity to survey all of our internal stakeholders and construct a detailed analysis.  We surveyed our students, parents, teachers, and administrators and found that overwhelmingly, our stakeholders love their school.  Surveys revealed that families view our schools as welcoming and safe.  Further analysis revealed that our stakeholders believe that our Catholic schools immerse students in a high-expectations learning environment.  Student performance supports that revelation.  

We have spent months measuring the learning environments in our classrooms.  We used an instrument called ELEOT, which was developed by Cognia, our international accrediting organization.  Our schools scored a 3.21 overall, compared to the national average of 2.75.  Using the ELEOT, we conducted observations in 376 elementary classrooms and 379 in high school classrooms.  The large sample size provides compelling evidence of equitable learning, high expectations, supportive learning, active learning, progress monitoring, and well-managed learning environments.  We could not be more pleased with our teachers!  The integrity of our academic environment is a compelling reason to select a Catholic school to educate your child.

Our Diocesan Administrator, Fr. P. J. Madden often tells us that he expects us to work diligently in building strong character in the young people entrusted to our care.  The Salesians of Don Bosco, under whose direction I served as a principal, demonstrated to me how schools are to instill character in students and help to call them to holiness.  The Salesians taught me that the best way to guide students to be extraordinary is to teach them to do ordinary things exceptionally well.  By doing the ordinary, everyday things extraordinarily well, we can teach our students to be modern day Saints.  Doing the ordinary things extraordinarily well was the theme of our new teacher orientation when the school year began in August.  As educators, strive to model this theme in order that our students can learn from our actions.  We make every attempt to teach the following five points every day:

1. Be cheerful and kind.
2. Perform one’s duties well.  
3. Keep Jesus close in the Eucharist.
4. Ask Mary to be our Mother, helper, and intercessor.
5. Choose to serve rather than be served.

To be effective, Catholic schools must form strong citizens who are prepared to engage and transform their world.  In the Catholic schools of our diocese, we are working tirelessly to provide the structure, pathways, and avenues to form our young people into extraordinary citizens and exemplary disciples.

In summation, Pope Francis speaks of how life provides constant choices for young people.  We are called to form our young people in partnership with parents, teaching through words and actions.  Together, a school-parent partnership can construct a firm foundation, teaching our children to make conscious, intentional choices based on Gospel values and moral foundations.  With missionary zeal, Catholic schools are intentional in providing a strong spiritual, moral, and ethical foundation, providing its students the tools to make sound judgment.  We compare our work in forming the hearts and minds of our students to the laws of gravity.  Gravity cannot be seen, but it is always working.  We are very intentional in our practice of forming our students, and it is our sincere hope that the moral foundations instilled in our students are pervasive and without weakness.  The school community is a very important aspect of Catholic education.

Education is an act of justice which we believe emanates from the Eucharist.  We often refer to the teachings of Fr. Andre’ Coindre, founder of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart.  Fr. Coindre’s writings influence us to create the institutions necessary to rescue our young people from ignorance, teach them a love of the Faith, and show them how to make a happy life.  These words, over a century old, still hold true today.

If you are curious about what we do and want to learn more about Catholic education, we would love to meet you.  Whether you are a parent, grandparent, student, or educator, we would love to hear from you.  We welcome everyone who aspires to seek excellence in education and who desires to form the best version of themselves.  Call your local Catholic school and ask for a tour.  We will be more than happy to show you around.  On behalf of our Pastors, Principals, and Educators, come discover Catholic schools!

Blessings,

Dr. Mark Williams

Superintendent of Schools

Diocese of Houma Thibodaux