Announcing Our Inaugural Class: ISPD Circle of Catholic Champions (Part I) In celebration of our 35th anniversary in June 2024, ISPD is announcing our first Circle of Catholic Champions. This is a combination of individual Catholic leaders, parishes, schools, and (arch)dioceses that ISPD has worked with in the past 35 years. They...
“Two Important Ingredients for 2024-2025: "PD" and "SGP" Professional Development and Strategic Growth Plan. In the battle today for individual sanity and institutional survival, these two ingredients rise to the top as we begin to put the “wrap” on the 2023-24 fiscal year. Professional Development First, let me get my bias out of...
“GET BUSY LIVING OR GET BUSY DYING.” This is the famous quote that Andy Dufresne says to Red in the movie Shawshank Redemption. The message is clear: life can be spent going through the motions and waiting around for something to happen (reactive), or life can be spent making things happen...
ISPD'S CATHOLIC DEVELOPMENT RESOLUTIONS FOR THE NEW YEAR Happy New Year! We hope the Christmas Holidays were a wonderful and blessed time for you and your family to grow closer, share stories, worship together, and get that well deserved “down time” that all of us need in order to charge the...
REFOCUSING OUR GAZE: RELEVANT POST-PANDEMIC MACRO CONSIDERATIONS FOR CATHOLIC SCHOOL LEADERS WITHIN THE OPERATIONAL VITALITY DOMAIN. Hands-on the wheel with an intentional gaze forward, we briefly look into the rearview mirror and see remnants of the Cares Act of 2020, the Paycheck Protection Program 1 and 2, PPP Loan Forgiveness, and...
Don’t Let Giving Tuesday Pass You By! It’s the most wonderful (and busiest) time of the year! For school administrators, the final two months of the calendar year can be the most hectic – between the end of fall sports, the start of winter sports, parent-teacher conferences, annual fund kickoffs, high...
The Value of Strategic Planning by Frank Donaldson, President, ISPD How up to date is the strategic plan for your Catholic school and/or parish? Have you ever created one that engaged hundreds of people? When we talk about strategic planning with a Catholic school and/or parish, ISPD’s philosophy of belonging leads to believing...
ISPD Welcomes New Associate, Dr. Ashley Lynn Ogden The Institute for School and Parish Development is excited to announce the addition of Dr. Ashley Lynn Ogden to our ISPD Consulting Team. Dr. Ogden served as the principal of St. Dominic School in New Orleans from 2017-2023 and also served as the...
Is It Really Important to Conduct an Objective Financial Feasibility Study before Launching a Capital Campaign? by Frank Donaldson, President, ISPD In our work with Catholic schools, parishes and (arch)dioceses, we often have questions from Catholic leaders in regards to whether or not they need to conduct a Financial Feasibility Study (FFS)...
(Although updated for this upcoming school year, this newsletter on “Back to School Night,” is back by popular demand). All across the country, Catholic schools will open the doors on the 2023 – 2024 school year, either before or right after Labor Day. What a wonderful time for marketing and...