Development Directions

When we rounded the corner on the month of August and moved into September, for many Catholic school and parish leaders there seemed to be a sigh of relief -- a recognition that we had made it through those unbelievable and unforgettable summer months of change. And, maybe we have moved to a new norm, although it keeps changing. In my 31+ years in Catholic school and parish development with ISPD, I have never seen a more important time for development/advancement (Operational Vitality) to take front and center stage in our schools and churches. Being in communication (via ISPD...

In the recent ISPD Survey # 6 (answered by over 300 Catholic leaders throughout the country) which closed last week, one of the questions was: “Please state the top 1-3 challenges your Catholic school and/or parish is facing as you move into the 2020 – 2021 fiscal year.” There were many answers, but the one that rose to the top of the list dealt with balancing the budget and creating streams of revenue in the midst of a pandemic. In other words, if a Catholic school loses enrollment, or if donors are not in a position to contribute over...

Presently, ISPD is running a survey that is seeking input from Catholic leaders all over the country. If you have not taken it, then please do so. Here is the link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/79LW6XN One of the questions in the survey is: How would you rate the level of confidence you have today about the immediate future of your Catholic school and/or parish? Here are the percentages thus far: 43%     Very confident that we will prevail. 22%     Somewhat confident that we will prevail. 26%     Somewhat worried that we will prevail. 9%       Not at all confident that we will prevail. Quite interesting....

The title of Robert E. Quinn’s book published in 2004 is an appropriate title to describe what Catholic school, parish, and (arch) diocesan leaders are going through in these COVID-19 times. We are all striving to build a bridge to the future while living in an ever-changing present while remembering what life was like in the past. However, there is one thing we must do: we must build our bridge. We must. In August 2005, south Louisiana and the Mississippi gulf coast were devastated by Hurricane Katrina; thousands of lives were uprooted; hundreds of people died; numerous homes were...

This past week, NCEA (National Catholic Educational Association) released the third book we have written in the Lessons Learned series. The first publication (textbook) – 25 Lessons Learned in 25+ Years in Catholic School Development – was released in March 2016; the second book (workbook) was released in November 2017; and, this last one – 15 More Lessons Learned in 30+ Years in Catholic School Development – was released this month. As you can see, this is a total of 40 lessons, and this was before the COVID-19 Crisis. What is interesting, as I go back through the 40...