Strategic Growth Planning for Catholic Dioceses

A people-centered process that transforms shared vision into measurable action for the future of Catholic education.

Mission-aligned
Inclusive and people-oriented

Data-informed
Built around measurable goals

Results-oriented
Designed for staged implementation

ISPD Diocesan Strategic Growth Plan meeting

More Than a Document

A Strategic Growth Plan is more than a document—it is a people-centered process that brings people, process, and ministry together and invites the entire diocesan community to help shape the future of Catholic education.

ISPD has facilitated Catholic diocesan strategic planning processes across the country, helping dioceses clarify their mission, establish measurable goals, and build the unity and ownership that turn plans into action —because belonging leads to believing.

What the Strategic Growth Planning Process Includes

Every engagement is customized to the diocese while following a proven framework for listening, discernment, planning, implementation, and continuous improvement.

Leadership & Representation

Executive and Steering Committees are formed at the outset to review the diocesan mission and vision and direct the process. (Bishop, school presidents, principals, Catholic school office personnel, board members, faculty, staff, parents, pastors, donors, and other essential voices)

Comprehensive Assessment

Through surveys and constituent listening sessions, ISPD examines stakeholder satisfaction, mission and Catholic identity, curriculum and culture, academic performance and student success, demographics, enrollment growth, financial sustainability, development challenges and advancement goals, governance clarity and structures, and leadership priorities, creating an initial comprehensive assessment document.

Alignment with Standards

Using the NCEA National Standards and Benchmarks of Effective Elementary and Secondary Schools (NSBECS) as a thematic framework, the quantitative and qualitative data are synthesized and then organized into multiple key planning areas under:

  • Mission and Catholic Identity
  • Governance and Leadership
  • Academic Excellence
  • Operational Vitality

Additional frameworks can be used by a diocese for its schools of Catholic Liberal Education, Classical Catholic Schools, network schools, independent Catholic schools, and schools accredited by agencies not using the NSBECS. A diocese can also focus on one or two critical areas for strategic growth, e.g., Operational Vitality.

Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats Analysis (SWOT Analysis)

Planning Area Teams, each chaired and supported by Steering Committee members, conduct a SWOT analysis of the key planning areas and define realistic, actionable challenges, combining, focusing, and revising them as needed.

Collaborative Planning Teams

Planning Area Teams formulate solutions to challenges using a SMART goal framework (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound).

Diocesan-wide Convocation

A full-day gathering of experts in Catholic education and schools, along with individuals with related experiences and perspectives, comes together for an opening liturgy, an address from the bishop, and focused sessions organized to discern additional solutions to the planning area’s challenges and to refine and strengthen existing solutions.

(Note: The Strategic Growth Plan Convocation is not a synodal process.)

The Strategic Growth Plan

ISPD develops the strategic growth plan for review and approval by the diocesan bishop and Catholic school leadership, as a mission-centered, data-infused process of broad engagement and consultation, ready for implementation with focused priorities, clear goals, and realistic timelines to strengthen Catholic education and sustain Catholic schools.

Communication, Implementation, and Accountability.

ISPD facilitates a diocesan communications plan and systems for implementation and accountability that ensure the process results in actionable growth and a visionary future.

Average Timeline
8-10 Months

A Thoughtful Process,
Customized to Your Calendar

Recent Diocesan Clients

The ISPD Difference in Strategic Planning

Rooted in Mission

Every decision is grounded in Catholic identity, mission, and the future vitality of Catholic education.

Inclusive

Stakeholder voices are welcomed through intentional listening, collaboration, discernment, and shared ownership.

Practical & Sustainable

SMART goals, accountability, and ongoing evaluation equip diocesan leaders to carry the work forward.

The result: greater unity, meaningful ownership, and renewed hope for the future of Catholic education.

Ready to shape the future of Catholic education?

Let’s discuss how a people-centered Strategic Growth Planning process can bring your diocesan community together around a shared vision and a practical path forward.