Author: Deacon Nick

Nick Senger, founder and editor of Catholic School Chronicle, is an award-winning Catholic school teacher, vice principal and technology coordinator. He is a deacon for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Spokane.
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How to Support Catholic Education

This Is the DayWelcome CatholicTV viewers who may be visiting for the first time after seeing Catholic School Chronicle featured on This Is the Day.

Catholic schools are a great blessing for the Church and they need our support today more than ever. Catholic schools give witness to the presence of Christ in the world by their very existence; they embody the unity that exists between intellect and spirituality; and they proclaim the good news of salvation to all. There are many ways to support Catholic education.

First and foremost, if your children are not currently attending Catholic schools, please visit your local Catholic school and find out how a Catholic education can make a positive difference in their lives. Before you visit, you might enjoy 101 Reasons to Send Your Child to a Catholic School. If you’re concerned about the cost of Catholic education in difficult economic times, you might want to read Top 5 Reasons to Send Your Child to a Catholic School Now.

If you’ve already experienced the benefits of a Catholic education, consider the following ways you can support the ongoing mission of Catholic schools:

  • Join Notre Dame’s ACE Advocates for Catholic Schools, a national movement to unite advocates of Catholic schools. It’s free, and your membership will connect you with others who care deeply about strengthening Catholic education.
  • Volunteer at your local Catholic school.
  • Sponsor a student financially so that everyone who wishes can have access to Catholic education.
  • Keep updated on Catholic school news and resources by subscribing to Catholic School Chronicle. New articles can be emailed to you automatically (no spam–we promise!) by filling out the email form on the right hand side of the web site; Catholic School Chronicle can also be added to your favorite RSS reader by clicking on the orange radio button in the right sidebar.
  • Show how much you love Catholic schools by visiting the Catholic School Chronicle Facebook page and click the “Like” button.
  • Keep track of Catholic school news through the Catholic School Chronicle Twitter feed.
  • Show appreciation to a Catholic school teacher by purchasing a gift for them at the Catholic Teacher Book and Gift Store.
  • Visit other blogs by Catholic teachers and catechists and encourage them in their vocation.

If you’re a Catholic school teacher or administrator, thanks for your commitment to spreading the gospel. Let me know if you have a blog or website–I’d love to add it to the list.

May God continue to bless the work of Catholic educators.

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How to Encourage Young Catholics to Go to Confession

ConfessionIn 2009, three New York dioceses began the All Day Confessions campaign, an initiative to encourage Catholics to attend confession. Also known as Confession Monday, parishes in the Dioceses of Brooklyn and Rockville Center, and the Archdiocese of New York offer the Sacrament of Confession from 3 pm to 9 pm on the Monday of Holy Week. This year, the dioceses have sponsored a student video contest called I-Confess, in which students submit videos on YouTube which encourage others to attend confession. The top prize is $25,000 in scholarships, with another $25,000 going to the winner’s school or parish.

To date, 87 videos have been submitted, and I’ve embedded some of my favorites below:

See the entire playlist here, and learn more about Confession Monday at I-Confess.com.

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Tails of the Fishop: A Clever Fish Fry Promotion

Someone at Christ the Servant Parish in Canton, Ohio has an acute sense of pun. To promote their Friday Lenten gatherings, the parish is posting video “Codcasts” featuring some very fishy characters:

    The Fishop
    The Fishop

  • The Fishop Phillip Atolop
  • The Codinal
  • Seamour Shrimp
  • The Monkfish
  • Sister Catherine Margaret Crab

I’m not sure who’s behind the videos, but she sure appears to be having fun. Take a look and see for yourself:

A Message from the Fishop

The Codinal Learns about Helping Japan

The Codinal Talks Taste

What a great way to promote a parish event! And the promotion seems to be working: Christ the Servant Parish sold 731 dinners last Friday, March 25. Not bad for a fun, low-budget project. The videos are made with a Flip camera, which costs under $200, and posted to YouTube where they are then embedded in a free blog from Blogger and promoted on a Facebook page.

You can see all the videos at Tails of the Fishop. You can also keep updated by following the Fishop on Facebook.

How could your school adapt this idea to promote your own events?

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Social Media Tips for Catholic Schools by Jonathan Sullivan [Video]

Social MediaPeople are looking for your school online, and they want to interact with you. So says Jonathan Sullivan of the Diocese of Springfield, Illinois in his webinar titled 9 1/2 Social Media Strategies for the Church. Does your school have a Facebook page or Twitter account? If not, why not? If so, are you using them effectively? Jonathan’s tips are an excellent resource for Catholic schools and parishes who want to get more out their social media endeavors. If you missed the presentation, not to worry–Jonathan recorded it and posted it on Vimeo, which enables me to embed it here below:

9½ Social Media Strategies for the Church from Jonathan Sullivan on Vimeo.

Jonathan also provides links to relevant books and websites on his own web page.

Thanks, Jonathan for the valuable information.

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12 of My Favorites in Catholic Media

Sitting at home sick today I discovered–thanks to tweets by Barb Gilman and Nancy Caraminico–that it was Catholic Media Promotion Day. I don’t know how I missed hearing about this, but I’m glad I found out in time. According to the CMPD Facebook page, Catholics with blogs should post their favorites in the following categories:Catholic Media Promotion Day

  • 3 blogs
  • 3 podcasts
  • 3 other media
  • 3 random Catholic things online
  • their own projects

In addition, Catholics are asked to visit iTunes and leave 3 positive review for podcasts and apps.

Here are my contributions, heavily biased by my current interests in Catholic education and deacon formation:

Blogs that I Never Skip:

  • The Deacon’s Bench – Of all the blogs I read, I look forward to this one the most.
  • Engaging Faith – Superb effort from Ave Maria Press to share practical lesson plans and activities for Catholic educators and catechists.
  • CNS Blog – An essential source for Catholic news.

Podcasts I Can’t Do Without:

Other Must-See Media

  • Catholic TV, iCatholic Digital Magazine and the iCatholic Community – I can’t say enough about how much I admire and appreciate what the Archdiocese of Boston is doing in the realm of new media. Between their TV network, their digital magazine, their gorgeous iPad app and their online community, they are paving the way for Catholic evangelization in the 21st century. This is what all Catholic media should aspire to–high quality in every respect.
  • iBreviary Pro Terra Sancta – This is the greatest Catholic app in iTunes, hands down. The complete Liturgy of the Hours, Mass readings, Catholic rites, prayers–and all for FREE. An absolute must for all Catholic iPhone, iPod or iPad users. There is no reason for this app not to be on the mobile Apple device of every Catholic.
  • ACE Advocates for Catholic Schools – If you care anything at all for Catholic education, then I implore you to join this initiative from the University of Notre Dame. ACE Advocates will keep you up to speed on Catholic school initiatives and events, and connect you with others who share the same love for Catholic education.

3 Random Catholic Things Online

My Own Projects:

  • Catholic School Chronicle
    • Website – You’re here; stay current on Catholic school news, events and resources by subscribing via RSS or email using the links in the right sidebar.
    • Facebook page – Connect with CSC on Facebook by liking the Catholic School Chronicle Facebook page. Be sure to leave your own thoughts, comments and resources on our wall. We’d love to hear about the positive impact of Catholic education in your community.
    • Catholic School Chronicle on Twitter – A steady stream of Catholic school news.
  • ROMAN Reading – Support literacy and independent publishing by purchasing ROMAN Reading: 5 Essential Skills for Transforming Your Life Through Literature. This practice edition includes stories by Chekhov, Tolstoy and Dickens, and is also available in ebook format. Perfect for students of all ages.
  • Catholic School Minute – Finally, announcing our newest initiative, Catholic School Minute, student-produced news for Catholic classrooms. Look for a full article about this crowd-source project in the days to come, but here’s a brief summary:
    • Catholic School Chronicle is calling on all Catholic teachers who use technology in the classroom to have their students create one-minute videos of Catholic news items. Once these videos are posted on YouTube they can be added to the Catholic School Minute blog feed so that Catholic schools all over the country can use these videos in the classroom with students.

There were many great blogs and resources that I would have liked to list above. For more of my favorite Catholic media sites, see the related posts below and the Links of Interest in the left sidebar.

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All Saints Catholic School Loves Reading

Narnia ReadathonAll Saints Catholic School in Spokane, WA where I teach, celebrated Read Across America with gusto this year. Not only did we stream a live unabridged reading of C.S. Lewis’ The Silver Chair, but we also recorded the 5th-8th graders dancing to “Gotta Keep Reading.”

For those of you who might have missed a portion of The Silver Chair, you’ll find a recording of our entire live stream below. But first, here are the All Saints 5th-8th grade students (with special guest The Cat in the Hat and Thing 1 and Thing 2) showing their love for reading:

“Gotta Keep Reading”

The Silver Chair, Part I

The Silver Chair, Part II

The Silver Chair, Part III

The Silver Chair, Part IV