News Releases

Chicago, IL (January 25, 2019) – Catholic Schools Week, an annual celebration of Catholic education in the United States, takes place this year from Sunday, January 27 through Saturday, February 2. The theme for this year’s celebration is Catholic Schools: Learn. Serve. Lead. Succeed. Throughout Catholic Schools Week, the 209 Catholic schools across the Archdiocese of Chicago will celebrate with special activities including, Masses, service projects, community appreciation efforts, open houses, talent shows, pep rallies, and guest speakers.

“Providing a Catholic education is one of the most important ways our Church builds and improves communities,” said Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, archbishop of Chicago. “Our Catholic schools are places of welcome for all regardless of where they are from, whether they are Catholic or what their financial situation may be. They emphasize developing the whole person – academically, spiritually, physically and morally.”

This celebratory week is an opportunity to honor the communities, the families and the achievements of all archdiocesan elementary and high schools in Cook and Lake Counties. The Archdiocese of Chicago is one of largest private school systems in the United States with more than 71,000 students. The Archdiocese school system leads the nation in receiving Blue Ribbon Awards, more than any other school system – public and private – in the country.

“National Catholic Schools Week is a wonderful annual observance celebrating the importance of a Catholic education and the integration of faith, academics and social responsibility in Catholic schools not only here in Chicago but throughout the United States,” said Dr. Jim Rigg, superintendent of Catholic Schools. “This week not only marks celebrating our schools’ successes and accomplishments but also acknowledges the vital role parents, guardians and family members have in providing a Catholic education.”

By focusing on faith, knowledge and service, Catholic schools prepare children to use their God-given talents to the fullest later in life. Ninety-eight percent of the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Catholic high school students graduate with 96 percent attending college after graduation. Overall, Catholic school graduates are four times more likely to vote; to be found in leadership positions in business, government and non-profit organizations; to have higher earning potential than public school graduates; and to be more civically engaged and committed to service as adults.

National Catholic Schools Week offers an opportunity for students to explore the many life paths that enable them to use their talents well in the service of God and others — by answering the call to a religious vocation, by nurturing a family through sacramental marriage, by volunteering in church activities and charities, and/or by pursuing a career that makes the world a better place. Parents, guardians and other family members play a vital role in Catholic education.

Throughout the week, Rigg will attend Catholic Schools Week activities across the archdiocese. These activities include:

Wednesday, January 30:

10 a.m.

Rigg will attend Mass at School of St. Mary, 185 E. Illinois Road, Lake Forest

Friday, February 1:

10:15 a.m.

Rigg will participate in activities at Our Lady of Guadalupe School, 9050 South Burley Avenue, Chicago

12 p.m.

Rigg will attend a Blue Ribbon Mass and celebration at Cardinal Joseph Bernardin Elementary School, 9250 West 167th Street, Orland Hills

The annual Catholic Schools Week celebration is a joint project of the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Catholic Schools Week was established in 1974 to recognize the value Catholic education provides to young people and its contributions to the Church, communities and nation. Nearly 1.8 million students are currently educated in 6,352 Catholic schools throughout the United States.

To learn more about the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Catholic schools, visit schools.archchicago.org.