THE PUBLIC MIND: READER HAS PRAISE FOR CATHOLIC EDUCATION

To Gary Rust:

Thank you for your column focusing on Catholic Schools. We at St. Vincent de Paul Parish are very proud of our school and its students, and appreciate your kind words, especially now as we celebrate Catholic Schools week.

Here is some additional cost/benefit information for Saint Vincent de Paul Grade School. In 1990-1991, it cost Saint Vincent de Paul Parish $1,365 to educate each of its 378 pupils. Parents paid about 40 percent of this cost in direct tuition and Parish funds and fund raising, to which parents also contribute, supplied the rest.

What do parents get for their investment?

We believe, first of all, that a Saint Vincent's education contributes greatly to the moral and spiritual development of our children. Religion, as a subject, is taught daily and children attend specially developed liturgies twice a week. But, more importantly, our children are learning in a Catholic community. The tenets of our faith permeate everything they do.

Academically, Saint Vincent's grade school is no different than other Catholic schools. Our students consistently score above the national norms in all achievement test areas. Thirty-one percent of our 7th grade class was recognized in the Duke University Talent Search (based on academic achievement test scores) this year. We traditionally are well represented in area Science and History Day fairs.

What is the secret of our obvious success? We are blessed with teachers, administrators, and parents who believe in the mission of the Catholic School and are willing to sacrifice to see it succeed.

At Saint Vincent's, our teachers are all certified, many have master's degrees, and yet they are willing to work for less than public school wages. The parents of our students get no tax break for not using public education, but they willingly pay the cost of a Catholic school education and volunteer hundreds and hundreds of hours of their time.

While it clearly costs a lot of money to educate a child, perhaps our experience suggests that the dollar amount spent is not the bottom line.

Kathleen Whittenberger

President,

Saint Vincent de Paul School

Board of Education