Emerging Disciples

$7,000,000

Catholic education is at the heart of the Church.

During these critically influential years, catechists and teacher-ministers must have the tools necessary to instill Gospel values, meet students where they are, and respond to the challenges that face the youngest members of our Church. To maximize the formation of our youth and ensure that these next-generation disciples are well-formed, prepared, and excited to embrace their faith and share it with the world, we will:

  • Develop and implement the highest standard of Catholic curricula across age groups that broadens catechesis and deepens faith.

  • Establish a Catholic Educator Learning Center that trains catechists, teacher-ministers, and administrators.

  • Enact marketing and enrollment campaigns articulating the benefits of Catholic education.

  • Broaden outreach to our young adults through the establishment of a Young Adult and Campus Ministry Endowment.

Funds raised through the Living Christ campaign will establish two new endowments: to provide immediate resources and training for those who form students, as well as a fund for affecting young adult and campus ministries.

Strengthening Catholic Education / $5,000,000

Our Catholic schools serve nearly 15,600 students and our parish religious education programs serve 14,250 students. This new endowment will go to support ongoing priorities of the education office, including programs like a diocese-wide virtue curriculum, new Catholic learning standards, and tools to enhance Catholic culture. It will also support ongoing faith-based professional development programs for employees and volunteers, provide programming to our parishes and schools to confront secularism through the practice of virtue, and ensure we are recruiting and training new catechists and teacher-ministers to be excellently trained in forming students.

Young Adult and Campus Ministry Endowment / $2,000,000

The Young Adult and Campus Ministry Endowment will help support current ministry activities and engage people to strengthen the faith of young adults. The University of Toledo and Bowling Green State University currently enroll roughly 40,000 students between them. Of these students, 30% self-identify as members of the Catholic faith. Although these campuses thankfully have active university parishes (Corpus Christi, Toledo, and St. Thomas More, Bowling Green), the opportunity for further ministry is great. In the remaining 13 higher education institutions within the diocese, the same possibilities to engage students in the faith exist. These initiatives will help increase the Catholic presence and ministry in our university and college apostolates.