As the archdiocesan Office for the Mission of Catholic Education builds on its efforts to promote unity and collaboration among schools, it is investing in Catholic school leadership in recruitment, training and retention of principals, presidents and heads of school.
Through its initiatives, the office aims to be a national model for other dioceses to follow, said Gayle Stoffel, associate director of Catholic School Leadership in the archdiocese since July 2020. Prior to her current role, Stoffel had served as associate director of Catholic Education since 2016.
Historically, Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis were run as autonomous institutions. Pastors and local leaders dictated hiring standards and job descriptions for their parochial schools, Stoffel said.
That began to change in 2019 with the archdiocese’s Roadmap for Excellence in Catholic Education, an initiative that aims to advance Catholic education through governance; curriculum and metrics; access and sustainability; and mission schools and their governance. Among other things, the Roadmap set up a common hiring standard and performance evaluation for Catholic schools and provided schools with a larger network of support.
Now the archdiocese works as a unit to find and train the right leaders for its schools. Rather than each parish individually recruiting school leaders, the Office for the Mission of Catholic Education employs trained search committees and Benjamin Vasko, a Catholic school recruitment specialist. Combined, the committees and Vasko replicate the benefit of a high-cost search firm, without the expense burden placed on the schools themselves, Stoffel said. Standardized hiring procedures and a centralized portal for school leadership applications and leadership information are also archdiocesan efforts to streamline recruits into positions at Catholic schools.
The effort to create a common brand and identity for the 91 Catholic elementary and high schools in the archdiocese — announced during Catholic Schools Week this year — includes promoting a distinct and united vision to prospective teachers and leaders, Stoffel said.
Retaining principals, presidents and heads of school in Catholic schools is a challenge nationwide and locally, with an annual turnover rate of about 20%, Stoffel said.
“Through the Roadmap for Excellence in Catholic Education, the archdiocese has chosen to become a pioneer in a proactive approach to succession planning, recruitment, formation and retention of Catholic school leaders and recommit to the long-term viability and commitment to excellence in Catholic education,” Stoffel said.
Father Tom Niehaus, pastor of Most Holy Redeemer in Montgomery and St. Patrick in Shieldsville, said that he was “very nervous at first” when he set about hiring a new principal for Most Holy Redeemer Catholic School in the spring of 2022.
“As the pastor of Catholic schools in rural settings for seven-plus years, I know the joys, challenges and frustrations of finding the right teachers, staff and administration to help carry out the mission of Catholic education and to retain them so as to uphold a culture of education that is as close-knit as a family,” said Father Niehaus. “The archdiocesan Office for Education gave me great assurance that they would walk with me and my search committee every step of the way.”
The search resulted in the appointment of Kari Marsh, who exemplifies the “healthy blend of God-given talent and quality formation that helps her to lead our school community effectively and faithfully,” Father Niehaus said.
Marsh’s formation also was, in part, thanks to the Roadmap, which set up a three-year archdiocesan plan for professional development. As part of the plan, principals must take a class titled “Mission, Culture and Emerging Questions in Catholic Education,” which was developed by the Office for the Mission of Catholic Education with the University of St. Thomas’ Center for Catholic Studies in St. Paul.
The course is designed to help school leaders develop a deeper understanding of vocation, which in turn will deepen a sense of mission and encourage retention of Catholic school faculty, Stoffel said.
Father Niehaus said investing in Catholic school leadership has immense potential.
“At times it can feel that Catholic schools have to fend for themselves and fight alone to stay alive,” he said. “I have learned in these past years that the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, through the Roadmap for Excellence, is seeking to change the culture of Catholic schools for the better and to strengthen schools in their Catholic identity, offer superb training and formation of leadership, connect schools to financial resources, and offer support and mentoring opportunities for members of the Catholic school community.”
Karla Gergen, principal of St. Helena Catholic School in Minneapolis since 2022, said she has benefited from the archdiocese’s efforts to invest in Catholic school leaders. She felt “welcomed and supported” when she moved back to the Twin Cities to continue her career in school leadership, she said.
“I have been really impressed with all the support provided for me as a leader new to the archdiocese,” Gergen said. “The work with (the office of Mission for Catholic Education) helps me see my role as part of a bigger mission of the Church and not just my individual school or job.”
Gergen said her onboarding process included a two-day in-person orientation, online meetings with all principals, individual support and a series of meetings for new leaders in the archdiocese.
“The goal of all of these (onboarding) efforts is to ensure leaders are able to leverage their leadership from day one and understand their role within the parish and school community,” Stoffel said.
Theresa Gunderson, principal of St. Stephen’s Catholic School in Anoka since July 2021, said her onboarding process was enriching.
“I absolutely loved and am so grateful for the two-day Archdiocesan New Leader Orientation,” Gunderson said. “To this day, I feel a special bond with each of (the other new leaders) because we ask and share how things are going at our schools, and we are there for each other professionally, emotionally and spiritually, and when questions or issues arise at work in which we need a second opinion, an affirmation or a prayer.”
Gunderson said she had been the interim executive director of a charter school that had very little support for its leaders. Working in the Catholic school system of the archdiocese is a world of difference, she said.
“Coming from that situation to the archdiocese, in which there is as much support as I need, plus ongoing professional development, and everyone genuinely desires that all school leaders in the archdiocese succeed, I do not have the words to describe how grateful, supported and at peace I feel,” she said.
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