Faith formation is a central component to our Roche Center programs. In January, over 100 Catholic educators gathered at Boston College and the Connors Center as part of their programming with our Catholic Leadership Cohort, New Teacher Professional Learning Network (PLN), Empowering Educators, and partnership with the Diocese of Fall River Catholic schools.

Participants stepped away from the busyness of their every day to connect with Christ and one another, as one participant noted, "This renews my soul. I feel connect to and inspired by others. This retreat has been a wonderful source of spiritual and professional strength for me."

The need for supporting students' social and emotional learning continues to be at the forefront of Dr. Molly McMahon’s efforts. Working closely with a cohort of 45 educators across 15 schools and offering school-wide professional development, Dr. McMahon’s impact is having a transformative effect as SEL practices are put in place for Catholic schools throughout the region. As one participant noted, “It has been a gift to collaborate with other schools, to learn alongside one another and build a community of Catholic educators dedicated to meeting the holistic needs of all students.” Learn more about the SEL Academy and register your school today.

Catholic school superintendents from across the country gathered at the Connors Center in Dover, MA with Mr. Mike Warner of the Roche Center and Fr. Bart Geger of the Boston College Institute for Advanced Jesuit Studies for a fall retreat focused on Ignatian themes of accompaniment and cura personalis. Gathering for two retreats per year, with the next one to be held in March 21-23 and facilitated by Kerry Alys Robinson of the Leadership Roundtable, the Superintendent PLC also meets virtually each month to discuss the sector’s most pressing issues.

“With engagement from New York to San Francisco, the Superintendent PLC has connected me nationally to resources and a network that helps me process complex challenges facing my system of schools” said Kristen Donohue, Superintendent of Scranton. Are you a diocesan leader interested in joining us for our upcoming retreat or registering for the PLC? Email us at catholic@bc.edu or visit our website to learn more!

The Office of International Catholic Education (OIEC) held their bi-annual world congress this past winter in Marseilles, France. With over five hundred attendees from across the world gathered around the theme "The Catholic School as a Body of Hope to Change the World," Dr. Wyttenbach of the Roche Center, Dr. Eammon Conway of the University of Notre Dame Australia, and OIEC President Phillipe Richard presented on the collaborative initiative Global Research Advancing Catholic Education (GRACE). In a call to renew collaborative efforts among universities supporting Catholic PreK-12 education, GRACE draws its inspiration from Pope Francis’ visionary leadership who remarked in 2019, “Never before has there been such need: to unite our efforts in a broad educational alliance to form mature individuals capable of overcoming division and antagonism to restore the fabric of relationships for the sake of a more fraternal humanity.”

Learn more about GRACE and the monthly lecture series featuring work supporting Catholic schools across the globe, as well as an upcoming 2024 GRACE conference.

The 20th anniversary issue of C21 Resources magazine is out! “The Church in the 21st Century Center - 20 Years” is a celebration that takes both a look back and forward at the C21 Center's work and mission. Unique to this issue is information on the many programs and resources developed by the Center that are available to parishes, schools, and individuals everywhere — all complimentary and accessible online. Additionally, this issue contains an article on Catholic education by Roche Center Executive Director, Dr. Melodie Wyttenbach.

This is an excellent resource — for more information contact C21 at church21@bc.edu for further information.

Are you wondering if there is a better way to serve your bilingual students? Do you want to be part of a movement of 40 dual language Catholic schools nationwide? Register to attend a one-hour Zoom presentation on dual language education and program implementation hosted by Dr. Elena Sada, Program Director of the TWIN-CS Network of schools, and Dr. Carrie Fuller, Managing Director of Networks for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. To learn more, register here for this information session on February 28, 2023, 1:00pm ET

Roche Center Companions — join the St. Columbkille Partnership School community this Lent for an evening book talk and social featuring Rough Sleepers: Dr. Jim O'Connell's Urgent Mission to Bring Healing to Homeless People. Recently featured in the NY Times, Dr. O'Connell became the founding physician of Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program (BHCHP) nearly 40 years ago. This event will take place at Saint Columbkille Partnership School (25 Arlington St., Brighton, MA) on Thursday, March 2, 2023 from 7:00-8:00pm. Please register using this link.

The Boston College DevTech Research Group is offering a free three-day workshop called “The Coding Brain” for first graders (ages 6-7) the week of February 20, 2023. The workshop will introduce kids to both the basics of neuroscience and computer programming, all adapted in a playful and developmentally appropriate way. Children will learn programming through the programming app ScratchJr, developed by the DevTech Research Group. Learn more about the Coding Brain Study and visit this link to register. Email Jessica Blake-West at jess.blake-west@bc.edu with any questions.