Planning for 2008 education convention is in full swing

By John Shaughnessy

Start with a theme that focuses on Catholic education at the crossroads.

Add an emphasis on helping Catholic schools become more environmentally aware.

Include an opportunity for people to stroll on the same grounds where one of the rare American saints walked.

Those three points have emerged as the foundation for the archdiocese’s plan to host the 2008 National Catholic Educational Association’s (NCEA) annual convention on March 25-28—an event that will include the involvement of at least 1,500 Catholic school administrators, teachers, students and volunteers from throughout central and southern Indiana.

The archdiocesan effort is being led by Annette “Mickey” Lentz, the executive director for Catholic Education and Faith Formation for the archdiocese.

One of the lead organizers for the convention is Kathy Mears, an associate director of schools for the archdiocese.

Mears recently answered questions about the preparations, challenges and plans for the event, which is expected to draw more than 10,000 people from across the country. Here is an edited version of her responses.

The theme of the convention is “At the Crossroads: Where Challenge Meets Opportunity.” Why was that theme chosen?

Mears: “Catholic education is at a crossroads and that seems really appropriate for Indianapolis as we are the ‘Crossroads of the Nation.’ We really believe that the work of our catechists, teachers and administrators makes a difference in the lives of children, parents, our world and our Church. That work, however, can be challenging.

“The convention wants to look for the opportunities that present themselves in those challenges. Our convention is going to address the challenges that are facing Catholic education because we believe that our faith-filled educational system is definitely part of the answer to issues that are facing our country and the world.”

The convention is also committed to a “green” theme, recognizing the integrity of the Earth. How will that theme be put into place during the convention and why is that theme important?

Mears: “This is one of the great challenges facing our Church and our world, and we want our teachers to understand and learn different ways to help make our students more environmentally aware. We will recycle at the convention, which is not done on a regular basis at the Convention Center in Indianapolis. We are also working to convince everyone to print items on recycled paper whenever possible. As Catholics, we want to make sure that we are leading the way in modeling how to be good stewards of the Earth.”

About 1,500 volunteers will be needed for the convention. What will be the main source of your volunteers? If anyone wants to volunteer, who should they contact?

Mears: “We are asking all schools and religious education programs to provide us with our volunteers. The response has been great, and we are confident that we will have enough people who are willing to work during the convention. We are also asking for help from our neighboring dioceses and they, too, have agreed to assist us. The Diocese of Lafayette and the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend have both been very generous in their offers of support.

“If there are others who wish to volunteer, please contact me at kmears@archindy.org.”

One of the convention’s special events will include a trip to Saint-Mary-of-the-Woods, the home of St. Theodora Guérin. What do you see as the special quality of that trip for people attending the convention?

Mears: “That trip is such a great gift for guests to our city and state. It will give us a chance to share some Indiana history, as well as Church history, on the trip. St. Theodora was really a pioneer woman and, when you see the chapel that is built of shells from the Wabash River, it is easy to see how smart she was as well as her strong faith.

“We have few opportunities in this country to walk where saints have walked. It is really important that people coming to our convention are made aware of St. Theodora’s life. We are planning to share more about St. Theodora during a general session so that a very large audience will become more aware of her life.”

This will be the first time Indianapolis hosts the National Catholic Educational Association’s annual convention. What have been some of the challenges in preparing for the convention so far?

Mears: “Raising funds to support our efforts is a challenge. This annual convention is a great professional development activity for our education ministers so we know having the convention in our backyard is a wonderful investment. The business and Catholic educational communities have been supportive of us, and for that we are grateful. It will take the benevolence of many for us to have a successful convention.

“If anyone is interested in supporting our convention, they should contact either Mary Pat Sharpe at mpsharpe@sjoa.org or Steve Weber at sweber@stluke.org.”

What have been some of the rewards of planning the convention so far?

Mears: “Working with great people who really are going above and beyond the call of duty to make sure we have the best conference possible. This archdiocese will be the center of Catholic education on March 25-28, and we will be ready because of the hard work of many, many people.

“The collaboration that is developing between retired teachers and administrators, current faculty and staff, and the Catholic college community is going to support our archdiocese’s educational mission for a long time. We know that we have great people who work for the Church in central and southern Indiana, but now we know their names and faces, and the blessings from this experience are numerous. God is good!”

(For more information about the NCEA convention, visit the Web site, at www.archindy.org/ncea.) †