WHY GIVING TO CATHOLIC EDUCATION MATTERS

by Dennis J. Gerber, Jr
President, Knights of Columbus Charitable Fund

When Catholics talk about education, the conversation often begins with schools. When we talk about giving to Catholic education, however, the conversation must begin somewhere deeper, with formation, mission and fruitfulness. Education is never neutral. It shapes how children see the world, how they understand themselves and how they learn to love what is good and true.

My wife and I chose a classical Catholic education for our children after prayerful discernment. We did not arrive at that decision because it was trendy or nostalgic, but because it offered something I did not experience in my own public education, a vision of the world that is whole, meaningful and ordered toward truth.

AN EDUCATION IN WHAT MATTERS

In a classical Catholic setting, children encounter history, literature, theology, science and philosophy as parts of a single story. They learn not just how to think, but why things matter. Faith and reason are presented as complementary rather than competing. Beauty is treated as essential, not optional. Virtue is formed through habit and example, not reduced to abstraction. This kind of education opens the world to a child by giving them a lens through which to understand it.

While that experience has been a gift to our family, Catholic education is larger than any one model. Catholic formation exists wherever children are intentionally formed in truth, goodness and beauty within the life of the Church. That formation can take place in parochial schools, classical academies, homeschooling communities, hybrid programs and creative partnerships such as charter schools paired with strong parish-based catechesis or Catholic after-school programs. The form may differ, but the mission remains the same.

Generosity toward Catholic education is not merely an act of preservation. It is an act of confidence. It says we believe the Church has something essential to offer the next generation, not just spiritually, but intellectually and culturally. It says we trust that children formed well will go on to live lives of purpose, service and faith.

GIVING TO CATHOLIC EDUCATION CAN TAKE MANY FORMS

At the same time, generosity requires discernment. Not every institution or program is equally healthy. Some struggle not because Catholic education itself has failed, but because leadership, structure or clarity of mission has weakened over time. Authentic generosity does not mean sustaining something simply because it once worked or because it carries a familiar name. It means supporting what is faithful, fruitful and capable of forming children well today.

For some donors, that may mean supporting teacher formation rather than buildings. For others, it may mean funding scholarships so families can choose the educational environment that best serves their children. In many places, it will mean investing in new or hybrid models that meet families where they are, particularly where traditional Catholic schools are no longer accessible or sustainable. Catholic education is not a single institution. It is an ecosystem, and ecosystems require care, adaptation and intentional investment to remain healthy.

When that ecosystem is healthy, its impact extends far beyond individual students. Catholic education does not simply benefit those who receive it. It renews culture. By forming children who understand truth, responsibility, sacrifice and love, Catholic education shapes future parents, workers, leaders and citizens who carry those values into every corner of society. Cultures do not rise or fall by policy alone, but by the people they form. Catholic education forms people capable of sustaining a healthy culture.

This is where generosity comes full circle. Children educated within a Catholic vision learn that their lives are not their own. They learn gratitude before entitlement, duty before consumption, and service before self-expression. Over time, these lessons ripple outward through families, parishes, workplaces and communities.

Supporting Catholic education is one of the most leveraged acts of generosity a Catholic can make. It shapes minds and souls, strengthens families, renews parishes and rebuilds culture from the inside out. The question before us is not whether Catholic education is worth supporting, but whether we are willing to give wisely, courageously and creatively so that it can flourish in the forms God is calling forth today.

That is the kind of generosity that changes generations.

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