an educator for 42 years, I have long appreci- ated the special value of Catholic education. It is exciting to witness the revival of serious

For many people, education\u2014and most especially Catholic education\u2014does not and should not end upon graduation from high school. The value of a Catholic education is

Catholic education forms the human per- son in right order with God; what is at stake is the very meaning of the human person. Dur- ing the years of vital discernment, a young adult needs to involve the whole person, body and soul, marrying faith and reason in the pursuit of truth and in the governance of his education and future.

A Catholic liberal arts education, during this crucial time in the formation of the per- son, is essential to understanding the unity of all truths. This is the special contribution of the Catholic intellectual tradition, which even for non-Catholic students ought to be an essential component of the study of Western

In addition to providing an essential foun- dation in the Catholic liberal arts, a faithful Catholic college helps the student under-

of a specialized academic discipline does not con\ue001ict with faith. Instead that knowledge is enhanced and clari\ue000ed by Catholic theology,

at the formation of the human person in the pursuit of his ultimate end and of the good of the societies of which, as man, he is member, and in whose obligations, as an adult, he will

Because of this, I am rightfully proud of my own 16-year Catholic education, which cul- minated in 1965 with my graduation from a Catholic college in the Northeast. Unfortu- nately, not everyone shares the Church\u2019s ap- preciation of Catholic education\u2014including, it seems, the current leadership of my alma mater. The contrast between what I experi- enced and what passes today as a Catholic college is striking.

required study in every semester. Every class began with prayer. Mass and the Sacraments were available daily; the noon Mass, in fact, was always standing room only. Yearly re- treats were required, sending the message loud and clear that prayer and contemplation were essential for proper Catholic formation and for maintaining a personal relationship with God. The entire campus life was a re- minder of the school\u2019s Catholic mission, from

the statuary and artwork displayed in every building, to the code of dress and behavior that held us all to the highest standards of virtue and morality.

senior year, that I heard a statement which alarmed me and foreshadowed the changes to come. It was from the respected college\u2019s chaplain and most-feared theology professor, who told us that, as Catholics, we had a re- sponsibility to develop our own consciences independent of the Church\u2019s moral teaching.

The implication was clear. One\u2019s con- science must be formed through learning and contemplation of Catholic teaching, and a Catholic education can be invaluable to this process. But my professor\u2019s statement was a declaration of independence from Catholic

terribly na\u00efve to the consequences of this nov- el idea (at least so it was to me), considering the cultural context of the 1960s.

the door to dissent was open, and the next few decades would witness the slippery slope of declining Catholic identity. At my alma mater, the course is complete. The college is

Just as the wonderful nuns who founded the college decades ago eventually shed their habits, the college shed its Catholic identity and, with that, gave up its treasure. Although it consistently makes the U.S. News & World

is thriving on all grade levels\u2014elementary, secondary and post-secondary\u2014but families have to choose schools and colleges careful- ly.

universal knowledge. ...Since knowledge is limited only by truth, if the Catholic faith is true, a university cannot exist externally to the Catholic place, for it cannot teach universal knowledge, if it does not teach Catholic theol- ogy. Hence a direct and active jurisdiction of the Church over it and in it is necessary, lest it

The crisis of Catholic colleges has been fol- lowed with great interest and concern in the last 40 years. There are Catholic colleges that declare and demonstrate their institution as founded on the principles as expressed inEx

Parents must be just as vigilant in their process of review and selection of a Catholic college as they are in making choices about elementary and secondary education. Parents and their college-bound children must spend a lot of time in prayer, research and observa- tion, and they should ask a lot of questions before making any decisions about a particu- lar school.

Can a Catholic student get a good educa- tion at a non-Catholic college? Sure, as far as it goes. But a Catholic college looks beyond learning a profession and preparing to be a good worker of the 21st century. It o\ue002ers a more complete education, the free pursuit of truth. That is because a faithful Catholic col-