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First Catholic School on American Soil
The Franciscans open what is believed to be the first Catholic school in America. It is established in St. Augustine, Florida. The purpose of the school was to teach children Christain doctrine, along with reading and writing. By the late 1600s, Catholics would be the minority in all the colonies and would search for a way to have education that could equal public education. -
First Private School in America
Collegiate School was established in Manhattan, New York and was the first independent/private school in America. The school has no religious affiliation and is an all boys school. It is still open today and and has grades K-12. -
Thomas Jefferson Proposes Two-Track System
Thomas Jefferson proposed a two track educational system: one for the laboring and one for the learned. He went further and described how scholarships would help a very few from the laboring class. His quote was that scholarships would help "raking a few geniuses from the rubbish". -
John Carroll Establishes Georgetown
John Carroll, while fighting anti-Catholic bigotry, established the first Catholic college of Georgetown in present day Washington D.C. The school, at first, was an upper elementary/high school education for boys 10-16 years old. The university still is active today and is the oldest Catholic college in the nation. -
New York City Catholics petition for common school funds
In 1840, with much support from governor, New York City Catholics petitioned the board for a portion of the common school fund. This was an effort to gain public support. It resulted in Protestants protesting these requests. The entire event drove both sides farther apart and made clear to Catholics that they needed to have their own system. -
Irish Potato Famine
Ireland experienced a potato famine that led to many people leaving the country and coming to the United States. When they arrived, the Irish faced discrimination in all aspects of life, including education. Anglo-Saxon whites feared that the Catholic Irish would flood schools and change the morality and religion being taught. Faced with discrimination, the Irish broke away and formed the first Parochial schools. This led to the Catholic School system we have today, -
Ashmun Institute Founded
Ashmun Institute was the first school for higher learing for black men. The school was founded by John Miller Dickey and his wife Sarah Emlen Cressen. The school was later renamed Lincoln University in honor of Abraham Lincoln (1886). Lincoln University is still running today. -
Boston Schools Integrated
In 1855 the Boston Public Schools were integrated when the governor signed a law that required no child be denied admission to a public school on the basis of race or religion. This was a law that combined schools that were once separated. -
Third Plenary Council of Baltimore
The third of the three Plenary Councils laid the foundation for a system of Catholic schools. After these councils, there was more of a separation between common and private schools. The councils focused on teaching religious beliefs in all schools. -
John Carroll University Established
John Carroll University was started as St. Ignatius Colelge in 1886. It was established as a Jesuit institute for higher learning. This has impacted my education as I attended St. Ignatius (the old John Carroll campus) and now I am attending John Carrol Universiity as a graduate student. -
Plessy v Ferguson
This Supreme Court decision upheld "separate but equal" clause and allowed for lawful segregation in the school system. This was sanctioned separation of schooling that lasted until 1954. -
National Catholic Education Association Established
This organization was established to protect and maintain Catholic education in the United States. This association was a merging of three separate Catholic educational associations that were in existence. The NCEA still is running today and it oversees Catholic elementary and secondary schools across the country. -
United Negro College Fund Established
Frederick Douglas Patterson established the UNCF to financially aid black students and give financial support to black colleges. This organziation was key to increasing black students' enrollment in higher education. -
Brown v Board of Education
This Supreme Court decision overturned the decision in Plessy v Ferguson from 58 years prior. The decision stated that separate but equal was inherently unequal and that integration was the only way to gain equality. This historic decision paved the way for the beginning of integration in schools. -
Engel v. Vitale
This court case established that public schools could not sponsor prayer in a classroom, even if it was nondemoninational. This decision removed sanctioned prayer, but also sparked depate about individual religious practice in public schools. -
Ray Budde Writes "Education by Charter" Paper
Ray Budde wrote this piece that was based on the reorganization of the school districts in Massachusetts. Budde was interested in organizational theory and presented his paper to the Society for General Systems Research. The response was none and it wouldn't be until the republishing of his paper in 1988 that real change would be discussed. -
Mom and Dad enroll in Catholic High Schools
My mom and dad were major influences on where I received my early education. Their attendance at Catholic High Schools influenced their lives that ultimately led to them choosing a Catholic education for my early schooling. My parents' background had a major impact on what would be my future. -
Mom and Dad enroll at University of Dayton
In the fall of 1978 my mom and dad enrolled at Dayton. They had both previously gone to a Catholic high school and were continuing their private education at Dayton. Their experience would shape my early education at a Catholic grade school and then at a Jesuit high school. -
Secretary T.H. Bell Creates the "National Commission on Excellence in Education"
This commission was created by Bell in order to examine the quality of education in the United States. The secretary requested reccomendations on how to improve education in the U.S. The commission was created because Bell felt there was a widespread perception that something was wrong in our educational system. This commission published "A Nation at Risk". -
First Parochial School in United States
The first parochial school established in the United States (i.e. post Revolution) was St. Mary's School in Philadelphia. This would be one of many Catholic school established in order to escape discrimination from protestants. -
"A Nation at Risk" is given to President Reagan
The report was d completed by the commission created by T.H. Bell in 1981. The report was damning of education and stated that reform was needed at every level. The report blamed public schools for America's problems in competing with Japan and other nations in the world market. Ultimately, this report led to impactful reforms that culminated with "No Child Left Behind" -
Ray Budde's Paper Republished
Ray Budde got his paper, "Education by Charter", republished by the Northeast Regional Lab. The 1980s had seen an increase in the discussion of educational reform. Budde's paper was widely distributed and considered much more seriously than it had been in 1974. Albert Shanker, the President of the American Federation of Teachers endorsed Budde's idea and went public with it. -
I'm Born!
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My Baptism
I, along with my two brothers, were baptized into the Catholic faith. This baptism, and my future education in Catholic schools would shape my views, thoughts, and experiences with private education. -
Minnesota Passes First Charter School Law
Minnesota became the first state to pass a law for charter schools. Now all states have at least 3 charter schools. Many of the schools are funded by public money from school districts. The schools are privately owned, but are tuition free. -
First Day at Saint Albert the Great
My first day at Saint Albert the Great began my journey of education through private schooling. At such a young age, the choice was left to my parents. This choice would lead me to choose a Catholic High School and thus avoid a common school education until I went to college. -
Zelman v. Simmons-Harris
This supreme court ruled in a 5-4 decision that the voucher system in Cleveland did not violate the Establishment Clause and that the program was on of "true private choice". This law allows th certain students to attend private schools and forgo attending their local school. -
First Day at Saint Ignatius High School
My first day of Catholic High school began at Saint Ignatius. My experience was at an all boys Catholic High School. This experience showed me an education that was realistically, mostly for the privileged and mostly a white school. There was more freedom than a public school, but with no girls and a separation from common schools, the school was not realistitc of what the world is like. -
First Day at Ohio State
My first day at Ohio State was the first day of public school that I attended. My time here shaped my view about public schooling and allowed me to experience public school for the first time. -
I decide to be History Major
Throught the first year and a half at Ohio State I was unsure of what I wanted my major to be. In Winter quarter of my sophomore year I decided to be a History major and ultimately deicded that I wanted to be a high school teacher. -
Graduate from Ohio State
I graduated from Ohio State with my bachelors degree in history and a geography minor. My graduation led me to start graduate school at John Carroll the following week.
