A Case Study from the Diocese of Richmond The Segura Initiative Bishop Francis DiLorenzo
The Diocese of Richmond has its own version of the Dream Act. We call it the Segura Initiative. This initiative, which began in 2011, has increased the number of Latino students in our Catholic schools by 30 percent in the last two years. Why did we do it? We began with the realization that the Catholic schools of our diocese had about 2000 empty seats. At the same time, the 2010 Census revealed that the Latino population within our diocese numbered about 250,000, a 50 percent increase since the previous census. Another realization was that virtually all of our Catholic school students graduate from high school and go on to college. Contrast that number with the graduation rates and college attendance rates of newly arrived Latino children, and there really was no choice but to move forward. With the help of the Office of Catholic Education, local pastors and members of the Latino community, a plan was developed to begin to fill seats in Catholic schools with newly arrived Latino children who would ordinarily have no expectation of attending a parochial school. This plan is much more than an exercise in economics, however. I am the grandchild of Italian immigrants who came to America looking for opportunity and a better life for their children. My grandparents braved a new, challenging way of life in America with the hope that though life would be hard for them, their children and their children’s children would benefit from their sacrifices. Today, my siblings and I, the beneficiaries of an earlier generation’s struggle, are living what most people would consider the American dream. The most powerful catalysts for my family’s rise to the middle class were, without a doubt, our Church and our Catholic schools. I believe it is my responsibility, as Bishop, to ensure that our newly arrived families are truly welcomed into our parishes and Catholic schools. The Segura Initiative was founded to provide access to Catholic schools as a means of nurturing faith and building opportunities for Latino families. Segura seeks to provide the same formative opportunities for our Latino students that I experienced growing up: a superb education with a strong foundation in faith and morality. 42
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