PRESIDENT'S LETTER

In early 2020, we launched our current strategic plan - Ignite Change. Empower Growth. - that outlined important benchmarks and goals for our schools in the areas of Catholic Identity, Academic Excellence and Operational Vitality for 2025. At the end of each year, we assess our progress toward these goals, which include celebrating our successes and course-correcting as needed.

This year’s assessment has made one thing clear to me: Despite the curve ball and subsequent challenges that the pandemic presented - RCS is thriving! Students are growing their faith through annual retreats, weekly Mass, and daily prayer. At St. Pius X School, a different homeroom takes care of the school’s Vocations Cross and prays for vocations to religious life each week. Lourdes High School seniors made their Kairos Retreat to conclude what is for some almost fifteen years of Catholic education and launch them into the next phase of their life and faith. Our students are encountering Christ every day!

Academically, our programs are strong. For that reason, our enrollment has grown 10% since the fall of 2020. Families crave the faith, excellence, and character that our community offers.

Welcoming new families adds great energy to our schools, and I’m grateful our educators have jumped right in to welcome these students with open arms while fostering an environment of warmth, guidance, and support.

While our students and community are thriving, we continue to fall short of our goal of compensating our teachers 85% of their counterparts’ salaries in Rochester Public Schools. For that reason, we are relaunching our Fund for Academic Excellence with a specific focus to fund teacher salary increases and adjustments over the next few years.

We are so proud of what our community has accomplished over the past three years! It wouldn’t have been possible without the prayer and support of our alumni, parents and friends. Thank you for believing in our students. Thank you for believing in our teachers. Thank you for believing in our schools.

Our Lady of Lourdes… pray for us!

Annemarie Vega President Rochester Catholic Schools