By Kristen Lanier
Director of Student Services
Office of Catholic Schools, Archdiocese of Denver
It is the joy of our Catholic schools to serve as refuges for education. Our mission is to ensure students know they will be seen in the fullness of who God created them to be in their unique educational environments. They need to feel safe, nurtured, loved and encouraged to be the agents of the Gospel that we are all called to be in order to learn and grow.
As we celebrate Catholic Schools Week 2025, it is with great joy that we celebrate the many ways that the Lord has blessed the work of exceptional student service within the Archdiocese of Denver. According to the National Catholic Educational Association, only 7-8% of students in U.S. Catholic schools have a diagnosed disability and are served within their Catholic schools. Of the students we are blessed to serve in the Archdiocese of Denver, 11% have been diagnosed with exceptional needs, and 15.6% of our total population of students receive specialized instruction based on need, diagnosed or not. These numbers truly rival our public school counterparts.
In the profound words of Monsignor James Shea, shared at the very first FIRE Foundation of Denver gala in 2022, “We are at a pivotal moment where our secular schools, because of the surrounding ambient philosophy of the human person, do not have the resources to care for those who have special needs. They don’t. All that they have is a tremendous amount of money. We’ve got everything else. We have a coherent vision of what the human person is, what the human person is made for. We have a clear vision of what education is. It’s not just about life skills training, but it’s about the formation of the heart and the mind. We have pastoral care. We have the sacraments. We have prayer. We have the command to love. We have the Gospel, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ, by the way, is education for all of us who are weak and suffering and needy ourselves at the throne of God. We have everything, everything.”
It is no secret that exceptional student service in non-public schools is inherently challenging. Private schools may lack the financial abundance accompanying this work in public schools, but as Monsignor Shea notes, we have everything else. So, what have we found that makes it possible?
The power of the Holy Spirit. The mission of the Department of Student Support in the Office of Catholic Schools is simple: We teach the whole Truth to the whole person for use in the whole of their lives so that students will know, understand and serve in the unique mission for which they were created. This work is profoundly unique, rooted firmly in the reality that every student is created for a specific mission in service to our Creator. That truth must inform and guide our every action in service to exceptional learners. The role of our Catholic schools is to bring them ever closer to that reality.
Family Engagement: Families are the primary educators and experts involving their children. The role of involving families in this work cannot be overstated. We aim to include families in our service to exceptional learners, as it is through their God-given lens that we can fully see each student.
Professional Development: Equipping teachers and schools with the necessary skills and knowledge to support diverse learners is key. Over the past year, we have offered at least one workshop per month, four fully remote multi-week courses (to honor the large geographic territory of the Archdiocese of Denver), and 14 days of multi-day intensive training in reading and math intervention. These offerings have served over 300 educators — one-third of our teacher workforce — to better equip them to serve exceptional learners. We have looked at specific disability presentations and strategies, documentation, building family partnerships, structured literacy, behavioral change models, and so much more.
Offering Structure: Noting that the root of this work is justice, we have focused on putting structures in place that communicate what our schools are capable of in service to each student while honoring all that external service providers bring to the table. We have done this through documentation templates, software, guidance and training that serve as guides to best meet student needs.
Collaborative Partnerships: Fostering strong partnerships within our schools between general education teachers, special education teachers, paraprofessionals, therapists and related service providers is crucial. This collaborative approach ensures that students receive the comprehensive support they need. We have also focused on building awareness and external partnerships with local education agencies, external programs and service providers that will help advance our mission.
Supportive Classroom Environments: Without question, the true heroes of education are our teachers and all those encountering learners in their various learning environments. Creating supportive classrooms that honor and serve the fullness of human dignity through evidence-based practices and Universal Design principles has been paramount. These environments help students build not only necessary academic skills but also grow in relationship with one another and the Lord.
Our Catholic schools are living witnesses to the Gospel in their service to exceptional learners. They are creating environments where students can learn and grow together, celebrating their uniqueness and recognizing their shared humanity. In doing so, they not only fulfill their mission as Catholic schools but also contribute to a society that is a comprehensive witness to the fullness of creation. We have so much work yet to do, but we are profoundly grateful for our current efforts.
We must encounter the living God to seek him, and what a true joy it is to witness the beauty of our Catholic schools, which point our students to Jesus by honoring each student as unique and unrepeatable.
Pope St. Leo the Great summed it up well when he said, “Christian, remember your dignity!” We give thanks for the grace offered to our Catholic schools, which have taken up the mission of looking at each student and saying, “Student, we see your dignity and will help you to know it.”
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