2024 Catholic Schools Week - Diocesan Recap

Students examine their finished spaghetti tower during the STEM Extravaganza at St. John Vianney School.

Group photo of all the students, faculty and priests at the all school Mass with Bishop Daly at the Cathedral

Teachers spend time in adoration at St. Charles School.

Stephan Hart, principal at St. Mary in Spokane Valley takes a photo with students after Penny Wars

The Preschooler's "Door" at All Saints as they compete for the best decorated door.

Free dress days at St. Aloysius School

School Mass with Fr. Luke Thomsen with Middle School students from All Saints, at Our Lady of Fatima Church, Spokane.

Students celebrate the week with muffins at St. Thomas More, Spokane.

Bishop White Seminarians visit students at St. John Vianney.

Bishop preaches the homily for the All School Mass at the Cathedral.

Teachers vs. Students volleyball at Assumption School, Spokane.

A proud student winner of Bingo Night.

Gonzaga Prep students praying the chapel during their Ignatian Days retreat

An All Saints family enjoys time together at the school

Bingo night at Holy Family, Clarkston.

Guardian Angel-St. Boniface students show their newly minted Fruit of the Spirt Awards, in Colton, WA

Father Tim Hayes preaches to students at Mass for Catholic Schools Week at Assumption, Spokane.

Students sing in the choir at the All School Mass at the Cathedral in Spokane.

Last week, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) put out a statement during Catholic Schools Week from the chairman of the Bishops’ Board on Catholic Education—our very own Bishop Thomas Daly.

“Catholic schools serve diverse populations, believe that education is an integral formation in wisdom and virtue, and cultivate a love for all that is true, good, and beautiful. Bishop Daly said. “They are beacons of light in a time of confusion.”

Today, the Church and her educational institutions serve as that lighthouse on the shores of Truth, teaching souls how to navigate life's rocky and often stormy coastal highways with Christ leading the way. Each year, Catholic schools and dioceses across the United States celebrate the truth, goodness, and beauty found in Catholic education during Catholic Schools Week. Catholic Schools Week was celebrated throughout the country from Jan. 28 through Feb. 3 this year.

Ahead of the week, students from 17 different Catholic grades and high schools gathered in Spokane on Jan. 24 to celebrate the Holy Mass with the bishop. A student choir was formed among those present, some students were lectors and various priests from the respected schools concelebrated the Mass.

The week began on the 28th with Sunday Masses at each school’s parish. Student choirs sang hymns while many donned their school uniforms in the pews. Some Knights of Columbus councils offered pancake breakfast fundraisers for the parish-school families and students.

The school week ahead for students and faculty was full of celebrations honoring their Catholic education. Many students wore “free-dress” in multiple fashions, from “crazy-hair day” to “sports day” and “class color day.” Schools took the week to celebrate the sacraments and give back to the community by collecting canned goods or toiletries for those in need. Each school also hosted a variety of other fun and celebratory events throughout the week:

Assumption School in Spokane held its annual Teachers vs. Students Volleyball Game (the teachers won), while Assumption and DeSales in Walla Walla hosted a talent show. St. Charles found subs for classes so teachers could spend time in adoration, and St. Aloysius celebrated the Mass for their whole school community. Students at All Saints in Spokane had a door-decorating competition among grade levels, and St. John Vianney in Spokane Valley held a STEM Extravaganza, where students competed to build towers out of spaghetti and marshmallows. Many schools held bingo nights for the whole school and parish communities, where various prizes were awarded.

Although the week is filled with fun, games, and community, it’s an opportunity to come together and appreciate what makes Catholic schools different: Jesus. Not every school in this country gets to speak the name of Jesus openly in the halls and classrooms. Catholic schools do and are places where students not only learn academics but how to live in a relationship with Jesus and share Him with others. They are indeed something worth celebrating.