Detroit — Catholic schools could well be the most outward sign of evangelization in the Archdiocese of Detroit, laying the foundation of faith for countless Catholics.

Seeking to stabilize and improve the mission of Catholic schools, Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron in August launched the Catholic Schools Council, a standing committee of bishops, priests and laity to assess the mission of Catholic schools and advise the archbishop on the best direction going forward.

“The purpose of the committee is to identify the academic performance of the schools and how we can improve,” said Brian M. Dougherty, Ph.D., superintendent of schools for the archdiocese. “We’re identifying best practices and developing what Catholic schools are going to be going into the future.”

The council will be a permanent fixture in the archdiocese, with members meeting regularly to discuss the direction of local Catholic education. The council is broken up into four committees focusing on Catholic identity and mission, academic excellence, finance and governance, and advancement and development.

The council’s 12 members will seek to infuse schools with the mission of the New Evangelization, said chairwoman Kathleen McCann.

“Archbishop Vigneron established a number of key priorities for the Archdiocese of Detroit family — the first among those is welcoming everyone to a personal encounter with our Lord,” McCann said. “The archbishop is encouraging us to look at new ways of expressing the work of evangelization through our schools. Our schools are inextricably tied into the work of evangelization.”

The council meets monthly, but Dougherty said there is no “end goal” its members are expected to produce; rather, the goal is continual improvement.

“This really is a focus on schools and what are the step necessary to continuing a good, quality education that’s affordable to students,” Dougherty said. “This is a planning committee that looks three, five and 10 years out and where we want to be.”

Two of the primary areas of focus, Catholic identity and academic excellence, go hand-in-hand, McCann said.

“We need to provide an excellent academic experience, of course — but we have to be more than a great private school or alternative to poor public schools,” McCann said. “The primary reason for Catholic schools is to raise up new saints.”

McCann hopes the Catholic Schools Council can play a role in raising awareness of the benefits of a Catholic education for more families throughout southeast Michigan, which could mean a greater emphasis on advertising and outreach.

The council also will be charged with recognizing and dealing with the challenges Catholic schools face, from an exceedingly secular culture to tuition rates that might price out some families.

“Our work is not going to be done in a vacuum,” McCann said. “Part of the challenge for families is financial to be sure, so we need to work to create a pool of resources to reduce the economic burden. We also need to acknowledge that there are a lot of families that need to be evangelized as well, that they haven’t had that personal encounter with Christ.

“In concert with what’s being done with the New Evangelization, there is a desire for parents to want more for their kids. Catholic schools are inextricably tied to the work of New Evangelization. We’re not separate, we’re interwoven.”