Milestones

The desire to improve the educational system in America has been sustained long enough that our leaders in education and government are challenging the status quo. While the desire has grown over several decades, the current opportunity is due in part to the decline in the cost of technology and an investment in data collection.  These trends are allowing us to store, aggregate, and analyze performance data in ways never before possible. These advances in data collection and analysis are rapidly changing the way schools approach education. Unfortunately, most schools focus solely on complying with requirements set forth in high-stakes standardized tests and ensuring that all of their students have “minimum proficiencies” in Math and Language Arts. However, we have the ability to use data analysis to go far beyond standardized testing and to customize or differentiate instruction for our children.  In addition to identifying where a particular student needs intervention and support, we will also be able to identify students who are ready for more challenging work in a particular subject area.  The true power of this capability is not to “rank and sort” our children, but to ensure that each of them can maximize their God-given potential.  We envision a future where children are able to learn at their own individual pace, and move on after mastering a skill or subject.  This ensures that each student stays engaged and motivated. As you might expect, all of this places a tremendous burden on the teacher to manage large amounts of data and make meaningful use of it to maximize the growth of each student.  The days of teaching to the “average” student are over.  Beginning this year, LCSS invested in a new technology provided by Five Star Education Solutions that will help us collect, aggregate, and analyze this data to provide better-individualized instruction. However, to continue to advance our efforts, we need to make investments in our teachers, teacher training, and new technologies. Fortunately, a dedicated group of more than sixty volunteers (supporters and parents of LCSS) just completed a nine-month-long effort to develop a three-year strategic plan: Preparing Students for Life.  We will be rolling out the strategic plan in the coming weeks and we look forward to your support of our efforts.  In summary, the plan will focus on:

• Mission:  Incorporating our Christian values across the curriculum, ensuring we reach our full potential.
• Teachers:  Improving teacher training and compensation;
• Technology:  Adopting and supporting educational technology;
• Academics:  Commitment to differentiated instruction techniques and technologies;
• Communications:  Improved communications and marketing; and
• Finances:  Building a fair financial revenue model that will support the growth of LCSS

 

As the public and private educational systems across our state and country work to transform over the coming years, we are confident we will see growth in Math and Language Arts skills among our K-12 population.  

 

However, in the Lafayette Catholic Schools, we also know that exceptional academic performance is only one factor that will contribute to the success of our students.  We know that our unique Catholic identity will differentiate our graduates and inspire them to fully achieve God’s plan for their lives.  Our faith tells us this, and numerous studies continue to show that people driven by a higher purpose than themselves outperform their peers.  Our strategic plan renews our commitment to these ideals:

 

Education of the whole person.

• Spiritually, intellectually, physically and socially.

 Parents are the Primary Educators

• Catholic values at home, school AND within peer groups.

Faith Formation

• A focus on relationship with Christ and what God is calling us to do.

Living the Faith

• Preparing our children to be tomorrow’s servant leaders.

 We Expect More

• To whom much is given . . . much is required.

We look forward to your enthusiastic support of the Lafayette Catholic Schools, and our new strategic plan, as we work to prepare our students for a lifetime of purpose and achievement.

In the Fall of 2014, the Central Catholic Jr.-Sr. girls and boys soccer programs will have their own practice facilities next to Bishop's Woods. Thanks to a community of soccer supporters. The project will include new grading, safety fence along 9th street, irrigation system, and underground utilities put in place for additional program expansion. This is a welcome addition, as both the girls and boys programs continue to see growth and success. We are grateful to our community supporters who came together to make this $150,000 project become reality. 

It is with great excitement we announce the Athletic Complex has been named, DeFouw Sports Complex! The DeFouw name has always been a familiar one in Lafayette, especially here in the Lafayette Catholic Schools. In 1961, William and Donna DeFouw moved their three daughters, Jeanne DeFouw Gernhardt '69 (husband Dennis), Christine DeFouw '75 and Kathleen DeFouw '78 to Lafayette. Here the DeFouw family opened DeFouw Chevrolet and their family became very active in the Lafayette Catholic School System. For three generations the family has given generously of their time, talent and treasure.

 

Today Dennis and Jeanne own DeFouw Chevrolet BMW. They are members of St. Mary Cathedral Parish and have three children who are all Central Catholic alumni: Lauren Gernhardt Scherer '99 (husband Nate), Alexis Gernhardt Melbrod '01 (husband Scott), and Grant Gernhardt '05 who is now involved in the family business.

It’s A’s all around for the Lafayette Catholic Schools! Earlier this month, the Indiana Department of Education released their 2013-14 Accountability Grades for all Indiana schools. The Lafayette Catholic School System achieved a straight-A report card:

St. Mary Cathedral (K–3) – A
St. Boniface (4-6) – A
St. Lawrence (K-6) – A
Central Catholic (7-12) – A

We thank and congratulate our Principals and teachers for their countless hours and dedication to ensuring their students continue to strive for greatness. We are so blessed!

 

The change from biennial One-in-the-Spirit (OITS) to the annual “The Spirit Fund” was not taken lightly. For several years professionals had suggested the school system make adjustments to its fundraising model. With the help of many who originally started OITS, professionals in advancement and marketing, we took a comprehensive look at the entire program. OITS was a fund started in 1991 as part of the deal with the Diocese following the closing of Central Catholic in May 1990. It had a major “campaign” launch with a clear start and finish, and always ran opposite of Fruitful Harvest. This past year it covered 5% of the operating budget and used to cover 10% of the operating budget in the 90’s. 

Following the involvement and feedback of many, the recommendation was made to the Board of Directors to launch “The Spirit Fund.” The role and importance of The Spirit Fund are many:

• Primary Avenue for Partnering in our Mission
• Establishes and Sustains a Spirit of Connectedness
• Provide Philanthropic Growth Over Time
• Catalyst for Further Donor Cultivation
• Establish a Means for Prospect Identification
• Strategic Resource for School Improvement
• Create a Sense of Shared Responsibility

The Spirit Fund will be the cornerstone of the advancement program. It will be our year-long effort to communicate, engage, recruit, and retain constituents for the Mission of the Lafayette Catholic School System.

The DeFouw Athletic Complex was completely redone in 2014 and 2015, including a new entrance, new light poles, new concession stand and restrooms to serve both the track/football/soccer field and the baseball field, new bleachers, and a new track allowing CC to host home meets. All new equipment was also added to the track and field. The athletic complex went from old and rundown to one of the best complexes in the state.

 

With the completion of the $2.2 million dollar athletic complex, there were some additional items required to officially bring back track and field to Central Catholic. There had not been a track meet hosted at Central Catholic since the late 1980's and the only equipment on the campus was from the 1960's. Thanks to the Central Catholic Athletic Association, and independent booster club for CC athletics, their boosters provided $50,000 to provide all-new track and field equipment and $10,000 for new home and visitor benches. 

The 10:10 program was created in response to a student survey conducted in May of 2014. Students desired a better relationship with teachers, more time to focus on academics and a deeper relationship with God. 

The purpose of 10:10 is to provide intentional time every day for students to stop their busy lives and focus on their spiritual, academic, and personal growth. The program has been integrated into the school curriculum and extended the school day. In its first year, there have been many benefits to the program: student spiritual leaders have risen, teachers becoming mentors, and students beginning to take a sense of ownership in their spiritual development. 

The Lafayette Catholic School System updated its Mission following a nearly year-long review and evaluation. The LCSS Mission now reads as follows:

The Lafayette Catholic School System, centered on Jesus Christ, educates the whole person in a culture that is:

• sustained by Gospel witness and service;
• imbued with a Catholic worldview;
• supported by a community of faith;
• distinguished by academic excellence; and
• committed to student success.
  
  

The Lafayette Catholic School System is accredited as part of the Diocese of Lafayette by AdvancED. The accreditation process is rigorous, and as part of our accreditation, it is recommended that our Mission statement be reviewed regularly. This past year, the LCSS Mission Committee took a close look at our Mission and determined that we would benefit from going through a formal process of reevaluating it. Over the course of nearly a year, we utilized a thorough process that included the following:

• Mission Committee: The LCSS Mission Committee included: Fr. Tim Alkire, Fr. Patrick Baikauskas, O.P., Mr. Eric Davis, Mrs. Jodi Justak, Fr. Jeff Martin, Sr. Lenore Schwartz, Fr. Eric Underwood, Mr. Neil Wagner, and Mrs. Jody Williams.
• Source Materials: The committee reviewed and utilized many source materials, including the following:
• Miller, J.M. (2006). The Holy See’s Teaching on Catholic Schools. Manchester, NH: Sophia Institute Press.
• Ozar, L. A., & Weitzel-O’Neill, P. (Eds.). (2012). National standards and benchmarks for effective Catholic elementary and secondary schools. Chicago, IL: Loyola University Chicago, Center for Catholic School Effectiveness.
• Code of Canon Law, c. 793 – 821. (1983). The Code of Canon Law: Latin-English Edition. Washington, DC: Canon Law Society of America.
• Stakeholder Surveys: We utilized several surveys of parents, teachers, parish priests, and other community members.
• Writing Process: The writing process included many iterations, discernment, and continuous review of the source materials.
• Review and Approval: Upon recommendation by the Mission Committee, the updated Mission was reviewed and approved by the Board of Directors, the Board of Trustees, and Bishop Timothy Doherty.

The Vision of LCSS still remains: He Shepherds, We Shape, They Shine. We will continue to develop educational materials and articles that help explain the full meaning of the Mission to our students and community. The updated Mission will be posted in all our schools and classrooms. Our students will learn about the Mission in their curriculum.

The series of articles further explaining the different sections of the new mission was send out throughout 2015.

Most importantly the Mission will guide the actions of LCSS and provide a path and reference for our goal-setting and decision-making.

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Provides funds to assist in keeping tuition as affordable as possible to educate students in the Lafayette Catholic School System. Funds are held in the Lafayette Diocesan Foundation, Inc.

When the Pope has his own Twitter account and regularly uses Google Hangouts to engage school-age children from across the globe, we know we’re living in a digital age. We therefore carefully and responsibly welcome our K-6 students into this digital age with the launch of our elementary 1:1 learning initiative. Launching this initiative is not about a device. It’s about a fundamental and profound shift in how our school system will build the academic skills and spiritual foundation necessary for our students to compete and succeed in a global economy.

 

Foundational to our Mission is the education of the whole child – intellectual, physical, social, and spiritual capacities – in a culture imbued with a Catholic worldview and distinguished by academic excellence. This requires us to think differently, design learning experiences that are different, and train teachers to deliver a different type of education. Our transition to a 1:1 device environment supports our principals’ and teachers’ belief that our students are more than a test score or data point. Our students are collaborators, thinkers, creators, entrepreneurs, and problem solvers. They are bursting with potential that can be best tapped in a learning environment that moves beyond the textbook. Our students don’t want to write an isolated essay, they want to produce a newspaper. They don’t want to complete a worksheet; they want to apply their skills to solve real-world problems. To do the latter doesn’t require an iPad, but an iPad does significantly enhance the experience and allow students to take what they are learning further, faster!

 

Additionally, we have shifted our team name: “Learning Design & Technology”. The “Learning Design” part is new and represents our shift in focus from simply and primarily technology to the design of our student’s learning experience. At LCSS, we recognize that technology should be used as a tool that is seamlessly integrated into the learning experience to maximize the talents of all our students.

Central Catholic High School is offering a new entrepreneurship course to help its students develop 21st Century Skills. The course will teach students business skills and provide them with opportunities to develop creativity, communication, and collaborative skills which will help them succeed in this ever-changing world.

“Ensuring that all of our graduates have the skills to contribute and thrive in the 21st Century is a top priority. This course is designed to not only teach those skills but also have the students practice them. We looked closely at our course offerings and recognized an opportunity to build a program that we hope will not only be engaging for our students but will inspire them to be innovators and a future economic engine for our community,” said Neil Wagner, Principal of Central Catholic.

Approximately 32 students will take the Entrepreneurship Course this year, which is taught by Matthew Newkirk. Newkirk, while new to Central Catholic, brings over 8 years of classroom experience to the course.

The course is part of the Kauffman Foundation’s FastTrak, which is a worldwide Entrepreneurship program that teaches its students the business skills to create and grow a new business. Central Catholic will be combining the FastTrac curriculum with projects and experiences they have designed to give the students a challenging but rewarding learning experience.

“I am excited to be able to bring the FastTrac program to Central Catholic. It is wonderful to be able to combine the real-world practice of 21st Century skills within a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment, and to also be able to explore the ethical and moral obligations of an entrepreneur within the context of our Catholic faith,” said Newkirk.

Catholic schools have been a part of the Greater Lafayette Community for more than 160 years. Schools were often started and run by the parish. This model served the Catholic community well until the decline of Catholic education started in the late 1960's. Due to declining enrollment and increased expenses, Central Catholic High School was nearly closed in 1991. As a result of this near closure, Lafayette Catholic School System was established as a duly organized body of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana to fully operate the three local Catholic elementary schools and one junior-senior high school. 

 

In 1991, the preschool program continued to be administered by the parish. Fast forward 25 years, we are excited to officially include the St. Mary Preschool and St. Lawrence Preschool programs as part of the Lafayette Catholic School System. LCSS has entered into a memorandum of understanding with the parishes to transfer the operations of the preschool. LCSS is committed to this partnership with our parishes and has plans to make significant investments in early childhood development now and into the future. 

A reliable internet connection and adequate bandwidth are crucial to delivering a 21st educational curriculum.  This summer LCSS installed 10 gigabit switches, connected fiber between all four schools, installed new backup servers and added new access points across all schools to improve wireless connectivity. LCSS is now equipped with one of the most sophisticated and flexible wireless networks made. 

Field 51 baseball diamond was constructed in 2007 on the Central Catholic Jr. Sr. High School campus. The field name pays tribute to Jimmy DeBoy whose sudden death stunned the community in July 2006. Family, friends, businesses, and community leaders raised money and donated goods to construct the field. In the fall of 2014, an estate donation was made to upgrade the softball outfield fence and install the old softball fence around Field 51.

 

Today the field is used by Lafayette Youth Baseball and Central Catholic baseball and softball communities for practices and games. The first official game was played this summer with the Squires baseball program. The field has been maintained by friends and family of the DeBoy family on an annual basis. 

 

In 2016, Tipmont REMC provided a grant for dugouts for Field 51. Dugouts improve player safety, provide more opportunities for teams to compete, and increase athletic revenue for organized contests. In addition to the grant, also donated through services and goods was the painting of the dugout and pressure-treated wood benches. 

Human resource administrators have shifted their focus over the past decade away from applicants that can “follow directions” and toward applicants that can “think, create and adapt.” Unfortunately, these new skills are not always easily acquired in a ​20th-century classroom with an exclusively lecture-based instructional approach. Classrooms have focused for decades only on instruction. Each classroom has historically been optimized to enable the instructor to convey the course material at a certain pace, with a large focus on the memorization of discrete facts. Each student is expected to keep that pace, and each student is assessed at the same time over the same material. All students move on regardless of proficiency or mastery of the content. Additionally, the student is often a passive participant in the experience. Students are not expected to take personal responsibility for choosing the subjects, pace, materials, or resources used in the learning process. Our best students have mastered this 20th-century system, but are not necessarily prepared for a 21st Century career.

 

The Lafayette Catholic School System is adopting a new enhanced instructional model that will provide our teachers high professional development that is available anytime or anywhere. The professional development will focus no only on how to use technology in the classroom, but also on how to design learning scenarios while utilizing technology. Many of today's great minds have weighed in on what skills our students need to develop to become a "21st Century Learner." Tony Wagner, the author of Most Likely to Succeed and Creating Innovators, describes the seven essential skills required for 21st Century Students to be college or career ready:

1. Critical thinking and problem-solving;
2. Collaboration across networks and leading by influence;
3. Agility and adaptability;
4. Initiative and entrepreneurialism;
5. Effective oral and written communication;
6. Assessing and analyzing information; and
7. Curiosity and imagination.

At Central Catholic teachers, guidance and administrators will be focused on: 1) eLearning and ​Blended Learning​; and 2) Dual Enrollment programs. Learning is no longer limited to the four walls of the classroom. In fact, our students can now take advantage of some of the best teachers and have access to some of the best schools in the world. For example, Purdue has developed an entire ​AP Computer Science eLearning course that we are able to offer immediately. There are many other examples of these courses where students can not only get high school credit but also obtain college credit. The goal at Central Catholic is to expand its course offerings through these efforts in the areas of: Computer Science; Engineering; Science; and the Humanities. Offered courses will be carefully selected for rigor and quality.

The Central Catholic minibus serves sixteen athletic programs and eleven school programs each school year. The bus is used to transport students, coaches and staff on nearly 150 trips throughout the year. Thanks to the generous $30,000 donation from an anonymous alumni donor, students, coaches and staff are now able to reliably arrive to their events and excursions. 

Forward fifty years and the Central Catholic Class of 1964 continues the legacy of notable achievements. Back in September of 2014, the Class of 1964 celebrated its 50th class reunion. As part of the reunion celebration, the class, led by alumnus Dave Manley wanted to do something special to give back. Dave wrote to his classmates, “ I would like to challenge the Class of 1964 to raise $25,000 for a school endowment to support the academics, athletics, and fine arts. A $25,000 endowment will provide Central Catholic approximately $1,250 to disburse on an annual basis.”

On March 14, 2017, the Class of 1964 became the first graduating class to establish a named scholarship fund in the school’s history. Through the efforts of many, the $20,000 threshold was surpassed to create the “Class of 1964 Scholarship Fund”. The purpose of the fund is to provide scholarships for Central Catholic Jr. - Sr. High School students entering grades 9 - 12 who demonstrate financial need, a good academic record, represent a good moral character and are involved in extracurricular activities. Money from the scholarship will start disbursing each year beginning the 2019-20 school year.

On December 5th, 2016, Richard and Pauline Schrader established the Richard and Pauline Schrader Family Scholarship Fund in the Lafayette Diocesan Foundation Foundation, Inc. The purpose of the fund is to support St. Lawrence Catholic Church parishioners whose children have attended St. Lawrence School and are entering Central Catholic Jr.-Sr. High School. Support is provided through one-year scholarship grants for students with the greatest financial need. The scholarship will not be issued until the principal grows to $25,000. The Schrader's plan to grow the fund as quickly as possible in order to start distributing scholarships and have made a bequest of 50% of their estate to continue its growth. 

Established August 2017 to provide funds for the Lafayette Catholic School System to create curriculum structures to effectively prepare students for contemporary challenges in literacy proficiency, Funds held in the Lafayette Area Catholic Schools Foundation, Inc. *Note: First distribution will be in 2020 based upon the investment policy of no distributions for a minimum of 24 months to allow the corpus to grow. 

Established in 2017 in honor of Rachel Stevenson who attended 7th grade at CC in 1990 before cystic fibrosis took her life a few months after school began. Rachel's grandmother, Agnes Meyers, established the endowment through a charitable trust. Provides funds to support the general operations of the Lafayette Catholic School System. Funds held in the Lafayette Diocesan Foundation, Inc.

Established in December 2017 by Dr. Robert and Mrs. Anita Roetker through a planned gift. The purpose of the fund is to provide financial support for Central Catholic Jr.-Sr. High School for operational costs to maintain physical facilities and technology of the buildings and grounds. Funds will be held in the Lafayette Diocesan Foundation, Inc.

In nearly every survey over the past five years, parents have listed teacher retention and recruitment as a top priority, listing teacher salaries as a key component of this effort. This led to the development of a strategic goal to meet 85% of the average teacher pay of the Lafayette School Corporation (LSC). This would be an increase of over 10 percentage points. In the past five years, we have made some respectable progress by increasing teacher salaries by 17.8% while inflation only increased by 4.6% over the same period. As a result, average teacher pay has risen to nearly 90% of what those teachers would otherwise earn if they went to work for the Lafayette School Corporation. Our current goal is to continue to narrow the gap of pay between LCSS and LSC. Additionally, teacher retention has continued to improve in recent years with our retention being similar to that of local public schools. Teacher retention and recruitment remain one of our top priorities with teachers' salaries as one of our budget’s biggest and most important components.

Started in 2017, Knights Armory is run by the Central Catholic Jr.-Sr. High School Entrepreneurship Class. The students create and sell a variety of CC branded gear - from shirts to umbrellas to hats and bags.

 

The mission of Knights’ Armory is to successfully supply Central Catholic products to students, adults, alumni, and staff. One issue that the armory solves is the inconsistent branding within our school system. There are a plethora of generic brands of Central Catholic apparel, and this is where Knights’ Armory wants to create a more consistent use of a CC brand. Currently, there is no headquarters for buying Central Catholic merchandise. LCSS receives no revenue from many of these purchases. Knights’ Armory creates a central location for buying authentic CC merchandise designed by current CC students. It will also create a revenue stream that can be used to support the school. Eventually, Knights’ Armory also strives to create a style guide and control the license for all CC gear.

 

Central Catholic has one of the top academic programs in the state as measured by college attendance and college readiness. Over the past five years, over 91% of Central Catholic graduates attended college. This is the highest average in Tippecanoe County. New efforts are underway at CC to work with students as early as 7th grade to plan for college and career, making school align with each child’s interests and gifts. This process starts in the LCSS grade schools by setting the expectation that continuing one's education beyond high school is a goal for all students.

 

Central Catholic graduates are the most prepared graduates in all of Tippecanoe County as measured by the percentage of students that are required to take a Math or Language Arts remediation course in college. Only 7% of Central Catholic college-bound students were required to take one of these remediation courses. The state average for college-bound students is 23%, and the local average is over 18%. Additionally, Central Catholic students attending college on average earn over 27 credit hours in their freshman year and receive an average GPA of 3.0, with over 90% matriculating into their sophomore year of college. This makes Central Catholic one of the top performers in the entire state of Indiana. (Indiana Commission for Higher Education: College Readiness Report)

 

For the first time ever, all four of the Lafayette Catholic School System Schools were rated 4-Star: St. Mary Cathedral (PreK-3); St. Boniface (4-6); St. Lawrence (PreK-6), and Central Catholic Jr./Sr. High (7-12).

The Four-Star school ratings were recently posted by the Indiana Department of Education. The criteria used by IDOE is as follows:

• A school must have received an “A” school for the 2015-16 school year. A school must have tested at least 95% of students on ISTEP English/Language Arts and Math.  
• Grade 3-8 Combined ISTEP Pass Percentage (Pass Percentage of English/Language Arts ISTEP+ + Pass Percentage of Math ISTEP+) must be in Top 25th Percentile for each grade tested. (minimum of 10 students)  
• Grade 3-8 Percent Passing Both ISTEP (Percent of students who passed both the English/Language ISTEP + and Math ISTEP +) must be in the Top 25th Percentile for each grade tested. (minimum of 10 students)  
• 2018 Cohort Combined ECA Pass Percentage (Percent of students who had passed English 10 ECA + Percent of students who had passed Algebra I ECA by end of 10th Grade) must be in the Top 25th Percentile. (minimum of 10 students)  
• 2018 Cohort Percent Passing Both ECA (Percent of students who passed both the English 10 ECA and the Algebra I ECA by the end of their 10th Grade) must be in the Top 25% Percentile (minimum of 10 Students)

Lafayette Central Catholic Jr.-Sr. High School is excited to announce the construction of eight new tennis courts in the summer of 2018 on the Lafayette Central Catholic Jr. - Sr. High School campus. This project was made possible through a generous gift from Bob Rohrman and the Central Catholic tennis community, including the Athletic Association, past parents and tennis alumni. “This has been a dream of ours for a number of years,” said Craig Devault, Head Coach of the girls tennis team. “We are tremendously grateful to Mr. Rohrman for this unexpected gift.” 

Tennis at Central Catholic started in 1969 as a team of one. Chuck Sanchelli, class of 1969, practiced with the neighboring Lafayette Jeff High School tennis team until a team of seven came together in 1971 led by Rev. Thomas Fox and Assistant Coach Chuck Sanchelli. For over 50 years CC tennis has never had its own tennis courts. Despite the challenges of sharing courts and limited court capacity, the boys and girls tennis program has grown to nearly 40 student-athletes. 

“The new courts, which will be located on the Central Catholic campus, will be an asset that will significantly enhance the student and faculty experience,” said Neil Wagner, Principal of Lafayette Central Catholic. “We are excited about the additional program opportunities this presents for our students and welcoming more community members on our campus.”

“We would like to thank Mr. Rohrman, and our donors, for such a generous gift to our students and school,” said Tim Bordenet, CC Athletic Director. “Putting in tennis courts was not something we thought we would ever be able to do. He just saw a need at our schools and stepped up to help.”
Construction on the new tennis courts will begin this June, and the courts will be ready for play for the fall sports season.

Established January 22, 2019 by Mrs. Diane Frey in honor of her late husband Robert Frey. Diane was a 1960 graduate and wanted to help additional students attend Central Catholic.

James “Jim” Albregts often came off as quiet and reserved to those around him, but to those that knew him best, he was self-giving, independent, one-of-a-kind. He was an upright person, the ideal friend, and a good Catholic man. When his good friend and neighbor, Jerriann O’Herren, was asked to describe him, she simply replied, “Good. Just good. Can’t say enough good about him.” Sadly, Jim passed away on February 18, 2018 but not without leaving his mark on our community.

Jim was raised in Jackson Township and graduated from Southwestern High School. He was the son of the late Joseph and Louise Albregts. The youngest of eleven children, he is survived by Kathryn (Kate) Riehle of Lafayette, Irene Woodruff of Odon, Richard (Dick) of Racine, WI and William of Lafayette. He was preceded in death by his sister Marie Brown and brothers Chester (Chet), Francis (Franny), Cecil, Earl and Joseph (Joe). Jim and his family were the only Catholics in the area, and during the Cold War, his family would gather at different families’ homes to pray the rosary. A strong Catholic faith is something Jim carried with him throughout his life. You would see Jim attending the 7:30 a.m. Mass at St. Boniface every Sunday. If he missed due to an illness, you could guarantee he would find another Mass to make up for his absence. While he never attended Catholic schools, Jim loved his faith and believed that Catholic education has always been at the heart of the Catholic mission. Jim attended athletic events at Central Catholic with close friends and cherished his time at the football State Championship games in Lucas Oil Stadium with Bishop William Higi.

A strong work ethic was instilled in Jim at an early age as he grew up and worked on his family’s farm. His commitment to hard work continued through his adult life and career at Purdue University. Jim spent 42 years in the physical facilities department, maintaining HVAC systems, until his retirement in 2007. In his free time, he was an avid runner, biker, and swimmer, hobbies that he picked up later in life. He was a self-reliant man who changed his own oil, ironed his jeans with a perfect seam, and maintained detailed journals of all the activities and tasks he completed each day. It is clear how hard Jim worked throughout his life, and looking back now, his family and friends can see that he was doing so in order to give back to others. 

Jim was truly a man of faith; he lived a life of humility so he could provide for others. Living a humble life, Jim rarely used hot water and refused to purchase himself anything new unless he absolutely needed it. While he never married or had children of his own, Jim spent his life committed to others. He sponsored low-income children to attend camp each summer at YMCA Camp Tecumseh; volunteered at Wabash Center; loved walking neighborhood family dogs, rain or shine; helped maintain the HVAC units at the YMCA Domestic Violence Shelter; and served St. Boniface as the head usher. 

In May 2014, Jim established a Revocable Living Trust to leave a legacy not only to the Catholic schools but across the Greater Lafayette Community. One-fourth of his assets were granted to the Lafayette Catholic School System (LCSS) to establish the James P. Albregts Endowment Fund to assist in payment of tuition costs for children at Central Catholic Jr. - Sr. High School. The balance of his estate was granted to The Community Foundation of Greater Lafayette, Inc. to establish endowment funds for the benefit of the Lafayette YMCA, Wabash Center, Inc., The Almost Home Humane Society, and the Lafayette YWCA Domestic Violence Intervention and Prevention Program. In all, Mr. Albregts contributed over $2 million in assets between the five organizations.

The James P. Albregts Endowment Fund was established on February 1, 2019 by LCSS in the Lafayette Diocesan Foundation, Inc. (LDFI). The LDFI is a nonprofit formed by the Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana to administer endowments and other funds, at no cost, for the benefit of its institutions, organizations and programs.

Students, staff and volunteers spend hours pouring time, energy and emotional resources into theatrical plays and musicals every school year. Thanks to the generous support of several donors, the Central Catholic Fine Arts Department was able to upgrade to a professional digital wireless system which has significantly improved all performances. The Fine Arts Department is so grateful to the community of supporters who made this $6,000 project possible. 

With great excitement and gratitude, Lafayette Catholic School System (LCSS) Executive Director, Eric Davis, announced today the school system received the largest single gift in the school system’s history. Franciscan Health, Inc., a ministry of The Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration donated a 10,000 square foot building to be the home for a new Early Learning Center. The gift is in support of Vision 2030, and our plan to fund important investments in our schools, our students, our teachers and our community. 

Thank you once again for your commitment to the Class of 1968 Legacy Gift at Central Catholic! The Legacy Gift was the installation of lights around the DeFouw Athletic Complex welcome circle and archways. This high-traffic area serves as the primary gateway for all outdoor athletic functions. As an update, the lighting project was completed earlier this fall. The lights were installed in time for the first football game of the season. The lighting has made a great improvement for the overall Athletic Complex appearance and increased campus safety.

Overall, the Class of 1968 raised $26,445.79, with 24 people from your class participating. Everyone who contributed to this project and other Athletic Complex projects will be recognized on a recognition wall, which we have plans to construct near the Athletic Complex in the near future.

 

The Class of 1962 also presented Central Catholic with a check for just over $4,000 to fully fund the over $30,000 project to "Light the Way"! We are grateful to the generous commitment of these alumni who continue to give back.

“Over the last few years, the Lafayette Catholic School System, and our six supporting parishes, recognized a need for expanded access to a high-quality preschool experience for our families,” said Eric Davis, Executive Director of the Lafayette Catholic School System (LCSS). “We wanted to provide these families with a high-performing educational path from preschool all the way through high school.” To do that LCSS committed resources to more than double its preschool offerings from previous years. The new state-of-the-art facility fits the bill, with the capacity to educate 250 students within its brightly decorated walls.

 

Since its official opening on August 18, St. Francis, like the other four LCSS schools, has been committed to safely maintaining in-person instruction during the pandemic, but that has not changed its commitment to providing a caring, fun and educational environment. The school is staffed with highly trained teachers, has a faith-imbued curriculum and flexible programs that can accommodate busy families.

 

“We are thrilled to be able to provide a new, larger preschool setting for the Greater Lafayette community,” said St. Francis Director, Betsy Tuholski a 2005 graduate of Central Catholic. “Our families have really responded. Even with the pandemic, our phones are always ringing. We had to even expand some of our initial offerings because of the amount of interest. We are so grateful to Franciscan and the Sisters for providing this opportunity, and to our pastorates for their support."

The offices of the LCSS Administration were converted classrooms at Central Catholic for many years. After several years of enrollment growth, CC needed the classroom space. The LCSS Administration was located in multiple locations and moved offsite while the remodeling of the Emmaus House was underway. Originally, the Emmaus House was built to house the priests who taught at Central Catholic. In October 2020, the remodeling of the house was complete and the LCSS Administration was able to move back onto the Central Catholic Campus. 

Due to the pandemic, schools have had to restrict the total number of students who may participate in Mass. At Central Catholic, the student body would typically convene in McHale Gymnasium. To meet social distancing requirements, the gym was limited to two classes instead of the six classes in the school. Additionally, attendees have been limited at extracurricular events, student assemblies, student performances, award nights and student competitions. As a result, the schools have been streaming as many events as possible using school iPads and individuals' phones. While this has worked well in the interim, we are grateful to the Cassidy family who established the Archbishop Fulton Sheen Endowment in honor of their parents, who provided the funds to improve our video capabilities. In 2016 the Archbishop Fulton Sheen Endowment was updated to pay for Central Catholic students to attend liturgical leadership conferences in the summer. Due to the pandemic, the interest from the endowment was unable to be used for its intended purpose. 

 

LCSS reached out to the Cassidy family and asked them if they would allow LCSS to use the restricted money for a one-time grant to purchase professional video production equipment. The family agreed and the staff at Central Catholic were ecstatic to learn they could improve their video streaming capabilities. Through the one-time grant, LCSS was able to purchase two 4K professional video cameras, wireless streaming capability, interview microphone equipment, a video matrix board, professional storage and wireless communication equipment for camera operators and producers. Plans are underway to develop a student-run video club that will be responsible for streaming weekly Mass, the Blue Knight Auction, Graduation, musical performances, academic award nights and many other extracurricular events. 

 

We are grateful to Michael and Patricia Cassidy and Terry and Maribeth (Cassidy) Schmitt for their generous gift and continued commitment to Catholic education. 

After growing significantly over the last several years, Millie's opened a 2nd location in Lafayette. Millie's Thrift Store, a ministry of the Lafayette Catholic School System, enjoys a very special place in the collective conscience of our community. It has been there for individuals and families at their time of need and crisis to provide clothing and household items, a long-time financial supporter of the Lafayette Area Catholic Schools Foundation through its retail sales and a place to purchase gently used school uniforms and spirit gear for under $10.Millie's has experienced significant growth through donations of items, corporate grants, and a devotion of love from many volunteers. We are so grateful for the tremendous support as we collectively make a difference in our community. Part of this transformation came through the grant writing efforts of Barb Ahler and generous grants from local corporations.

 

In 2019, LCSS posted its first paid position for Millie's and Dr. Stephen Leitch, a parent and St. Lawrence parishioner was hired to take over the General Manager position and carry out the vision laid out for Millie's. The goal is to increase net revenue to several hundred thousand dollars per year to support the mission of the Lafayette Catholic School System. Sales continue to grow and we are moving closer towards the revenue goals.

 

Millie's Thrift Store has been serving the community for over 40 years, with proceeds going to support the Lafayette Catholic School System. 

The front of Central Catholic Jr.-Sr. High School is going to receive a much requested and anticipated face lift. The current sign was erected in 1995 in memory of David N. Arth, CC '68, Christopher Garriott, CC '76, Chip Leffert, CC '89, and Robert L. Smith, CC '82. The classes of 1960, 1962, 1968, 1974, 1993 and group of volunteers made the project possible. 

 

Contractors are expected to begin work this summer on the new Spiritual Plaza and sidewalk project. The project will be among the most publicly visible and vitally important in demonstrating to our school and broader community our mission and strength of Catholic education in the Lafayette area. There are several elements that will be incorporated into the project. 

After years of patching the weight room together, the Central Catholic Jr.-Sr. High School weight room will receive a much needed upgrade. Conversations started the winter of 2020 between the Central Catholic Athletic Association, an independent 501(c)3 membership organization who supports CC Athletics, and the athletic department. It was agreed that more attention to our student athletes overall wellness and competitive readiness was needed. The project includes complete removal of all existing material and a custom designed weight room by PRO Power. In addition to this, there will be new LED lighting installed, paint, new overhead and exterior man doors. The approximately $100,000 project is scheduled to start over the 1st moratorium week in 2021 and is being funded through the generosity of CCAA members and athletic supporters. The project meets two priorities for Vision 2030 of program expansion and facility improvements.