Goal
To encourage and assist your group to discuss the role of independent or non-government schools, particularly Lutheran ones, in elementary and secondary education in the United States.

An Overview
State law requires compulsory schooling for all, usually between the ages of six and 16. State law does not, however, require students to attend public schools. Parents may legally choose to enroll their children in church-related (parochial) schools or in private, non-religious schools. Parents may also opt to educate their children at home.

What do you know about Lutheran and other parochial schools? Answer the following true/false questions by circling the appropriate letter; then read on to check your answers.

T F 1. The first elementary and secondary schools (after 1492) in our country were religious schools.

T F 2. The early Lutheran leader, Henry Melchior Muehlenberg, was a strong advocate for Lutheran congregations to establish their own schools.

T F 3. Today, congregations affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS) and the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) operate approximately 1500 elementary and secondary schools.

T F 4. The majority of students in ELCA schools are Lutheran.

T F 5. Over 25 percent of students in ELCA schools are African American, Hispanic, Asian American or Native American.

T F 6. The average tuition in ELCA elementary schools is over $2,500.

T F 7. Teachers in ELCA schools are college graduates, but most are not certified for teaching by the state.

T F 8. Roman Catholic schools enroll about 80 percent of all students outside the public school system.

T F 9. Over 50 percent of teachers in Catholic schools are nuns, priests, sisters or brothers in religious orders.

T F 10. Students in Catholic and Lutheran schools tend to score above national norms on standardized academic tests.

Native American education has always had clear spiritual emphases. Early European settlers in North America, both along the East Coast and in the Southwest, valued education and schools. Their schools provided a strong religious and moral context. Schools were viewed as an extension of the family, the church and the apprentice system. Civil authorities did little to establish or regulate schools. The Constitution of the United States does not mention schools. Only later in the 1830s did Horace Mann, often considered the father of the public school system, promote the establishment of "the" common school.

In 1742, Henry Melchior Muehlenberg (founder of the first Lutheran synod), was distressed to find only nine Lutheran schools in Pennsylvania. He vigorously urged Lutheran congregations to establish schools. In the nineteenth century, two significant trends came to the fore.

The LCMS and the WELS, which represent one trend, called upon each congregation to have its own school. For the most part, these churches did not establish colleges and universities. Instead, they began post-secondary schools to equip professional ministers, including teaching ministers, for their schools.

Congregations that today comprise the largest part of the ELCA represent the second trend. While some of their congregations had elementary schools, is ELCA tradition founded many colleges in order to educate lay persons to live out their Christian vocation.

Today, congregations of the LCMS operate 1,135 pre-schools, 980 elementary schools and 61 high schools. The WELS has 22 pre-schools, 364 elementary schools and 20 high schools. ELCA congregations operate or support more than 1,425 pre-schools, 155 elementary schools and 21 high schools. Enrollment in Lutheran schools, as well as in Catholic and other Christian schools, is increasing.

Only 24 percent of the students in ELCA congregations are members of that church body. Of the ELCA schools reporting statistics, 32 percent of the students are African American, Hispanic, Asian, or Native American. Many ELCA schools represent a racial and ethnic diversity not commonly found in other settings in our church.

Lutheran schools have three primary sources of funding: student tuition, congregational support and third-source. Financial support from government sources is minimal. The supporting congregations usually provide the facilities. Tuition accounts for the vast majority of school income. Tuition on the East and West Coasts is approximately $2,220 per year; in the Midwest, it is approximately $1,630. Because the schools are small, administrative overhead is comparatively low. Costs are also kept low because teachers' salaries are significantly less than those paid in public schools (base salary: $16,300). (These estimates are based on 1990 statistics, adjusted for inflation.)

Lutheran school teachers are college graduates and are usually certified by the state. However, some states certify only public school teachers.

The Roman Catholic school system is by far the largest church-related school system. While the number of schools has declined significantly during the past three decades, Catholic schools have seen a slight increase in enrollment in more recent years. This increase comes from non-Catholic, non-white students, especially in large cities. The number of "religious" teaching staff has dropped to less than 15 percent. Parish and diocesan financial support is decreasing. Tuition and third-source funding is increasing.

Other denominations and congregations also operate schools. Episcopalian and Seventh Day Adventists have a tradition of church schools. Baptists, Christian Reformed and some fundamentalist churches are also opening elementary and secondary schools. Today, about a million children attend an estimated 10,000 evangelical Protestant schools, which is the fastest growing segment of non-government education in the United States.

Of the 110,000 elementary and secondary schools in the United States, 27,000 (25 percent) are parochial or private (non-religious) schools. Of our country's 46.2 million students, 5.4 million attend independent schools. The number of home-schooled children is rising significantly.

Educators differ on why students in independent schools tend to score higher on standardized tests than their public school counterparts. Among the reasons given for these results are:
smaller schools;
fewer children with special education needs;
greater parental involvement;
greater control over enrollment; and
the religious, spiritual and moral context.

For Discussion
1. Do you think it is a strength or a weakness that the United States has traditions of both public and independent schools? What reasons can you give for your answer?

2. What struck you as especially important or interesting in this overview of Lutheran and other church-related schools? Are there places where you differ with the analysis or interpretation of the text?

3. Why do parents choose to enroll their children in a school of the church? In a public school? On what basis should parents make this decision? If your congregation has (or would have) a Lutheran elementary or high school, do you (or would you) choose to send your child(ren) to that school? Why?

4. In your experience, how do Lutheran or Catholic schools differ from public schools? What accounts for the difference?

Why Lutheran Schools
Operating a school is one way some Lutheran congregations carry out their calling to witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Such an undertaking requires a significant investment of prayer, effort, time, money and people. Congregations that have made these commitments often voice four goals they hope to accomplish.

1. Through the Lutheran school, congregations hope to nurture a life of faith in the Triune God. The Lutheran school provides daily opportunity to teach the content of the Christian faith in developmentally appropriate ways. Every day's schedule can devote time to the study of the Bible and the intersection of God's Word with the issues of daily life. The Lutheran school is able to make worship an integral part of the school week and observe and celebrate the liturgical seasons and festivals of the church year. Through art, music and drama, students may play out the great themes of life under God's Law and Gospel. The Lutheran school is faithful when the cross of Christ stands at the center of its life.

Lutheran schools are free to employ only witnessing Christians who choose to teach in a Christ-centered setting. The interaction between the Christian teacher and student is particularly important. The meaning of Law and Gospel can be demonstrated through classroom management and discipline. Teachers may exercise their freedom to take time for group and personal prayer with students and their families.

2. Through the Lutheran school, congregations hope to reach out to others with the good news of Jesus Christ. Some unbaptized children enroll in Lutheran schools, and other young people come from families without a church home. Through the consistent caring of faculty and staff, the Holy Spirit may lead students and their families to desire Baptism and incorporation into the congregation. Evidence exists to indicate that congregations with schools that intentionally pursue the evangelistic opportunities the school provides grow faster than similar congregations without schools.

3. Through the Lutheran school, congregations hope to serve their community. This service is especially dramatic in communities where public schools -- due to violence, overcrowding, poor facilities and overburdened teachers and administrators -- do not provide adequate education. Parents desperately search for a school that is safe, clean, small, and accountable to parents and the community. Many become convinced that a Lutheran school offers opportunity for their child's educational survival and flourishing.

Lutheran schools serve the cause of justice and reconciliation where their student bodies are multi-ethnic and multi-racial. Data shows that Roman Catholic schools are less likely to be single-race schools than are public schools. Similar diversity is often found in Lutheran schools. This diversity and the presence of many ELCA schools in large urban areas counter the false claim that Lutheran schools are segregated and motivated by "white flight."

4. Through the Lutheran school, congregations hope to promote academic excellence. Because the average Lutheran school enrolls approximately 200 students, the individual pupil is known to the teachers, principal, and secretarial staff. Parents have a special stake in their child's education because they pay tuition as well as taxes. This "social capital" or richness in personal relations, researchers believe, is an important factor in ensuring high academic success.

Administrators in Lutheran schools generally discount the claim that their academic scores are high because of their enrollment and expulsion policies. Many schools do not give entrance exams or do so only for placement purposes. Increasingly, Lutheran schools are making provisions for children with special learning needs. At least one study has shown that children's rights were more likely to be protected in a church-related school than in a public school.

For Discussion
On the basis of your experience and knowledge, how well do you think Lutheran schools live up to these four goals?

1. Christian nurture
2. evangelistic outreach
3. community service
4. academic excellence

Educational Choice and Lutheran
Would educational choice be good for Lutheran schools? The answer is disputed. One position holds that parochial schools would be hurt if they accepted students whose parents receive support from tax dollars. Public control would follow public funds. The result would be that Lutheran schools would be subject to the same rules, regulations and bureaucracy of public schools. Lutheran schools would lose their distinctiveness, and their effectiveness would diminish. Even if there were educational choice, Lutheran schools should not participate,

Others argue differently. While parochial schools that take part in an educational choice policy would need to be held publicly accountable, this accountability should be based on outcomes, not on the rules that produce the outcomes. Furthermore, current financial restraints prevent Lutheran schools from achieving optimum results. With educational choice, Lutheran schools could enroll many families who could not otherwise pay the school's tuition. Additional students and revenues would enhance the school's ministry to children, family and community.

For Discussion
1. In considering educational choice as public policy, how important to you is its impact on Lutheran schools?

2. Imagine that you are a member of a congregation council that has to decide if the congregation's school will accept educational vouchers. What would be your concerns? How would you vote?