School partnership

When Fr. Josh Waltz arrived as the parochial administrator at St. Joseph’s in Mandan in the summer of 2018, it wasn’t long before he took a hard look at the status of the elementary school connected.
 
For the past several years, enrollment has been dwindling and finances were critical leading him to realize that the school needed a change to survive. He didn’t have to look too far for that change—just across town at neighboring Christ the King School.
 
After visiting with fellow pastors and observing the Montessori program that Fr. Nick Schneider had implemented four years ago at Christ the King, Fr. Josh found the answer.
 
Father Waltz was impressed by the awe the children had developed for learning and their Catholic faith through the hands-on approach of the Montessori system where the student dictates the pace and direction guided by the teachers.
 
In response, administrators implemented the Montessori program at St. Joseph’s for children ages 3-6 last fall. Both the atrium (a classroom for religious instruction) and Children’s House learning center for young children are full. The goal was reached to mimic the growth experienced at Christ the King that has gone from dwindling enrollment to doubling their numbers with a waiting list.
 
Letter outlined changes
 
A partnership among the Mandan Catholic schools on the foundation of Catholic Montessori was announced in a letter to parishioners released in December, signed by the three parish priests at St. Joseph’s (Fr. Waltz), Christ the King (Fr. Fred Harvey) and Spirit of Life (Fr. Todd Kreitinger).
 
The implementation, the letter stated, of the partnership will take place over the coming year and some of the details will emerge with time. Three major points were outlined.
 
The pastors will remain administrators of their respective schools. Father Nick Schneider will serve as an advisor as the partnership of the two schools develops. In the coming school year, he will continue to teach in the upper elementary classroom of Christ the King as well as assist St. Joseph’s to build their program.
 
Administrators are considering opening a Catholic Montessori middle school in the fall of 2020. The letter cited that, in a recent survey, 94% of respondents with children enrolled at Christ the King School expressed high interest in a Catholic Montessori middle school.
 
At St. Joseph’s, major changes taking place will be: Montessori offerings for 3-6 year olds, the traditional daycare will be closing; and the current K-5 school will be converted to combined classes of lower elementary (6-9-year-old) and upper elementary (9-12-year-old) Montessori environments.
 
The enrollment period is open now at St. Joseph’s and parents are encouraged to contact school administrators with questions.
 
Changes at St. Joseph’s
 
The changes might seem drastic to some, but Fr. Waltz and St. Joseph School Principal Dr. David Fleischacker are wholly invested in the success and viability of the school that was in dire need of a change to survive. While the Montessori method is foreign to many, once acquainted with it, most people see its value.
 
“The objective is to feed all the powers and potentialities of the child’s soul through a motor-sensory rich environment with a guide who deeply respects the mystery of the child, letting all that is good unfold naturally and only hindering what is truly evil,” Dr. Fleischacker explained.
 
He went on to discuss the multitude of benefits. “Children develop a deep sense of the mystery of their lives as children of God and citizens of the Church and pilgrims in the world. The natural desire to understand and to know the world is awakened in them so that they are alive to creativity, truth and beauty. They develop an inner sense about the life of virtue through activities and materials that draw out natural concentration, focus and self-discipline.
 
“Self-discipline and concentration are crucial for developing virtuous habits and becoming a virtuous person. A child moves themselves because the inner life of God is moving them. You see this in Catholic Montessori environments. They learn to run on their own and do not need to be constantly driven to work or to learn. When a child is running, he or she goes much further than a child that has to be pushed every inch of the way. In a Catholic Montessori school, they run.”
 
Having joined the school last fall, Dr. Fleischacker has supported the process of transition from the traditional classroom to the Montessori method and appreciates the commitment it will take from parishioners and parents.
 
“For the parish, this will be a way forward in living out the century-old mission of this beautiful parish school, much as what happened at Christ the King a few years ago when it switched to Catholic Montessori,” he added. “It is a profound and effective education that will richly bless the parish and the families. When these children enter the workforce as citizens in our city, they will be effective contributors in building a just, faithful, creative and flourishing economy and political order.”
 
Impact at Christ the King
 
The administrators and guides at St. Joseph’s have confidence in their plan, with Christ the King paving the way for the success of the Catholic Montessori school.

A teacher in the upper elementary level at Christ the King, Fr. Nick Schneider facilitated the implementation of the Montessori model four years ago when he was pastor there. Now, he’s the pastor at the Church of St. Vincent de Paul in Crown Butte, as well as the diocesan director of the Office of Worship.

“We really feel that Christ the King School can be a model and resource for other schools wanting to implement Catholic Montessori,” Schneider said. “Our staff has a strong understanding and love of the Montessori Method, and we love sharing! Dr. Maria Montessori saw that the way to a society of peace and faith is through the child. We hope to contribute a small part in building that society.”

In his training and time in the classroom, Fr. Schneider has seen the model at work and the witnesses the difference it makes for the students. “There are so many benefits that come to Montessori kids. Some of the biggest include increased independence, self-reliance and problem-solving, self-regulation, the capacity to make connections and the growth of personal interest and involvement in education.”

Christ the King and St. Joseph’s could be viewed as cross-town rivals, but a partnership between the two is a major advantage as both continue to grow and evolve.

Father Schneider explained, “An immediate benefit is that having two schools working together will allow us to reopen education for adolescents in Mandan. Also, after years of competition between Christ the King and St. Joseph's, we can work together for a common goal. The sense of our faith and our mission in the Church being universal can be more clearly realized. Also, we have excellent staff at both campuses. Working together will allow us to share the many, many gifts our staff have.”