Student Accomodations Committee

Stephanie Johnson, Loyola College Prep Assistant Principal

THE SCHOOLS IN THE WESTERN DEANERY OF THE DIOCESE OF SHREVEPORT HAVE BEEN BUSY MEETING SINCE JANUARY TO FORM OUR NEW STUDENT ACCOMMODATIONS COMMITTEE.

Comprised of administrators and counselors from each of the three schools, the committee has been creating policies and procedures on identifying, accommodating, and improving the learning experience for students with learning differences.

“It is our hope that this committee will allow all three of the schools to be on the same page on how we educate all of our students - whether they have ADHD, dyslexia, autism, or just learn a little differently,” says Stephanie Johnson, Academic Assistant Principal of Loyola and chair of the committee. “By streamlining the process of identifying these students, and utilizing common language, requiring the same documentation, and using the same forms, we hope to simplify the process and make the transition from St. John Berchmans or St. Joseph to Loyola as seamless as possible.”

The committee is most excited about the professional development opportunities for teachers in the upcoming school year. Susan Hymel, Loyola counselor and committee member, traveled to Landmark College in May. Landmark College is a private, two-year college in Vermont specializing in helping students who learn differently, and they were the first college to pioneer a program for students with dyslexia. Ms. Hymel came back with a wealth of information to share with all of the schools. Additionally, the committee has partnered to bring professional development to teacher inservice meetings in August specifically related to teaching strategies for students with learning differences.

Assessment of Children/Youth Religious Education (ACRE) 2022-2023 School Year Results

National Catholic Education Association (NCEA) has offered assessment instruments designed to strengthen catechetical/religious education programs since the 1970’s. The Assessment of Children/Youth Religious Education (ACRE) is used in the Diocese of Shreveport to evaluate the faith knowledge and attitudes of students in Catholic schools. ACRE is a multilevel, age-appropriate tool, that is administered in grade 5 (Level 1) and grade 8 (Level 2) and high school (Level 3). As an integrated assessment tool,

ACRE provides faith knowledge questions (cognitive domain) and questions related to religious beliefs, attitudes, practices, and perceptions (affective domain). The graphs below show the collective results of the cognitive domain of our Catholic school youth to the national average and the parish national average. As you can see, Catholic students are above the national and parish averages. Let us continue to promote Catholic schools as a viable way to help our youth understand the faith and remain Catholic!