The National Weather Service has issued a cold weather advisory until noon Saturday for wind chills as low as nine below zero. As cold weather persists, the University wants to remind our community about tips for protecting yourself, your residences and your property, plus dealing with winter weather. These will be posted on UD's emergency preparedness and response page, along with updates on weather alerts, event cancellations and building closures.

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Saint Remy Initiative

Creating a Community for Catholic School Educators

The Saint Remy Initiative is a collaboration between the UD Center for Catholic Education and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. This professional learning community is designed to broaden participants’ understanding of their own spiritual formation to enhance their effectiveness as Catholic educators.

With an ongoing theme of spiritual formation, Saint Remy provides Catholic school principals and teachers an opportunity to strengthen their knowledge and skills in the spiritual, educational and organizational dimensions of their ministry.

Fast Facts

3

members per school team

20

local Catholic schools served

About Us

The name "Saint Remy Initiative" was suggested by Brother Ed Brink, former Director of the UD Center for Catholic Education. He discovered that the first Marianist Normal School for the Professional Development of Christian Teachers was founded in 1824 by Blessed Father Chaminade in Saint Remy de Provence, France.

Father Chaminade believed that too much emphasis was placed on the acquiring of skills for the teacher and not enough time is spent in forming the heart of the Catholic school teacher. He described his vision for normal schools that would serve in the formation of Catholic school educators as one of his principal undertakings "the one which is closest to my heart and generally interests me most."

We feel this same vision is at the heart of our initiative, and that Saint Remy is an appropriate name for it.

Program Pillars

Participants take part in sessions that are tied to the four pillars of the Saint Remy Initiative:

  1. Spiritual: Develop relationship with God & Church so educators can be strong witnesses of faith
  2. Professional: Develop skills in order to be more effective educators
  3. Personal: Foster personal growth and develop the emotional IQ necessary for modeling discipleship to students
  4. Leadership: Develop leadership skills that will help individuals build a culture of faith in schools.

Program Components

The four main components of the Saint Remy Initiative are:

  1. Pilgrimage
    • During the annual pilgrimage (held in the summer), Saint Remy participants travel to destinations that represent the rich cultural heritage of Catholic schools in our area. Participants also spend time in prayerful reflection and spiritual centering.
  2. Class/Cohort Days
    • Faith sharing: Participants start the day discussing a writing from Thomas Merton and sharing their personal experience of faith based on the reading.
    • Learning teams: Every class day, a speaker will be invited to share their knowledge in the areas of personal growth, spirituality, leadership and education. Saint Remy participants will discuss information and gain insights that lead to personal, spiritual and professional growth.
    • Community building: Because establishing community is such a vital part of Saint Remy, there is a community building activity every class day that fosters a culture of positive relationships.
    • Planning teams: In an effort to foster leadership and collaboration, Saint Remy is a self-organizing program. Participants spend a small amount of time in various teams to plan the retreat day, pilgrimage, school projects and other activities for the year.
    • Principal sessions: Principals gather for two afternoon sessions. One session is to study and discuss an assigned book related to leadership. The second session is an open forum, which allows principals to discuss issues they are facing in their schools and share ideas for effective school management.
    • Professional learning communities: At the end of the day, educators meet according to grade level to discuss a common book which focuses on ministry as Catholic educators. Teachers benefit by gaining ideas they can implement in their classrooms.
  3. School Project
    • Schools receive a modest stipend to implement a program which fosters Catholic Identity in their school during the school year. On the final class day, each school displays a tri-fold board explaining their Saint Remy project from the past year. Participants from various schools will explore the displays and exchange ideas that can be implemented in their schools.
  4. Retreat
    • Each January, Saint Remy participants attend a retreat day, which is designed to help them develop their relationship with God and with each other.

Each of these components are designed to help participants engage in discussion, develop their relationship with God and build community.

Continuing Education Credits

Participants in the Saint Remy Initiative may earn Continuing Education Credits. CEUs are based on the number of contact hours taken for a course. CEUs cannot be applied toward a degree program. Earned CEUs may be useful in maintaining certification or licensure. They may also be useful in documenting continuation of professional education for an employer.

Saint Remy participants have the opportunity to earn up to 6 CEUs each year. CEUs may be earned through attending the Pilgrimage/retreat, Saint Remy class/cohort days, and individual school meetings.

Who We Serve

The Saint Remy Initiative serves 20 local Catholic schools:

The Importance of the Saint Remy Initiative

Teresa Tomeo is a bestselling author, syndicated Catholic talk show host, and speaker with more than thirty years of experience in print and broadcast media. Her weekday radio program, "Catholic Connection," a co-production of Ave Maria Radio and EWTN, the global Catholic radio network, is heard daily on over 500 stations worldwide, and SiriusXM Satellite Radio.