Catholic educators gather to 'reflect, renew and respond'

As Catholic students converge on campuses around the Diocese of Baton Rouge, they bring their hopes, dreams and concerns about for the new school year. Their teachers and administrators are striving to meet their needs and help them reach their full potential academically and as disciples of Christ.
On Aug. 2, Catholic educators met at St. George Church in Baton Rouge to fellowship, pray and be formed as disciples themselves at the 2023 Catholic Educator’s Gathering, sponsored by the Catholic Schools Office of the Diocese of Baton Rouge. The theme of the conference was “United in Faith: Reflect, Renew, Respond.”
Dr. Pattie Davis, Superintendent of Schools for the Diocese of Baton Rouge, welcomed the attendees and thanked them for their work as ministers in the educational work of the church.
“Today, the Diocese of Baton Rouge schools join Catholic educators across the nation to affirm our commitment to uphold the Gospel teachings of Jesus Christ and to equip our students with strong moral and academic foundations,” said Davis.
She recognized educators completing basic and intermediate certification.
Keynote speaker Dr. Tina Holland, President of Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University in Baton Rouge, reflected on how teaching in Catholic Schools is both a profession and a vocation.
Holland pointed out that the definitions of profession and vocation are identical enough that they are synonyms for each other.
A more accurate or meaningful definition of vocation is a “divine call or a summons,” stated Holland.
“It’s God’s call to serve him in the world. And in our vocation, we are called to a mission in life,” Holland said.
The Christian definition of a vocation is as singular, unique and unrepeatable, according to Holland.
Catholic educators must look beyond their individual call and recognize they belong to a community which holds up the body of Christ through their work on Earth, according to Holland. She noted theologian Frederick Buechner defines vocation as “the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet.”
“The work God calls you to do is the kind of work that you are good at, that brings you fulfillment and that the world needs,” Holland said.
For Catholic educators, the vocational call comes first, in which they respond to the needs of the students’ formation and education. They apply professional and holy standards.

“The work is based on specialized knowledge, skills and expertise and measured by a standard performance,” said Holland. “Teaching as a vocation emphasizes our commitment to a shared mission while teaching as a profession emphasizes our commitment to common standards and also accountability for leaving those common standards.”
As professionals, Catholic educators are to see teaching in terms of vocational excellence, which is defined by human virtue, Holland said. They must focus on their common standards and focus on individual students and adjust their approaches accordingly and apply standards of impartiality.
Catholic education is relationship-based, Holland stated. She noted that St. Thomas Aquinas defined love as “willing the good of the other.”
“And since that relationship is centered in love and ‘willing the good of the other,’ we need to understand our students well. We need to be aware of their strengths and weaknesses, their possibilities and needs,” Holland said.
Following Holland’s presentation, Father Paul Yi, pastor of St. George, celebrated Mass and led the commissioning ceremony at the end of the liturgy.
The educators eagerly anticipated the return of students to the classroom.
 “I like seeing their expressions and how excited they are about meeting new friends,” said Bethany Waguespack, who teaches pre-K at St. Thomas More School in Baton Rouge. “I like teaching them about their faith and introducing them to school in general – meeting all their different personalities.”
Camille Barham, who teaches third-grade English Language Arts and Religion at St. Jean Vianney School in Baton Rouge, said she loves teaching students reading in order to learn.
“They’re like sponges, because they’ve just learned to read, and now they’re taking in all that knowledge,” said Barham.
She also looks forward to the presence of a new priest on campus, Father Eric Gyan, who was recently appointed pastor of St. Jean Vianney Church.
“He said he loves being with the kids in the school system,” said Barham. “I look forward to his visits to the classroom with his dog (Bosco).”
Jesse Schmitt, who teaches theology to ninth and 11th­–grade students at St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Hammond, looks forward to teaching subjects he is passionate about. For ninth-grade students it will be sacred Scripture and for 11th–graders it will be sacramental theology, which focuses the sacraments because they are the way through which people obtain sanctification.
“What I am looking forward to is this is the first year I feel I have a lot of experience to go off,” said Schmitt. “I can take the things I’ve learned from the past two years of working at school and put it into practice to continue improve my teaching method.
“I’m excited to see how the material can impact the lives of the students.”