2009 – United Yam

Doug Keck honored with 2025 Mother Angelica Award #Catholic Former EWTN president Doug Keck was presented with the Mother Angelica Award on Dec. 12, 2025. / Credit: EWTN News Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 12, 2025 / 20:02 pm (CNA). The EWTN Global Catholic Network presented the 2025 Mother Angelica Award to its longtime former president, Doug Keck, in recognition of his decades of service, faithful leadership, and tireless commitment to the mission of evangelization.Following a 29-year career at EWTN, Keck retired from his duties as EWTN president and chief operating officer in June. He subsequently assumed the honorary title of president emeritus and continues to host his signature series “EWTN Bookmark” as well as serve as co-host of “Father Spitzer’s Universe.”The Mother Angelica Award, which was presented to Keck during a special ceremony broadcast globally, is the highest honor bestowed by the network to recognize individuals whose lives reflect the spirit of faith, courage, and evangelistic zeal embodied by EWTN’s foundress, Mother Angelica.“On behalf of the entire EWTN family around the globe, I want to thank Doug for keeping the mission of EWTN our No. 1 priority over the years and never compromising on sharing the truth of the Gospel for views or clicks,” said EWTN Chairman of the Board and CEO Michael Warsaw.“He is more than deserving of this award,” Warsaw added.Keck joined EWTN in 1996 after a highly successful career in cable television in New York City, where he contributed to the growth of networks such as Sports Channel, Bravo, AMC, and CNBC. Over the years at EWTN, Keck helped develop and launch numerous flagship programs, including “Life on the Rock,” “The Journey Home,” “EWTN Bookmark,” and “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo,” playing a central role in the network’s expansion across television, radio, and digital platforms.In 2009, Keck became the network’s executive vice president and chief operating officer, and in 2013 he was named president and chief operating officer. Under his leadership, EWTN grew to become the largest global Catholic media organization, reaching millions of households worldwide and offering content across multiple languages and media channels.“Mother Angelica always said our job is to soak the earth with the truth of the Gospel and the Catholic Church. That’s been EWTN’s No. 1 priority, and I’ve been proud to be a part of it alongside so many other dedicated people,” Keck said.Reflecting on how God called him out of his career in secular media, Keck’s message to any Catholic is to consider how God might be calling him or her to put their talents to the service of the Gospel. “That’s what we’re called to do, really,” he said. “You don’t bury what you’ve been given. You give your talents over to him.” The full award ceremony, including tributes from those whose lives have been touched by Keck, will be available for viewing on EWTN On Demand at www.ondemand.ewtn.com.Keck now joins previous distinguished recipients of the Mother Angelica Award including Archbishop Emeritus of Philadelphia Charles J. Chaput, OFM Cap; former New Orleans Saints wide receiver and football coach Danny Abramowicz; and co-founders of the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) Curtis and Michaelann Martin.Inaugurated in 2021 on the 40th anniversary of EWTN’s founding, the Mother Angelica Award honors recipients for their extraordinary contribution to the Church and the new evangelization — serving as witnesses to God’s providence through their ministry and leadership.The largest Catholic media organization in the world, EWTN’s 11 global television channels broadcast in multiple languages 24 hours a day. The network also operates radio services via SiriusXM, iHeartRadio, and hundreds of AM/FM affiliates as well as one of the most visited Catholic websites in the U.S., a publishing division, and a robust global news operation.The network’s diverse range of programming includes catechetical series, devotions, news, talk shows, documentaries, and live coverage of major Church events — reaching hundreds of millions of viewers worldwide.

Catholic schools fare better in states with voucher programs #Catholic

null / Credit: RasyidArt, Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Nov 4, 2025 / 06:30 am (CNA).
Catholic schools are faring much better in dioceses in which state-funded voucher programs are available for parents to use to pay school tuition, one researcher has found, though enrollment is still declining in most places.John F. Quinn, a historian at Salve Regina University in Rhode Island, examined six Catholic dioceses over the last 16 years — three in states with voucher programs and three in states without them — and found that parochial schools are benefiting from vouchers.He presented his research at the Society of Catholic Social Scientists’ annual conference at Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio, in October.Quinn found that since 2009, the dioceses of Providence, Rhode Island; Fall River, Massachusetts; and Rockford, Illinois — none of which are located in states with voucher programs — have seen school closures and drops, some very large, in their parochial school enrollment.Providence schools have seen a two-thirds drop, from 16,000 students in 2009 to about 10,000 in 2025, according to the historian. The Diocese of Fall River, meanwhile, saw a 36% drop in enrollment, going from 7,800 students in 2009 to 5,000 in 2025. Rockford’s diocese saw a precipitous 52% drop, with 15,500 students in 2009 and 7,400 today. All three dioceses also saw multiple parochial school closures.The numbers are very different in the dioceses in states that have voucher programs.According to Quinn, the Archdiocese of Indianapolis only saw its enrollment numbers drop 3% since 2009. Nearly 23,000 were enrolled in its parochial schools in 2009, and the number stands at 22,300 today. The overall population of the archdiocese has also dropped 5% over the same time period, he noted. Indiana’s Choice Scholarship Program was launched in 2011 and expanded to nearly all residents in 2025.Two other dioceses, Orlando and Venice, are both in Florida, a state that approved its voucher program in 1999 and expanded it significantly in 2023.The Diocese of Orlando has seen a 13% drop, going from 14,500 students in 2009 to 12,750 in 2025.The Diocese of Venice, a relatively new one established in 1984, has seen a 52% increase in parish school enrollment since 2009 and growth in its number of parochial schools. In 2009, 4,400 students attended three high schools and 10 elementary schools, and today there are four high schools and 12 elementary schools with an enrollment of 6,800.Quinn acknowledged that Florida has a growing population but said even taking that into account, the voucher programs have indisputably aided the Catholic schools there.“We are full up with nearly every school at capacity,” Father John Belmonte, SJ, Diocese of Venice Superintendent of Catholic Education, said in September.History of parochial schooling“America’s Catholic leaders have long seen parochial schools as critical to the well-being of the Church in America,” Quinn noted. He recalled the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore in 1884, at which the bishops “called for every parish to have a school and for all Catholic parents to send their children” to them.Quinn noted that pastors would sometimes build a parish school first before completing the church building.In 1965, the high point of parochial school enrollment, 52% of American Catholic children, or 5.2 million students, were enrolled at 13,000 Catholic grammar and high schools. Quinn cited the National Catholic Educational Association’s annual report, released in the spring, that showed just under 1.7 million students are currently enrolled in the nation’s current 8,500 parochial schools.In 1965, nearly 70% of all parochial school teachers, or 115,607, were religious sisters, priests, or brothers, according to the Cardinal Newman Society. By 1990, only 2.5% of parochial school faculty were priests or religious, and that number remains the same today.Quinn said costs started rising as more lay teachers replaced religious and priests in the classroom.

unitedyam November 4, 2025

null / Credit: RasyidArt, Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Nov 4, 2025 / 06:30 am (CNA).

Catholic schools are faring much better in dioceses in which state-funded voucher programs are available for parents to use to pay school tuition, one researcher has found, though enrollment is still declining in most places.

John F. Quinn, a historian at Salve Regina University in Rhode Island, examined six Catholic dioceses over the last 16 years — three in states with voucher programs and three in states without them — and found that parochial schools are benefiting from vouchers.

He presented his research at the Society of Catholic Social Scientists’ annual conference at Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio, in October.

Quinn found that since 2009, the dioceses of Providence, Rhode Island; Fall River, Massachusetts; and Rockford, Illinois — none of which are located in states with voucher programs — have seen school closures and drops, some very large, in their parochial school enrollment.

Providence schools have seen a two-thirds drop, from 16,000 students in 2009 to about 10,000 in 2025, according to the historian.

The Diocese of Fall River, meanwhile, saw a 36% drop in enrollment, going from 7,800 students in 2009 to 5,000 in 2025. Rockford’s diocese saw a precipitous 52% drop, with 15,500 students in 2009 and 7,400 today. All three dioceses also saw multiple parochial school closures.

The numbers are very different in the dioceses in states that have voucher programs.

According to Quinn, the Archdiocese of Indianapolis only saw its enrollment numbers drop 3% since 2009. Nearly 23,000 were enrolled in its parochial schools in 2009, and the number stands at 22,300 today. The overall population of the archdiocese has also dropped 5% over the same time period, he noted.

Indiana’s Choice Scholarship Program was launched in 2011 and expanded to nearly all residents in 2025.

Two other dioceses, Orlando and Venice, are both in Florida, a state that approved its voucher program in 1999 and expanded it significantly in 2023.

The Diocese of Orlando has seen a 13% drop, going from 14,500 students in 2009 to 12,750 in 2025.

The Diocese of Venice, a relatively new one established in 1984, has seen a 52% increase in parish school enrollment since 2009 and growth in its number of parochial schools. In 2009, 4,400 students attended three high schools and 10 elementary schools, and today there are four high schools and 12 elementary schools with an enrollment of 6,800.

Quinn acknowledged that Florida has a growing population but said even taking that into account, the voucher programs have indisputably aided the Catholic schools there.

“We are full up with nearly every school at capacity,” Father John Belmonte, SJ, Diocese of Venice Superintendent of Catholic Education, said in September.

History of parochial schooling

“America’s Catholic leaders have long seen parochial schools as critical to the well-being of the Church in America,” Quinn noted.

He recalled the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore in 1884, at which the bishops “called for every parish to have a school and for all Catholic parents to send their children” to them.

Quinn noted that pastors would sometimes build a parish school first before completing the church building.

In 1965, the high point of parochial school enrollment, 52% of American Catholic children, or 5.2 million students, were enrolled at 13,000 Catholic grammar and high schools.

Quinn cited the National Catholic Educational Association’s annual report, released in the spring, that showed just under 1.7 million students are currently enrolled in the nation’s current 8,500 parochial schools.

In 1965, nearly 70% of all parochial school teachers, or 115,607, were religious sisters, priests, or brothers, according to the Cardinal Newman Society.

By 1990, only 2.5% of parochial school faculty were priests or religious, and that number remains the same today.

Quinn said costs started rising as more lay teachers replaced religious and priests in the classroom.