The “Serving Students with Special Needs” workshop was held Jan. 14, 2018, at the McNease Convention Center in San Angelo.  This workshop, hosted by the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis, was sponsored by Loyola Press, A Jesuit Ministry.  Luci Holloway, Educational Sales Consultant from Loyola Press, was the presenter for this event.  

The National Directory for Catechesis states: “All persons with disabilities have the capacity to proclaim the Gospel and to be living witnesses to its truth within the community of faith and offer valuable gifts.  Their involvement enriches every aspect of Church life.  They are not just recipients of catechesis—they are also its agents.                                                                                                                              
“All persons with disabilities or special needs should be welcomed in the Church.  Every person however limited, is capable of growth to holiness.” (NDC par49)

The focus of this workshop was to learn how to begin and implement programs for students with special needs in one’s parish.  It proved to be a very fruitful gathering.  Ms. Holloway began the presentation with the call of the Church—all members of the Body of Christ are called to holiness.  She identified various kinds of disabilities and how to recognize and address them at the parish level.  Models of catechesis were addressed recognizing that there is not only one model to be used.  She spoke of the importance of working with personnel from schools and community agencies that can be resources to parishes.  She also spoke of the Multiple Intelligences identified by Howard Gardner and the importance of teaching to student strengths.  In order to be effective in meeting the needs of the children, one needs to be aware of the many ways one learns.

She introduced the “Adaptive Program Finding God” as a resource to assist with the catechesis for students with special needs.

All recognized the importance of reaching out to families of students with special needs.  It is important to involve the pastor and community in understanding special needs.  Many times people are not aware of students with special needs in the parish, thus failing to respond to their needs.

Participating parishes/missions were:  St. Vincent Pallotti, Abilene; Our Lady of Guadalupe, Ft. Stockton; St. Mary, Brownwood; Sacred Heart Cathedral, St. Joseph, and St. Mary, San Angelo; St. Peter, Mertzon; San Miguel Arcángel, Midland; Our Lady of San Juan,  Holy Redeemer, and St. Joseph, Odessa; Holy Spirit, Sweetwater; and St. Ambrose, Wall.

We are grateful to Luci Holloway and Loyola Press for sponsoring this workshop for the Diocese of San Angelo

If you are aware of a special need individual in your parish and need information on how to provide catechesis, please contact your parish office or the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis at [email protected] or 325-651-7500.