As many small Catholic colleges face demographic and financial challenges, a new type of institution is emerging: one that combines a commitment to Catholic faith and practice with a greater vocational focus.

In the Los Angeles area, Catholic Polytechnic University hopes to become the next “Catholic Caltech” or “Catholic MIT.” St. Louis, which welcomes freshmen this fall in Steubenville, Ohio. Joseph the Worker College offers an innovative six-year program that blends training in business with a Catholic liberal arts education.

Other Catholic trade schools have also opened recently, including the Santiago Trade School in California. Harmel Trading Academy in michigan and CatholicTechnology Outside Rome.

These schools are capitalizing on a national trend. Liberal arts colleges are facing declining enrollment due to younger Gen Zers and a backlash against higher tuition fees and crippling debt that many graduates face. Meanwhile, trade and vocational schools are gaining increasing attention as a more affordable and practical alternative. From 2021 to 2022, enrollment in mechanical and repair trade programs increased by 11.5%, construction jobs increased by 19.3%, and culinary programs attracted 12.7% more students (according to data cited by the National Student Clearinghouse). Hechinger Report).

Jennifer Nolan, a neuroscientist and founder of Catholic Polytechnic University, told the Register that she came to the idea because of her own children’s interest in studying science and technology in college. As Catholic parents, Nolan and her husband faced a dilemma: Send them to a traditional liberal arts Catholic college that didn’t emphasize science and technology, or send them to a local STEM-focused vocational school where they worried an atheist professor would try to speak to their ideas. They alienate children from their beliefs.

“What if there was a Catholic Caltech or Catholic MIT where faith and science could be openly reunited and students could see blockchain professors in awe and AI professors at daily services?” said Nolan. He envisioned a university where students could learn science through the lens of their faith while taking classes in philosophy, theology, and writing.

Catholic Polytechnic University It is mission-oriented and aims to demonstrate that science is a path to faith by educating Catholic scientists whose careers will be built on belief in the harmony of faith and science. According to Nolan, given the school’s evangelical vision as well as today’s forays into biotechnology, among other fields, there is a need for scientists with a strong ethical foundation.

San Damiano College of Commerce It was founded on a similar vision, aiming to combine business or vocational training with Catholic values. The college aims to “serve traditionally-minded Catholic families (many of whom are home-schooled) who put faith in all things first and want an alternative to massive debt, massive alertness, and the standard white-collar BA career path.” Kent Lasnoski, president of the college.

Lasnoski explained to the Register that while vocational alternatives exist at other trade schools and community colleges, Catholic students may not find the “worldview, theology, spiritual formation and cultural formation” they seek at those institutions.

San Damiano, located in Springfield, Illinois, also fills a geographic gap, according to Lasnoski; because in the corridor stretching from Minnesota and Wisconsin to Illinois, Michigan and Missouri, there are not enough staunchly Catholic colleges for families who prioritize Catholic identity in colleges.

For your part, Santiago Business School It opened in 2023 after “identifying a critical need for a Catholic institution that integrates technical trades education with spiritual formation,” Mayra Brown, the school’s director of community relations, told the Register. “Our hands-on, experiential learning model equips students with real-world skills in general construction, mechanical technology, and agricultural management, allowing them to apply their education directly to ongoing projects. What truly sets Santiago apart is our commitment to holistic formation. From the Ordinary of St. Peter We have a dedicated Catholic Formation Department headed by a priest, a Carmelite priest and a Ph.D. who all work together to guide the spiritual development of our students, not only as skilled tradesmen, but also as individuals firmly committed to the Catholic faith and moral values. “It helps them grow.”

“The reception has been incredibly positive, with strong support from both local parishes and the wider Catholic community,” he added. “We are proud to train tradesmen who are ready to serve both the Church and society with their skills and values.”

Labor St. Joseph College It was established to address similar geographical and institutional gaps. The college is located in Steubenville, Ohio, and offers a program that combines elements of a trade school with a traditional liberal arts school and emphasizes the holistic formation of the person as a devoted Catholic and skilled tradesman.

“Worker St. Joseph College is no ordinary program. “We entered the higher education fray with a completely unique model: a Catholic liberal arts degree combined with training in a skilled trade,” said Michael Gugala, vice president of enrollment.

On Sept. 25, the school’s first class of 31 students began a six-year program learning their trades by taking three years on campus and three years off-campus remotely.

Students will begin their education while receiving a traditional liberal arts education on campus. The first year provides an overview of the residential construction trade; Students will then need to choose a specific trade. The school initially offers concentrations in carpentry, plumbing, electrical and HVAC.

“While our students are educated in the Catholic intellectual tradition, they are also trained to be skilled artisans,” Gugala said. “This skilled scholar model is designed to create leaders who are spiritually, intellectually and physically prepared to live the unique aspects of the lay vocation that sanctify family, workplace and community.”

Meanwhile, Catholic Polytechnic University’s first few graduate schools opened this fall and will begin advertising for undergraduates next academic year.

At a time when student debt is soaring and many doubt whether a four-year college is worth it, Nolan said the school has also made affordability a big priority, keeping tuition for freshmen at a very low $5,000 he said. (According to the Education Data Initiative, the average cost of a four-year school is $38,270, including tuition and all related expenses. Caltech is even more expensive, with an estimated cost of attendance of $90,822 to $94,380, depending on whether students live or live on campus outside.)

Patrick Reilly, president of the Cardinal Newman Society Newman Guide To Catholic colleges, which includes colleges on the Registration List annual “Catholic Identity College Guide”, pointed to the new vocational schools as evidence of a broader longing for truly Catholic colleges among Catholic students and their parents: “More and more Catholic families are once again turning to a truly Catholic education.”