Growth in the Midst of Decline: Catholic Education in the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska, in the Late Twentieth and Early Twenty-First Centuries

Abstract

The Catholic Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska, provides a unique study for the history of U.S. Catholic education during the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Between 1980 and 2010, Catholic school enrollment in Lincoln increased by 31% while it declined nationwide by 33%. Lincoln maintained a consistent number of schools while more than a third of U.S. Catholic schools closed. It achieved this success by reducing costs, increasing funding, and maintaining low tuition. Unlike much of the country, Lincoln continued to staff its schools with both priests and female religious, a major undertaking that required, among other things, the creation of the diocese's own female religious order dedicated to teaching. Additionally, Lincoln experimented with innovative funding systems to keep schools open and accessible. Led by its bishops, these efforts resulted in Lincoln's educational successes, which may offer a window into the future of Catholic education.