Diocesan Partnership
A rare opportunity to jump-start family catechesis in your diocese through $40,000 in grant funding.
Cohort Program
The purpose of the Community Initiative cohort program is to begin a long-term partnership between The Pastoral Center and diocesan leaders to promote the broad adoption of parent-centered family catechesis. An initial cohort stage of the relationship will seed your diocese with pilot parishes to jump-start adoption and serve as examples.
We are seeking dioceses with a strong interest in family catechesis who can help us to:
- Encourage parish leaders to embrace family catechesis, attend introductory workshops, and apply to be a pilot parish.
- Select 10-15 local pilot parishes who will commit to implementing family catechesis for at least two years (using resource funded by the grant).
- Expand adoption to additional parishes after the cohort period.
Financial Grant
Each cohort diocese will benefit from $40,000 in grant funding
The funding is all administered by the Pastoral Center and covers our expenses for providing the cohort program services.
| In-Person Introductory Workshop | $2,800 |
| In-Person Two-Day Training Workshop | $3,200 |
| Online & Phone Leader Support | $2,000 |
| Family Curriculum Resources | $24,000 |
| Assessment & Evaluation Process | $4,900 |
| Administrative Support | $3,500 |
| Total | $40,400 |
|---|
Selection Process
The process for selecting cohort dioceses will be a very competitive one, as we have already received interest from many more dioceses than the 15 available spots. (Note: The cohort is not the only way in which dioceses can partner with The Pastoral Center as part of this initiative.)
A number of priorities will influence the selection process, including:
- Confidence that we can identify at least ten strong candidate pilot parishes within the diocese.
- Diocesan interest in a long-term partnership to expand parent-centered famiy catechesis in their parishes and schools.
- Active diocesan support for facilitating the immediate initiative: hosting events, encouraging parish participation, providing input on pilot parish selection, etc.
- Overall balance across cohort dioceses and parishes to represent variations in pastoral situations, including urban/rural, geographical location, parish/program size, ethnic diversity, and languages spoken.
Selected Cohort Dioceses
| 2024-2026 | 2025-2027 | 2026-2028 |
|---|---|---|
|
Cincinnati, OH Dallas, TX Paterson, NJ Stockton, CA |
TBD |
TBD |
Learn More
To better understand the features and schedule of the cohort program, please click the button below:
Learn more about the Cohort Program
If you have questions, are ready for a conversation, or want to apply, please reach out to the initiative Director, Claudio Mora, at claudio@pastoral.center or (844) 727-8672 x201.
Alternatives
The cohort program is a great option, but acceptance into the program is a selective process and we will not have funding to accept every interested diocese. However, the cohort program is not the only way you can benefit from our Community Initiative. Learn more about the core benefits here.