Grit

I love the word grit when used to describe students who give their best effort to succeed. It is the effort they give especially when the learning gets tough that helps develop grit. Grit is the mental toughness needed for an individual to achieve success. Angela Duckworth of the University of Pennsylvania wrote in her book Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance that "grit is a strong predictor of success and ability to reach one's goals."

As an educator, I feel we do a disservice to our students if we do not push them to work harder by reading at higher levels, solving more difficult problems, and grasping deeper concepts regardless of the subject matter. I do not expect my educators to develop easy lessons for the students. Teach with love and compassion, but do not accept lower level work. Push them to struggle. If they struggle and persevere, they develop grit. If they struggle and give up, they aren't developing the grit needed to succeed when the going gets tough. Anybody can succeed when things are easy.

So, a word to educators and parents: do not make things easy on your students and children. Push them to develop grit because we all know people who fold like a house of cards whenever things get tough. They cannot handle the pressure and blame others for their lack of success. Let's help our students learn how to deal with failure and still move forward.

Unfortunately, I did not possess this grit when it came to academics especially when I struggled in school. CBHS was definitely a struggle for me. Thank God I had teachers who would not give up on me and pushed me to succeed. They didn't make it easy on me. They held me accountable. Catching up academically at CBHS was my battle. My parents never dreamed of stepping in and finding a way to make it easier for me academically. That's why they sent me CBHS. They did not want to make it easier for me.  Just the opposite, and I'm glad they did.

I had grit in athletics but not enough for me to fulfill my dream of making soccer my career. I could have used more grit there. But, where I have always had grit is in the work place.

In all the places I have worked since I was a teenager, I have never been the smartest person in the room, but I did and will continue to out-work everyone in the room. I put in more time, energy, and passion into my work and have constantly moved up. I am proud of that. I love to work and I love where I work. And believe me, it takes every bit of time, energy, passion, and love to push forward at St. Ann. Most people wouldn't know this but it is a tough place to work.

For those of you who did not hear nor read my speech to the 8th graders at graduation (check out my previous blog to read the graduation speech), one of the things I focused on was not being afraid to fail. There is nothing wrong with failing if you are working hard to succeed, and you work even harder to pick yourself up and try again. Failure happens. Failure is a part of success.

This is a lesson Kelley and I taught our children early on in life, but we used a different phraseology with them. Instead of saying "Don't be afraid to fail," we would ask the question, "Are you afraid of success?" It was our way of teaching them that they cannot be afraid of dedicating the time and energy needed in order to succeed. Success isn't easy and it shouldn't be. You do not learn nor grow when times are easy. That happens through struggles and hard work; grit.

As a soccer player, if my team scored goals easily, it wasn't worthy of a celebration. Yet, the hard-earned goals are still etched in my mind. I am a believer that a hard-earned D, C or B is more worthy than an easy A. As parents, we need to remember that. Instead of complaining, making excuses, or looking for others to blame for hard-earned grades that are less than an A, we should praise our children for earning the tough grades. And, if they didn't work hard for that D, C, or B, there should be negative consequences involved. Think I was grounded and in summer school most of my high school years. I wasn't the best student. I paid the price. And, it helped teach me a valuable lesson. If you want to succeed, there is a price to pay.

There is something else I've learned about parenting. Do not praise your child(ren) for being smart and/or talented. Ex: You are so smart or I cannot believe how talented you are. Instead, praise your child(ren) for working hard in trying to accomplish a goal. The way I look at it, you might be smarter than me, but I'm going to outwork you. Being smart gets you nowhere if you don't have the grit to see things through.

My parents didn't praise me for doing what I was suppose to do. They praised me when I went above and beyond. I am very thankful for their parenting because they helped create the grit I needed to succeed in the workplace. My children were raised the same way. Through hard work and dedication, they have become the young people Kelley and I hoped they would be. We are extremely thankful. We led by example and our children followed. That doesn't always happen, but it did for us.

Did we make mistakes as parents? Oh God, we made mistakes just as all parents do. But we never fought our children's battles for them. We taught them their battles were for them to fight and overcome. How else are they going to survive and become independent in this world? It is a dog eat dog world out there and we are all wearing milk bone underwear (thanks Norm Peterson from Cheers).

Yes, I have the right to give advice and lecture on parenting. I'm old enough, my children are grown up, and I have worked with thousands of school aged children. I have made mistakes, but I have also learned a lot of lessons. Learn from me so as not to make the same mistakes.

Teach your children to walk on their own two feet. Helicoptering and snowplowing helps no one. No one wants to see their child struggle but the sooner they learn how to fight their own battles, the better off they will be. I've heard several parents at St. Ann use this phrase when their child complains and I love it. "Suck it up, Buttercup. That's life." I heard a great quote last week that makes so much sense. "Don't love your children so much that no one else can."

I love my children and all my students. I love them enough to make sure to teach them to be independent and successful. I love them enough to not keep them from failing. I love them enough to teach them how to get up and keep working to succeed. And, I love them enough to not do it for them. It is hard to step back sometimes. But, it is necessary.

Wishing all children throughout Shelby County a restful and safe summer.

Now, go read a book.

St. Ann...Pray for Us!
Live Jesus in our hearts...Forever!

God bless you,
Didier Aur, Principal
St. Ann Catholic School

Doing Good for the Sake of Doing Good

Want to start this blog with some great news. The security cameras and all the wiring have been ordered and have arrived at school. The installation of the security cameras begins tomorrow morning! I'm looking forward to having the cameras in place to better protect everyone on campus. I'm also looking forward to the next step in making our campus more secure by adding the speakers to the hallways, gyms, cafeteria, and kitchen. After that, we will work on replacing the door locks.

My style of leadership is one where I work with people to get their input on what needs to be done. I don't lead in a vacuum. I want people's input and help in making decisions. When things go well, everyone gets credit. I think that is very important. And, I will take the blame when things don't go the way they are supposed to go. Hey, that's part of leadership. I'll throw myself under the bus, but I will do my best to never throw anyone else under the bus.

I say all this because there are some times where I have to make a decision without getting everyone's input. I don't like doing that, but I will make those decisions every once in awhile and move forward with that decision.

Select Members of the SAS Band
Performed at CBHS.

One of those decisions I've made recently has to do with the Extracurricular Exploration (EE). As part of the Advanc-ED accreditation process, I reviewed, reviewed, and reviewed our students' ITBS and easyCBM scores. I saw individual strengths and weaknesses. I discovered where our students can benefit from extra help and those who will benefit by giving extra help.


So, in organizing this latest EE, I added tutoring to the EE

classes. Except, I did not make this class an optional class for students. The middle school teachers submitted a list of students who need extra help in different subject areas. I confirmed the names on the list with the test scores. I did not ask the students on the list if they wanted to be in the tutoring class, I pretty much mandated it. But, I mandated it for a purpose, and that is to give our students another opportunity to improve academically. Student academic success is part of my job.

There is something else I did with the EE tutoring class. I reviewed the test scores and got the students with the highest test scores, who I felt would do a good job of tutoring classmates in helping those classmates improve academically, and made them tutors. I did not ask those students if they would tutor, I assigned them as tutors for that EE class.

I have several reasons for doing this. So, here's my explanation. Let me start off by saying that assigning these students as tutors is about as high a compliment as I can pay any student. If I know you have the academic ability to help other students succeed, and I believe you have what it takes to help other students succeed, you have won my confidence and trust. There are plenty of adults out there I wouldn't want tutoring in my school, but these students that have been selected to tutor, I want them to not only share their knowledge, I also want them to use the talents God has given them to help others. "To whom much is given, from him much is expected." (Luke 12:48) God gave you the talent, I'm giving you an opportunity to use your God-given talent.

At the school Mass last Thursday, Fr. Bill talked about how teaching is a witness. He even used the example of students teaching students. He said that when students teach students, they are doing God's work. In today's Gospel reading from Luke, we are reminded to "do to others as you would have them do to you." With that in mind, I'm going to do the best I can to help others because I sure hope they will help me when I need it. That's not the main reason I help others. The main reason I help others is because I was taught to see Jesus in all my brothers and sisters. I sure hope they see Jesus in me.

Also in today's Gospel, a part that stands out for me is "lend expecting nothing back." These tutors are lending their knowledge to their classmates, and together, their knowledge will grow. Your reward is knowing that you are doing God's work. In the end, "gifts will be given to you," for you are doing good for the sake of doing good.

I would like to thank Patrick Bennett, Jonathan Clowney, Brayan Garcia, Luca de Jong, James Kargauer, and Logan Wymore, for helping to tutor their classmates. I also want to thank Stacey Griffith and Teresa Ferrante for leading the Tutoring EE. Without all of you, this tutoring effort would be fruitless.

Student Shout Out:
This past weekend Jonah Odum competed in the TN-AAU Region 4 Championship and placed 4th out of 10 wrestlers. This qualifies Jonah to compete in the TN-AAU State Tournament where only the top 4 athletes from each region can compete. During Jonah’s qualifying match, he overcame extreme adversity. He was down four points with 30 seconds left. Jonah was able to flip his opponent and put him on his back where he then pinned him to earn his spot to compete at the state championship.  Congratulations to Jonah and good luck while competing at the state tournament in Knoxville, TN on March 2nd.

Parents, please share student shout outs with me so that we may recognize our students in my blog and morning announcements.

God bless you,
Didier Aur, Principal
St. Ann Catholic School

The Meaning of Success

Success means something different to each of us, and our meaning of success changes from day to day. On this beautiful Sunday, success to me means an incredible 2018 St. Ann Fall Fest. Wow, what an incredible Fall Fest we had this past Friday and Saturday!

The Sky Over Fall Fest- Beautiful

Hats off and a standing ovation to Stephanie Nichols, Jamie Coggins, and Kathy Schiavone. Over the past year, these three ladies have given up a good chunk of their lives to make sure the St. Ann Fall Fest would be a success. Ladies it was a huge success. Thank you as I bow to you for what you have done for St. Ann Catholic Church and School. Starting with the golf tournament and ending with the Wolfchase Hyundai car give-away and 5th Kind playing great 80's music, the Fall Fest could not have been any better. And yes, there was great music in the 80's.

My Golf Team

American philosopher Dennis Myers once said, "Some dream of success while others work hard to make success happen." Thank you Stephanie, Jamie, and Kathy for working hard to make success happen.

Personally, I enjoyed every Fall Fest event. On Friday morning, my team took second place at the St. Ann Golf Tournament shooting 15 under. I know how to stack a team. I recruited the St. Ann golf coaches Paul Mann and Mike Kauker as well as Derrol Jowell of the Jubilee Schools as my teammates. We were 12 under after 12, and that's when we started parring some holes. We actually parred an earlier hole but followed it up with an eagle to keep up our birdie pace.

The Best Auction Prize

The Italian dinner and auction were a hit. The food was awesome especially the meatballs. I'm craving some right now. Selina Trouy and I start our diet on Monday, so no more meatballs. I'm getting hungry just thinking about dieting. Something is wrong with that.

The silent auction was absolutely huge. The best item was a lunch with the principal. I look forward to hosting that lunch. There goes the diet.

I had the privilege of being the emcee along with Fr. Ernie at the live auction. I hope I'm included in the dinner and shooting with Fr. Ernie. That's one pretty creative auction item, and another diet breaker.

I want to send out a special shoutout to all the St. Ann staff (church and school) members who volunteered to help at Fall Fest. I love it when the people I work with take ownership of the organization. That's what the great folks at St. Ann do; they take ownership of the place, which makes St. Ann a great place to work.

4th Grade Coders

This week's shoutout goes to several students. First shoutout goes to 4th graders, Tomas Gomez and Shannia Bailey, for being the first in their class to complete the Hour of Code (coding assignment) in Mrs. Slattery computer class.

7th Graders at Memphis

The second shoutout goes to Cassie Richardson, Logan Wymore, Zach Griffith, and Luca de Jong for their participation in the University of Memphis Engineering Day. They participated in the water filtration competition. Alex Yong, Johnathan Clowney, and Chloe Ngyugen participated in the bridge competition. These young folks participated in the competitions on a day off from school. Thanks for your dedication. Thanks also to Stacey Griffith and Angela de Jong for leading our students at Engineering Day.

6th Graders at Memphis

St. Ann alum Justin Abart returned to show our middle schoolers how businesses use drones. I taught Justin World Geography at CBHS. I must have had some influence on him because he became a geographer. He earned a B.A. in geography from Tennessee and an M.S. in earth sciences from Memphis. I'm hoping that we can have some influence on the current students to study geography so they can help make a positive difference on global warming, deforestation, desertification, pollution (air, water, and land), rising sea levels...  Justin plans to return to continue helping our students in the areas of science and social studies.

I started off the week at the AdvancED conference at Middle Tennessee State University. The two day conference was to help schools preparing for the accreditation process. Our school is accredited every five years, and the accreditation process changes every five years. The conference helped me get more organized and become more knowledgeable in the new process. We have formed our school improvement committee to help lead St. Ann into the future. Our team members are Lori Locke, Liz Wehmeyer, Susan Hunt, Fr. Bill Parham, Teresa Ferrante, Annmarie Ghio, Angela de Jong, and I. Once we develop the school improvement plan, we will present the plan to Fr. Ernie for his approval. Once we receive his approval, we will present the plan to the St. Ann community, and start working on the improvements and school accreditation.

Justin Abart Returns to St. Ann

This week, we also celebrated Awards Day. We honored the students who made the Faculty Honor Roll, Principal Honor Roll, Father Oglesby Character Award, Student of the Month, and the Colt Star Employee of the Month. This month's Father Oglesby Character Award winners are Rock Garrett (K), Anna Tran (1), Taylor Hill (2), Emily Morales (3), Shannia Bailey (4), Cassie Harmon (5), Johnathan Clowney (6), Zach Griffith (7), and Louis Vidal (8). The Student of the Month is Logan Wymore. The Colt Star Employee of the Month is Susan Hunt. Congratulations to all who worked hard to earn an award.

Chili Cook Off Judges

It was an extremely busy week. Glad I spent most of today resting. Part of the relaxation for me was attending 8:30 Mass at St. Ann this morning and then 11:00 Mass at St. Michael. Nothing like a double shot of spiritual uplifting at two great parishes.

I wish all of you a fantastic week ahead, and start off by making Monday a great day.

God bless you,
Didier Aur, Principal
St. Ann Catholic School

Want To Make a Difference? Invest In a Child.

"He who opens a school door, closes a prison." - Victor Hugo

Have you ever been to prison? I have, several times. It was enough to scare me straight. I wish somehow everyone could experience prison. I think we would view life and our actions a lot differently.

Just to set the record straight, my adult league soccer team used to play the prisoners at the federal penitentiary at Shelby Farms. We had a lot of fun playing soccer but it was scary being on the inside even though I knew that once the game ended, I would be on the outside. I felt just like Boov did in the movie Home: "Can I come in to the out now?" Those games versus the prisoners confirmed in me that I was going to be a law abiding citizen and toe the line. I want to do as much good as I possibly can in my community. I don't want anybody going to prison.

I'm not going to quote studies and statistics about the correlation between a education and prison.  I'm just going to quote Victor Hugo again. "He who opens a school door, closes a prison."

Have you ever opened a school? I have and it was the best thing I have done professionally. It was second to none. Wish I could open a school every year. That would be my dream job; traveling around the country opening schools. Now, that's a life well lived. Since that isn't going to happen, I plan to stay right here in Memphis and do the best I can to keep the Jubilee Schools open.

Why am I staying in Memphis to help the Jubilee Schools? Memphis needs me just like it needs you! If you are reading this blog right now, we need your help. I love this city, and Memphis needs more people working to develop and promote excellence in education.

I'm sick and tired of the violence. We cannot watch the news without hearing about another senseless murder. Do you realize how many people were shot in the Mid-South this past weekend from Harbor Town to Southaven to Millington to Fox Meadows? Our neighborhoods are filled with the blue light police cameras. I hate that we need to have them but we need to have them. The busiest people in the city are our men and women in blue. If we give ALL our children an EXCELLENT education, our police officers can slow down and catch their breath.

If education leads to a drop in crime, we should be investing all the money we possibly can in education!

We need every single person in this city investing in education, and I'm not talking about just paying taxes. We need to go above and beyond the tax thing and fully fund every public, charter, private, and religious school in this city to ensure ALL children receive an EXCELLENT education.

As the development director for the Jubilee Schools, my job is to help as many people as possible invest in the children of the Jubilee Schools. The more people invest in the schools, the fewer prisons we need. The more people invest in the schools, the more jobs will come to Memphis. The more people invest in the schools, the better our community becomes.

At the Jubilee Schools, we are always coming up with ways to get people involved and investing in the children. There is no secret to this. You invest in a child and a child succeeds. Invest in a child and prison becomes a non-factor. Don't invest in a child, might as well open another prison.

We have a plethora of ways you can invest in the life of a child to ensure they receive the education necessary to succeed in life.

#GivingTuesday, #Jubileeis4me
http://jubileeschools.org/givingtuesday
Jubilee Schools serve over 1,500 students across nine schools located in urban Memphis areas by supplying low-income students with significant need-based scholarships. This year our goal is to meet the needs of the areas we serve by expanding enrollment capacity; minimizing wait lists and incorporating modern classroom technology to ensure the Jubilee schools have a bright future serving the Memphis community.

10x10 Challenge
http://jubileeschools.org/10x10
It’s time for Jubilee’s second ever 10x10 Challenge. This challenge is for all members of the Jubilee family: faculty, staff, friends, and families! Participating is easy, and prizes will be awarded to the top performing teacher and school. When you invest via the 10x10 Challenge, select a teacher and school you would like to honor.

Jubilee Christmas Card- On Sale Now
http://jubileeschools.org/christmas
When you purchase these Christmas cards designed by our students, you are supporting a child at one of the nine Jubilee Catholic Schools in the Memphis area.

Back to School Appeal
http://jubileeschools.org/invest
The unique mission of the Jubilee Catholic Schools opens doors to students who would not otherwise have the opportunity for a quality faith-based education. If you believe all children have value, unique gifts, and the right to a quality, faith-based education... If you believe in helping those that have less than others... If you believe in Memphis then we invite you to join us.

Blue Streak 1,000 Club
https://bluestreakmemphis.net/1000-club
Make a difference in a child's life by partnering with BlueStreak Scholarship Fund today. The purpose of the 1K Club is to grow our membership and encourage long term annual support and recurring giving throughout donor base. By partnering with Blue Streak, we can continue to provide a Catholic education to Memphis families most in financial need.

If you would like to discuss other ways to help, please feel free to contact me at didier.aur@jso.cdom.org or 901-373-1226

Together, let's make a difference in the life of a child.

God bless you,
Didier Aur
http://didieraur.blogspot.com/
https://twitter.com/didieraur

Change Your Stars!

We can all recite lines from our favorite movies years after we first watch them. From Moonstruck's "I'll come to your funeral in a red dress" to Caddy Shack's "See your future. Be your future." to Forest Gump's "Sometimes, I guess there just aren't enough rocks," we can all remember movie lines.  One line in particular from the movie A Knight's Tale has stuck with me because I see parents live this line every day. The line is "Change your stars and live a better life than I have." In the movie, this advice comes from a father wanting something better for his son. "Change your stars."

I have seen this line play-out in real life so many times; parents wanting better for their children. To make certain their children's education is a top priority, so many of our Jubilee parents struggle and sacrifice to help their children. It is a common recurring theme, parents doing all they can to change their children's stars.

Matthew Kelly once said, “We become the stories we listen to.” I hope you become part of this story.

The White Family

This Jubilee story began in 2003 when Mr. & Mrs. White were introduced to the Jubilee Schools. The Whites wanted a better life for their three children, and were willing to sacrifice everything to make sure DeWayne, Jeanne, and Jennifer changed their stars. They wanted a better life for their children and believed enrolling all three in Jubilee Schools would make the difference they wanted to see.

I first met this wonderful family when I was principal of Holy Names Catholic School in North Memphis. The Whites knew their children needed extra academic help they were not receiving in their local school. They heard about the Jubilee Schools from a relative, and paid a visit to Holy Names and Little Flower to learn more about the Jubilee Schools. It was not long before DeWayne, Jeanne, and Jennifer were enrolled in Jubilee Schools.

The Whites are not Catholic, but they knew in their hearts that Catholic education was the best option for their children. Even though they lived in the Westwood neighborhood in South Memphis, they enrolled DeWayne and Jeanne at Holy Names and Jennifer at Little Flower because she was not yet old enough to attend Holy Names. Back then, Mrs. White worked near Holy Names.

All three children quickly experienced success at the Jubilee Schools and their Jubilee Scholarship helped pay for part of their education from elementary through high school graduation. Mr. & Mrs. White were extremely happy with the Jubilee Schools and the Catholic School system, and were willing to work extra hours to be able to keep their children in the schools.

DeWayne White

DeWayne excelled at Holy Names. He was part of the first graduating class, and was hand-picked as one of ten Holy Names students to spend a week at Switchback Ranch in Roscoe, Montana. This is his greatest memory from Holy Names. It is one of mine as well. He attended Bishop Byrne and graduated in 2010. DeWayne didn’t intend to go to college. So, he started working at Dollar General and then moved over to Target where he has worked for four years.  He is a new employee trainer. He changed his mind about college when he discovered that with a college degree, he can move into a managerial position. He enrolled in college and is now on track to graduate from Lemoyne-Owen in 2018 with a Bachelor's of Business Administration in Management.

Jeanne White

Jeanne also graduated from Holy Names and followed her brother to Bishop Byrne. She was nervous about attending Holy Names but soon came to love it. One aspect of Holy Names she enjoyed was all the children were treated the same.  She graduated from Bishop Byrne in 2012 and attends Lemoyne-Owen. She is scheduled to graduate this December with a Bachelor’s of Business Administration in Finance. Lemoyne-Owen requires their business majors to intern at a local business. Jeanne’s internship was at AIL Logistics Solutions. She is ready to graduate and move into the next phase of her life with college diploma in-hand.

Jennifer's path to high school graduation was very different from

Jennifer White

her siblings. She first attended Little Flower for 1st and 2nd grade and then Holy Names. After the 5th grade, her mother's job changed so she no longer worked near Holy Names. Jennifer transferred to St. Augustine for her 6th grade year. She then attended Bishop Byrne until the school was closed. She attended Memphis Catholic her senior year and graduated in 2015. Jennifer’s one year of internship at Memphis Catholic was at American Residential Services. In Jennifer's words, she "loved the internship at ARS." She is currently a junior at Lemoyne-Owen and studying early childhood education. Jennifer is scheduled to graduate in May of 2019. Through Lemoyne-Owen, Jennifer has interned at UC-Riverside working on the business side of education. Even though she is not Catholic, Jennifer participated in the March for Life in Washington. Because of her excellent conduct at Bishop Byrne, an anonymous donor funded her trip to Washington.

For Mr. & Mrs. White, the education their children received exceeded their expectations so much so that their relatives followed suit and started sending their children to the Jubilee Schools and Bishop Byrne.

Brandi Flynn, a cousin, enrolled at Holy Names. Brandi graduated from Holy Names and Bishop Byrne. She is also at Lemoyne-Owen and is studying early childhood education. Several of their relatives also attended St. Augustine and Bishop Byrne.

DeWayne, Jeanne, & Jennifer

DeWayne, Jeanne, and Jennifer work while going to college. Their parents paid for their Jubilee and Catholic education, but the children are responsible for paying for their college education. Three children, three Jubilee scholars, and three soon-to-be college graduates. "Change your stars and live a better life than I have."

When asked where they will one day send their own children to school, all three without hesitation and with a smile said, "We will send our children to Catholic Schools." Now that needs to be a line in a movie.

To support the Jubilee Schools, please click here! Please consider being a Jubilee sponsor and support our work in helping to change the stars of Jubilee students. Thank you.

God bless you,
Didier Aur

Are You a Philanthropist?

"A philanthropist transforms the social wellbeing of others through generosity." - McCabe Callahan

Finding the philanthropists who want to transform the social wellbeing of our students in the Jubilee Schools is our goal.  These are the folks who are going to make the difference needed to change lives by providing our students with the opportunity for hope and success.

The current development team for the Jubilee Schools has been in place for less than eleven months. We are searching our way through the development process and in many cases starting from scratch. We have experienced many successes and I want to focus on one of these successes.

We, as a development team, were asked by the Jubilee Schools board of directors to meet several objectives with one major objective being to increase the number of new philanthropists to the Jubilee Schools. They gave us no specific number mainly because there was no real data to go by in setting a number.

We began the process by first cleaning up the database. If a person in our database never contributed to the schools or participated in any activities, they were removed from the database. We then worked to update contact information for the folks in our database to make sure they would be receiving communications from the Jubilee Schools office.

This was a long and tedious process that removed about 2/3 of the names from our database. We want philanthropists and volunteers in our database who are engaged in our mission and not a bunch of names of important people who aren't a part of our Jubilee School mission.

The next task was to set a goal for the number of new philanthropists to the Jubilee Schools. We still didn't have a formula to use so we set an arbitrary goal of bringing in 500 new philanthropists. We had no idea if this was achievable so we set a plan to get this done. We have to have a plan in order to achieve a goal.

The most important part of actually doing development work is to create engagement. To create engagement, we developed first time events and organizations such as the Wings of Jubilee, Tails of Jubilee, Blue Streak 1,000 Club, and Memphis Catholic Alumni Association. We asked the Memphis Catholic Hall of Fame to become more involved with the school. Blue Streak created CatholicTree.org to help the Jubilee Schools raise funds for non-budgeted items such as SMARTBoards, iPad charging carts, and even a new flag pole for Memphis Catholic. This week we will have our first ever End of the Year Bash at Neil's Music Room.

We also created the Jubilee Employee 10x10 Challenge to encourage new philanthropists to join our efforts. In the 10x10 challenge, we asked all Jubilee School employees to donate a minimum of $10 and/or pray one decade of the Rosary (10 Holy Marys) for the schools and ask 10 other people to do the same.

Between the Jubilee Schools and Blue Streak, we are currently at 450 new philanthropists on our way to hopefully reaching our goal of 500.

Part of the plan is not for a one time donation but for our philanthropists to become recurring donors. If we receive one time donations, that is nice but it doesn't transform the social wellbeing of our students. The idea of transformation takes place over time and with a lot of dedication. It doesn't happen overnight. We need the philanthropists to join and help lead our team. These folks are leaders and we need their commitment and ability to make a positive difference.

We are creating engagement so we can bring people on board to support our mission. From there the transformation can take place.

We could sure use your help in transforming the social wellbeing of our students. If you are interested in being a part of the transformation, please feel free to contact me. There are many ways you can help. Let your philanthropic heart and desire to transform the social wellbeing of the Jubilee students lead you to be the change you want to see in the world.

God bless you,

Didier Aur

Measuring Success: Class of 2017

"Coming together is the beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success."

This post is dedicated to the Memphis Catholic Class of 2017 and the faculty and staff members I have had the pleasure and privilege of working with over the past two years. (#1 below is a list of successes achieved by the Class of '17)

Memphis Catholic Class of 2017

Henry Ford said that, "Coming together is the beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success." Success is no accident and there is no secret to success. Success happens when you put your mind, heart, body, and soul into your actions no matter how great or small. It is the result of preparation and hard work. And, success isn't achieved in a vacuum. It takes teamwork.

Administrators, teachers, and staff members work together at Memphis Catholic to educate the nearly 270 students in grades 7-12. These educators have earned a combined 44 degrees from 18 different colleges/universities with 13 educators having earned a master's degree or higher. 13 of these degrees have been earned at the University of Memphis and 10 from Notre Dame. (#2 below is a list of colleges/universities the members of the Class of '17 will be attending)

The reason for the previous paragraph to say these educators came together from everywhere to teach at Memphis Catholic. "Coming together is the beginning."

Principal Kevin Kimberly is one fantastic leader. Is he a taskmaster? Does he expect excellence from his staff and students? Is he intelligent? Is he a no excuse and no nonsense person? Is Memphis Catholic better because he is the leader? Does he love his team and students? And, does all this pave the way to student success? The answer to all these questions is resounding YES! He holds the parents to the same standards as the students and his staff. No one gets a free-pass with Mr. Kimberly. You earn everything you get. He is the leader of the school and he leads from the front. He makes sure that everyone and everything stays together and moves forward. "Keeping together is progress."

Working together is the culture that has been created at Memphis Catholic. Our high schoolers learn to work together through the Education that Works (ETW) program. Even though we are not a Cristo Rey school, we follow their model in that all our high schoolers have an internship. After four years of high school at Memphis Catholic, our graduates will have had four-years of internships (#3 below is a list of all the ETW sponsors). Our students work in some of the top businesses in Memphis. They learn the importance of working as a team. And, they learn at a young age what it takes to succeed in the business world. They work with highly educated and motivated mentors. They know it takes hard work and teamwork to succeed and they aren't afraid of success. "Working together is success."

Is there one reason more than any other the students of Memphis Catholic are succeeding? Yes, there is one reason and it is that the school is Catholic! We are a school of faith. We educate our students because we are Catholic/Christians! We believe God loves us and our schools are here for a reason. We believe that Jesus Christ suffered and died for our sins.

Jesus said in order to inherit eternal life, "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" (Luke 10:27) This is what we do in mind, body, heart, and soul.

Our community is very diverse with students coming from 35 zip codes in the Memphis metropolitan area and 9 different countries. The majority of our students are African-American (58%) with 26% Hispanic/Latino, 7% Caucasian, 5% African, 4% multi-racial, and 1% Asian. Many of our families are either one-parent families or encounter significant financial hardship, or both, but the goal of this school is to provide a Catholic education for students who otherwise wouldn't be able to afford it.

The successes achieved by the  Class of 2017 are outstanding and it mirrors the successes of the Class of 2016. The culture has been created and the wheels are in motion to ensure continued success.

Thank you to everyone who plays a part in helping our students succeed from donors to the faculty and staff to the parents to the students to the volunteers to those who pray for us. Thank you.

1. Statistics from the Class of 2017:
35 Seniors
100% graduation rate
100% 4-year college acceptance rate
100% college attendance rate
67 unique colleges
$3.54 million in scholarships
19 Tennessee Hope Scholarships recipients
28 Attended Memphis Catholic H.S. all 4-years
7 attended Memphis Catholic for 6-years
13 National Honor Society members

2. Colleges attending:
10- University of Memphis
4- Southwest Tennessee College
3- Christian Brothers University
3- Philander Smith College
2- Mississippi Valley State University
2- University of Mississippi
1- Austin Peay State University
1- Carson-Newman University
1- Cumberland University
1- Fisher College
1- Freed-Hardeman University
1- Kentucky Christian University
1- Lane College
1- Maryville University
1- Spalding University
1- University of Oklahoma
1- Voorhees College

#3. Education That Works Sponsors
A to Z Construction Services
Adams Keegan
ALSAC
American Residential Services
AutoZone
Baptist Memorial Health Care
Cargill Cotton
Cloverleaf Animal Hospital
FedEx Express
Gerber Taylor
Greystone Servicing Corporation
Interactive Solutions
Kroger
Landmark Community Bank
Le Bonheur
MLG&W
Monogram Foods
nexAir
Pediatric Dental Group
ReTrans
Rhodes College
Southern Eye Associates
St. Paul Gift Store
RGT Management
Southeastern Asset Management
The Day Foundation
Thomas & Betts
Wharton Charitable Trust
Plus 10 Family and Individual Sponsorships

If you would like to join our list of sponsors for Education That Works, please contact me. You will be helping to make a positive difference in the lives of our students.

God bless you,
Didier Aur