‘NCEA 2022’ in N.O. will greet 2,500 attendees

Above: New Orleans threw a mini-parade for attendees of the National Educational Assocation (NCEA) conference the last time the city hosted the event – in 2011. (Clarion Herald file photo by Frank J. Methe)

By BETH DONZE
Clarion Herald

This spring, the Archdiocese of New Orleans will host “NCEA 2022,” the National Catholic Educational Association’s first large-scale, in-person event since the onset of the global pandemic.

An estimated 2,500 Catholic school administrators, teachers, pastors and other education professionals are expected to attend the national gathering, set for April 19-21 at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside.

Keynote presentations, breakout “professional learning” sessions and daily prayer and worship opportunities will focus on all aspects of Catholic education, from preschool through university levels, said Martha Mundine, associate superintendent with the Department of Catholic Education and Faith Formation (DCEFF)  – the archdiocesan entity that is hosting the meeting and assisting the NCEA with conference details such as Masses, entertainment and volunteer staffing.

“If you’re an institutional advancement person, there’s going to be an operational vitality track; there will be tracks on governance and leadership, and on academic excellence,” said Mundine, noting that participants are looking forward to resuming their one-on-one exchanges of ideas with their professional peers and exposure to cutting-edge research, classroom technologies, pedagogy, enrollment-building and fundraising ideas.

“People are hungry to get back together – they’re still nervous, but they want to get back together,” Mundine said. “(The pandemic made many educators) feel like they were on an island. Networking is so important!”

Gathering for ‘watch parties’

For those educational professionals who are unable to travel to New Orleans or who are still leary of assembling in large groups, NCEA 2022 will offer a virtual option in which “watch parties” may be purchased offering “on-demand” access to the keynotes and professional development sessions, Mundine said.

On the meeting’s first day,  April 19, DCEFF Superintendent Dr. RaeNell Houston will welcome attendees in advance of the 9 a.m. opening Mass celebrated by Archbishop Gregory Aymond. The subsequent keynote address will culminate with a New Orleans-style second line led by local Catholic schoolchildren, Mundine said.

Other familiar faces at the conference will include Auxiliary Bishop Fernand Cheri, vicar general for the Archdiocese of New Orleans and the principal celebrant of NCEA 2022’s April 21 closing liturgy at 11:15 a.m. That Mass will feature the “ECHO” choir from the Academy of Our Lady in Marrero. Choirs and musicians from local Catholic elementary, secondary and post-secondary schools will provide entertainment throughout the meeting, and the art of local Catholic school children and teens will grace the conference halls and meeting rooms, Mundine said.

At press time, a preliminary program for NCEA 2022 was available at ncea.org. Among the confirmed presenters are Father Rodney “Tony” Ricard, chaplain/theology department head at St. Augustine High. Father Ricard, the pastor of St. Gabriel the Archangel Church in New Orleans, will deliver the keynote “Have You Seen Him?” –  a talk on finding Christ in the world of academia.

Other listed keynotes are “How to Lead Tech-Obsessed Youth with Empathy,” by Chris McKenna, founder of Protect Young Eyes; and a discussion of how schools can better care for their common home of earth, with an emphasis on how university partnerships can bolster environmentalism in Catholic schools.

New Orleans last hosted the NCEA’s annual conference in 2011 – an assembly of 10,000 professionals held at the Morial Convention Center. Mundine said the NCEA planned a smaller gathering this year due to lingering travel and budgetary restrictions wrought by COVID-19.

“People like to come to New Orleans,” she said. “This is an opportunity to showcase our schools and our culture.”

NCEA 2022 will also concurrently host a special, two-day symposium on blended learning in Catholic schools on April 21-22.

To register for NCEA 2022 and access program updates as details are finalized, visit ncea.org.

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