Pius XI Catholic High School views its student population’s diversity as a microcosm of the city of Milwaukee. (Submitted photo)
In a sense, to experience Catholicism is to experience diversity.
The 2022 Statistical Yearbook of the Church, published by the Vatican, estimates the number of Catholics worldwide to be 1.39 billion. Increasingly large percentages of that number hail from Africa, the Americas and Asia. According to numbers released in 2013 by the Pew Research Center, Latin America and the Caribbean are called home by the largest share of Catholics (39 percent), with sub-Saharan Africa claiming 16 percent.
“Do not be afraid of differences,” counseled Pope Francis in 2014 as he addressed a group of Catholic charismatics at the Vatican. “(Unity in diversity) means knowing how to listen, to accept differences, and having the freedom to think differently and express oneself with complete respect towards the other who is my brother or sister.”
It’s a philosophy that is embraced by many Catholic high schools throughout the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, who serve a student population diverse in race, socioeconomic background and geographic location.
At Dominican High School, diversity has “just become part of who we are,” said principal Vinnie Murray.
Currently Dominican has 315 students; throughout the years, it has been pretty consistent that the student body is between 40 and 50 percent Caucasian and 45 percent Black, Hispanic and Native American. But “diversity is not just race here,” added Murray. Those students hail from more than 75 different feeder schools, of which 44 percent are Catholic, 41 percent are private, charter or Christian schools, and 15 percent are public. These students reside as far north as Port Washington, as far west as Menomonee Falls and as far south as Milwaukee’s south side. Close to a third of the students are participating in one of the statewide choice programs.
Cultivating a diverse student body was a priority of the founding Sinsinawa Dominicans as far back as the 1970s, said Murray, and it was a strategy that worked so well that today it’s less intentional and more organic.
“Most of our students, no matter their background, ultimately choose Dominican because they believe in our mission. They want an excellent education,” he said. “They love the diversity, but they choose us because we’re Catholic and we’re a college prep.”
In fact, diversity at Dominican is, in a way, part of the college prep program. Dominican wants to raise up leaders for the next generation, said Murray — and that world includes people of all races and identities.
“I think for any organization, diversity is an asset, but especially in Catholic schools, diversity is really about highlighting the uniqueness of each student,” he said. “In our Catholic faith, it promotes solidarity and acceptance of the value of every person. We live in a very diverse world, and as educators here at Dominican, we’re committed to preparing our students for that world.”
“We are teaching our students to be active participants in a global community, providing the experience of working alongside people who have similar lived experiences and those that don’t,” agreed Ryan Krienke, Principal of Pius XI Catholic High School in Milwaukee.
The practical skills that come from living and learning alongside people who have a different background “cannot be understated,” Krienke said, describing Pius XI as “an incubator for understanding and collaboration.”
“Pius XI is a microcosm of what we want the city of Milwaukee and the surrounding areas to be — a larger community where people from all different backgrounds come together to work together, learn, grow, achieve and form lasting relationships.”
Pius XI’s student population is about 36 percent Black, 23 percent Caucasian, 22 percent Hispanic, 13 percent multicultural, 3 percent Asian American/Pacific Islander and 1 percent Native American. A little less than half come from families whose economic situation would be considered disadvantaged. Those students hail from 60 zip codes and more than 100 feeder schools, said Krienke.
Like Dominican, diversity is not necessarily an intentional goal of Pius XI’s recruiting efforts, said Krienke, but rather a blessing that has manifested organically through the years — much like that of the Catholic Church.
“What is awesome about the diversity Pius XI has is that it is really symbolic of the Catholic faith and Church across the world,” he said. “The Catholic Church exists and has followers across the world, but also in almost every neighborhood across the country. Catholicism does not identify with a race, socioeconomic status or nationality. The Catholic Church is a universal Church and Pius XI represents that in a really unique way.”
