Dear PREP Families,

A few changes have been made to the upcoming year that I would like to make known to you at this time. The biggest change is the increase in the total number of hours students will be in formation. The diocese is asking that all parishes have a minimum of 33 hours of instruction. In order to achieve this we have increased the number of classes to 22 for the academic year and also increased the length of the class period by 10 minutes; classes will be from 4:30-6:00 PM.

The other big change is that we are not requiring students and their families to attend Family Catechesis gatherings/events. We will still be offering some throughout the year, around particular liturgical seasons, for those families interested in going deeper in their faith and understanding of theological, sacramental, and liturgical traditions that have shaped the practice of our faith.

Confirmation class is also being returned to Wednesday evenings, but will continue to meet in the Youth Hall. Confirmation will be following the same schedule as the other PREP grades.

Lastly, we will be administering the National ACRE Test to grades 5-8 in the Fall of this coming year. This assessment is to aid us in evaluating the effectiveness of our curriculum and to identify any areas that may require a reworking of the content to help our youth understand the faith better. As many of you are aware many youth stop engaging in the faith or find themselves leaving the Apostolic Church in their 20s. This assessment will shed some light on areas we can be more attentive to help curb this outcome.

If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact me or stop me when you see me around the parish campus. Summer Blessings!

Verso L’alto,

Fr. Jason M. Parzynski

Administrator