Director of Religious Education / RE Coordinator

This web page is available as a printable document: Diocese of Fargo Requirements for Religious Education (PDF).

If you are new to the parish position or just need a refresher on the Diocese of Fargo Religious Education Policy this is for you. First we want to say thank you for your willingness to take on this endeavor of passing the faith to our youth.

Parents are the primary educators of the faith for their children, however, the parish programs are a way to partner with them in this task. That is where you come in. The following is some guidance on what is expected from the Diocese and some other resources to help you get going.

Diocese Requirements for Parish Religious Education Program

The Diocese of Fargo has some requirements that are to be followed by all parishes.

First of all, every parish is asked to provide 30 hours total of Religious Education for children and teens per year. This includes events outside of the classroom.

Religious Education Required Textbook Curriculum and Standards

• Bishop Folda has mandated that every parish in the Diocese of Fargo use the same textbook series. He has selected the text Alive in Christ by Our Sunday Visitor for 1-8^th grade. All students who are in a parish program MUST use this text. 7^th and 8^th grade may use the Young Adolescent program which separates the school textbook into seven different chapter books. These may be spread out between 7^th and 8^th grade and even used into 9^th grade. If you incorporate the 7^th and 8^th students into a youth ministry session with the high school students, then they would still need to meet a separate day/ time for catechesis completing the mandated texts. For more information, visit the curriculum page.
• Bishop Folda has also mandated the text Salvation Storybook by Ascension press to be used in 5^th and or 6^th grade. Information can be found on the curriculum page.
• Ordering of the Alive and Christ books should be done each year in May to receive discounts. Contact our OSV rep for orders and other information Katy Maier email: (KMaierosvcom).
• Safe Environment Curriculum: Bishop Aquila, our former bishop, mandated that each parish incorporate Safe Environment training into the curriculum for K-12^th grade. The Diocese of Fargo has selected the Circle of Grace curriculum. These are lessons to be inserted for each grade during the year. There are extra hard copies of the curriculum that can be obtained from the Office of Catechesis. There is also a list of things that need to be done before the RE year starts regarding a safe environment and catechists. Visit the safe environment page for requirements.
• Bishop Folda has also implemented standards for K-8^th grade that students in each grade are expected to reach. These have been correlated to the Alive in Christ text. The standards also include extra activities and craft ideas that are optional. Visit the K-8 Curriculum page.
• You will also notice that each grade for K-8^th has a page with additional activities and resources that catechists may find helpful. Visit the curriculum page.
• Pre K and Kindergarten: The Diocese of Fargo does not have a mandated text for Pre K and Kindergarten. We suggest the use of Allelu from Our Sunday Visitor, but you are able to choose another program that suits your parish. The Allelu program is interactive and highly engaging for young children. Training videos for this program are available from the Office of Catechesis. Visit OSV Allelu web site.

Sacramental Preparation for Reconciliation, Confirmation and First Eucharist

The Diocese of Fargo has a required policy on sacramental preparation for all parishes to follow. The list includes mandated sacramental textbooks for Reconciliation, Confirmation and First Eucharst, as well as, parent meetings, an interview and a sacramental retreat for each sacrament. For a complete list, see the requirements on the Sacramental Preparation page. It is preferable that there are three separate retreats, but for pastoral reasons the Confirmation and First Eucharist can be combined. Also, it is permissible, especially for small parishes, that parents and students can attend the retreats at a neighboring parish. For those parishes who choose to do their own retreat, there is an optional retreat manual available, or call the Office of Catechesis for a printed copy.

Confirmation schedule: The Bishop’s calendar for Confirmations is usually completed by the beginning of the school year. A date will be assigned for your parish and your pastor will have the opportunity to indicate if there are conflicts.  The final schedule is published on the Confirmation page. If you have students at a Catholic School, you should notify the school as to when First Eucharist and Confirmation will take place so teachers are able to get students prepared on time. Please also check out the liturgy planning sheet and manual. You can also find information on recording names in the register and other helpful information on this same web page.

All special situations regarding sacraments should be referred to your pastor as soon as you are aware of them.

Children with Special Needs

Classrooms and methods should be adapted as much as possible to accommodate students with special needs. The Alive in Christ website has included adaptable activities for all the lessons. For students who need a special sacramental program there are preparation kits available from the Office of Catechesis: Visit the Special Needs page.

Recruiting and Training Catechists

One of your biggest jobs is recruiting and training catechists. Sometimes, the recruitment ends up being a desperate plea from the pulpit for catechists in September. However, a better tactic is to start right away. Instead of announcing that parents are responsible for their children’s faith education so therefore they should step up, promote it as “we as a parish have a responsibility to pass on the faith to the next generation. We can partner with families in doing this by volunteering to be a catechist.” Also, you might want to explore some flexible plans. Sometimes people may not want to commit the whole year; although not ideal, a class could have a fall catechist and then a spring catechist. We also recommend two adults in every room if possible. Visit the Diocese of Fargo Institute page for information on Catechetical Sunday.

The Alive in Christ has a platform of extra and very helpful resources for catechists in each grade and chapter. These can be found on the lesson planning page. It would be good for you to become familiar of how the platform works and all that it offers for catechists. Your parish should already have an account; you will need a password. Each catechist should have access to the platform: Visit the Alive in Christ web site.

The Alive in Christ website also includes some training videos. There is a series of introduction videos. One video that I recommend every catechist watch is entitled Sacred Scripture and can be found on the in-service resources page, visit the Alive in Christ web site. It shows what a session looks like using the modified Lectio Divina. Lectio Divina starts off every class, but some people may be unfamiliar with it.

Additional training resources:

• Franciscan at Home: is an on-line training platform for all those in ministry. There are tracks specifically for DREs, Catechists and Youth Ministry. The Diocese of Fargo highly recommends each parish subscribe and promote this training. Visit the Franciscan at Home web site.
• If you are looking for conference opportunities in person, Franciscan University offers conferences for catechists and youth. The main one for catechists is called the Bosco Conference and usually occurs in July each year. Visit the Steubenville Conference web site.
• The Diocese of Fargo Catholic Education and Formation offices also provide opportunities for training in different educational areas. It is important to let us know your e-mail and new job position so that we can make sure you receive communication as to when these occur. Send your info to Mary Hanbury. Include your job title and responsibilities.

You may want to connect with your neighboring parishes who have an RE programs for support and also training opportunities to collaborate together. The Diocese of Fargo is organized into regions called deaneries, visit our deanery page.

Other things to be aware of:

• Each August the office of Catechesis offers a catechists retreat to start off the year. Visit the Diocese of Fargo Catechist Retreat page.
• The Youth Ministry Office offers events year-round (such as rallies for Middle School, High School and World Youth Day). Visit the Youth Ministry page.
• The Diocese of Fargo also give youth the opportunity to attend the annual March for Life in Washington DC. Visit the Diocese of Fargo March for Life page.