Press Release
GREEN BAY, Wis. (Mar. 11, 2021) – The Diocese of Green Bay Superintendent of Catholic Schools, Todd Blahnik announced today that applications for the Wisconsin School Choice Program have increased approximately 10-15% over the same time last year.
While many public schools struggled to open this past school year, all Catholic schools in the Diocese of Green Bay opened in September both in-person and with virtual hybrids to accommodate family needs. “It was definitely a roller coaster at first,” said Todd Blahnik. “I think every day for the first few months there were questions. But after Christmas break, we have hardly received any calls. That is a true testament to our teachers and administrators who spent their entire summer creating safety procedures.”
Andrew Mulloy, principal at St. John the Baptist in Green Bay agrees, “Parents have expressed their appreciation for providing in-person education. The key was having a good plan in place before school started. If we did have to quarantine a class, we immediately knew what to do to continue to provide a quality education and have the students return as soon as safely possible. And this has helped increase enrollment for the next school year, we already have waiting lists for many of our grades,” said Mulloy.
With enrollment open for Wisconsin School Choice program, many families are choosing to change schools for the 2021-2022 school year. ”Several of our schools already have as many applications as they had in total School Choice students enrolled last year,” said Blahnik.
The Wisconsin School Choice Program gives parents a voucher for the tuition and educational expenses for the school of their choice. The application runs through April 15, 2021 and information is available from DPI at https://dpi.wi.gov/parental-education-options/choice-programs/student-applications. Parents that would like to find the nearest Catholic school can easily search at https://www.gbdioc.org/general/school-finder-search-page.
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Who we are: As friends and followers of Jesus, the Catholic Diocese of Green Bay is devoted to fostering households and communities of discipleship through the mission and ministry of the Catholic Church. We are missionary disciples striving to lead all people to the Kingdom of God. Established in 1868, the diocese is composed of 324,000 Catholics in 16 counties: Brown, Calumet, Door, Florence, Forest, Kewaunee, Langlade, Manitowoc, Marinette, Menominee, Oconto, Outagamie, Shawano, Waupaca, Waushara and Winnebago.
Contact: Justine Lodl, director of communications, at 920-272-8213 or