Gehlen Catholic School awarded grant for inclusive education

LE MARS, Iowa (KTIV) - A northwest Iowa Catholic school has received a grant for their efforts in making education inclusive to students of all abilities.

Gehlen Catholic School in Le Mars, Iowa is the recipient of a $10,200 grant from the FIRE Foundation of Northwest Iowa to support training from the University of Notre Dame Program for Inclusive Education, also known as PIE. PIE provides a spectrum of learning opportunities to foster the knowledge, skill, and dispositions for inclusive education. This comes after a previous collaboration with the University through the Latino Enrollment Institute, or LEI.

The grant will be put into action beginning in the fall of 2024. The program includes needs-based assessment, on-site professional development, and one-hour virtual faculty session. Gehlen Catholic currently has one special education/resource teacher that serves sixteen students. In the future, Gehlen Catholic hopes to hire a full-time Strategist I special educator for the high school.

FIRE Foundation of Northwest Iowa Board President, Dr. Ryan Allen says, “Gehlen Catholic’s ongoing development in promoting an inclusive culture of learning is truly inspiring. Their efforts today will help prepare our Diocese and all its schools for the challenges and opportunities we will face tomorrow. In its relationship with Notre Dame’s PIE program, Gehlen will grow its expertise and experience in serving all of God’s children. FIRE is so honored to help support these efforts.”

The FIRE foundation’s mission is to champion the inclusion of students with disabilities in Catholic schools by providing educational resources, fundraising, and promoting a culture of belonging.