Catholic school teachers, principals learning about students’ cultural traditions

As the calendar turned from October to November, Catholic schools across the archdiocese prepared their “ofrendas,” or altars, to celebrate Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead.

Timed to coincide with All Souls Day on Nov. 2, Day of the Dead is a primarily Mexican tradition in which families remember their loved ones who have died, often by erecting ofrendas decorated with flowers, candles and other items; photographs of their loved ones; and items that remind them of their loved ones, such as favorite foods.

Erika Gallardo, Hispanic engagement and outreach coordinator for the Office of Catholic Schools, said school observances vary from prayer services around the ofrendas to decorating sugar skulls or coloring pictures of the decorated skulls.

“For some of them, it’s almost like a little post-Halloween party,” Gallardo said. “But really, it’s a cultural tradition and connection to their roots and tradition. It’s observed in similar ways in other cultures, too. For example, the Polish go to cemeteries and decorate and light candles. It’s a remembrance ceremony, a way to talk about people who have gone on, who maybe kids will never meet. It’s that opportunity to remember your loved ones.

This year, Catholic school teachers and principals had the opportunity to learn more about traditional Day of the Dead observances through a partnership with Dominican University, funded in part by a grant from the Lilly Endowment.

Dominican is offering a three-part “culturally responsive ministry” pathway as part of the archdiocese’s formation program for teachers. That pathway included a webinar on the Day of the Dead and will go on to offer teachers information about Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. Martin de Porres.

It is an addition to the religion pathways already offered to Catholic school teachers, said Clodagh Weldon, vice president of mission and ministry at Dominican.

Weldon said she proposed the pathway because Dominican has “years of experience and expertise” in the area.

“At Dominican, the lived experiences of our students have taught us that culturally responsive ministry is essential in helping young people thrive in their faith,” Weldon said.

Anthony Suárez-Abraham, an adjunct professor at Dominican, is facilitating the pathway.

“The practices surrounding the Day of the Dead celebrate the sacred quality of all life,” Suárez-Abraham explained in an email “The construction of altars enculturate and situate faith in a particular space and time. Their creation of the ofrendas is an example of ‘convivencia,’ which in Spanish means ‘shared living.’ They represent the kind of hope-filled mutuality educators aspire to in Catholic education.”

Frank Zarate Jr., principal of Our Lady of Charity School in Cicero, said all the school’s teachers are doing the pathway this year to help them understand the cultural traditions of their students, who are about 99% Latino, mostly from Mexican-American families.

“The foundation of education is establishing a constructive and positive teacher-student relationship and connection,” Zarate said. “If you’re not from a Latin culture and you’re teaching at a school such as this one, you should have at least a basic understanding of the cultural traditions of the community.”

What’s more, he said, even Latino students and teachers can always learn more about their own traditions.

“It’s a way for the school to acknowledge that these are the traditions that are reflected in the student body,” Zarate said. “Most of the children — probably not all of them — have some awareness of Day of the Dead, but there’s always room to learn something. We want the children to be more aware of their own backgrounds.”

Our Lady of Charity has a few non-Latino students who also enjoy learning about traditions such as Day of the Dead and the celebration of the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, he added.

“They’re basic traditions, and as someone living in this city and in this country, it’s good to know a little bit about them,” he said.

Our Lady of Charity School has created an ofrenda in the breezeway between the school and the church each of the six years that Zarate has been principal, he said. Students bring in photos and other mementos of their loved ones, and the school adds marigolds — the flowers traditionally used in Day of the Dead celebrations — candles, “papel picado” or cut paper and water and bread.

All 22 of the schools that participate in the Early Childhood Language Intensive Program, which offers young students an opportunity to learn in Spanish, do lessons on the Day of the Dead, and St. Procopius in Pilsen and St. Cletus in La Grange, which offer dual-language instruction in Spanish and English, construct impressive ofrendas, Gallardo said.

But the observance is also popular in schools that have fewer Latino students, she said.

“They’re seeing how there’s crossover between the different cultures and the different traditions,” she said. “At the root of the celebration, you’re remembering someone who has passed on. For us as Catholics, they’re in heaven.”