Religious schools in urban centers continue to decline, in part because of competitive pressures from charter schools, says a new report from the National Commission on Faith-Based Schools.
Roman Catholic schools have been hardest hit. Between the 2001-02 and 2009-10 school years, the number of students in Catholic schools fell by nearly 9 percent, according to federal data. The dwindling number of teaching nuns has also been a factor.
Expanding and creating voucher programs could be one way to help sustain faith-based schools, the paper says.
