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Author: Inner-City Education Fails Without the Church

In an article published on the Acton Institute website, research fellow Dr. Anthony Bradley insists that inner-city education is lost without the participation of local churches. Dr. Bradley says the U.S. Department of Education suffers from what he describes as “organizational narcissism,” basically a preoccupation with their own achievements and image, and worse, a forgetfulness that the support of inner-city churches “is the most consistent predictor of academic success for inner-city children” Dr. Bradley quotes several studies showing the benefits of religion-oriented socialization and the participation in education by local churches, who are familiar with working with whole families and are “effective at sustaining and encouraging parental educational involvement.” One study even showed that the “black/white achievement gap was eliminated” for students who attend religious services often during their school years. Dr. Bradley ends the article boldly: “Low-income black kids will not achieve academic success without strong families and the church…if (as President Barack Obama says) parents need to be involved in a child’s education from day one, in the inner-city the church must be involved beginning on day two. Without thriving and healthy inner-city churches, low-performing schools are simply cultivating the next generation of crime and welfare statistics.”

Inner-city church pastors and leaders: Please comment on Dr. Bradley’s thoughts and share about the programs that are working in the inner-cities. What do you see in the interaction between the church and inner-city schools? What are the issues in the relationship? What are the benefits?