Advisory Commission

Notre Dame School Advisory Commission (Catholic School Advisory Commission - CSAC) consists of the pastor, principal, nine members including the P.T.O president, and a rotating faculty representative. The Advisory Commission was established to advise the pastor on the operation of Notre Dame School, and is subject to such regulations that might proceed from the Diocese of Sacramento at the Catholic School Department. The Commission meets monthly and meetings are open. Please refer to the school calendar for meeting times. Individuals wishing to have an item placed on the agenda may do so by contacting the principal or Commission president two weeks before the meeting.

1. Mission Effectiveness

The purpose of this committee is to support the principal and pastor in examining how well the school carries out its mission to be a Catholic School. Members are encouraged to help evaluate the Catholic Identity of the school and offer support to the principal on how the school community can maintain and strengthen the school’s Catholicity and standards for excellence.

• Educate & Evangelize - Foundational document review (Mission, Vision, Philosophy, Profile of the Grad at Graduation)
• Communication and Brand Management
• Education in Virtue program
• SLEs
• Accreditation

2. Advancement

The advancement committee assists a strategic and integrated approach to advancing the mission of our school, especially with a focus on revenue generation not tied to, as follows:

• Operations
• Constituent Relations
• Prospect Research
• Stewardship
• Major Gifts
• Capital Campaign
• Planned Giving
• Special Events

3. Facilities/Safety

The facilities/safety committee develops and monitors long-term facility needs and maintenance to ensure a safe, effective environment for learning. Areas of focus include:

• Aesthetics
• Structural Concerns
• Deferred Maintenance
• Safety and security
• Site Utility
• Efficiency

4. Enrollment Management

The purpose of this committee is to support healthy and growing student enrollment at the school, including help promote the brand and image of the school to the greater community. This committee will utilize the Diocese of Sacramento Communication Plan as a resource to assist with effective and timely communication to various stakeholders. Members can work closely with the principal to ensure that the school participates in various community events in order to help support the enrollment/ recruitment goals. The committee can also play a role in providing testimonials about the importance and benefits of the school and serve as a school “ambassador” in the community. Focus areas include:

• Branding
• General and Targeted Marketing
• Recruitment
• Application
• Acceptance
• Enrollment
• Retention

5. Parent and Volunteer Engagement

The purpose of this committee is to support the principal in ensuring that parents are engaged in various volunteer and programmatic opportunities at the school. Ideally, a Parent Club Officer should be part of this committee. The committee would also be responsible in ensuring that the preschool or TK, and the k-8 school, are integrated in various activities so that the school looks like a continuous preschool-8 system.

Strategic Planning: The strategic planning committee assists the administration in authoring a 3 to 5-year strategic plan for each of the other committee areas. Duties:

• Assists the school administration in establishing long-range strategic goals, based on an appropriate assessment and analysis in light of the school’s mission statement and annual assumptions
• Creating systems for monitoring and updating the progress of the strategic plan (goals and objectives)