ABSTRACT
Catholic schools, part of the American educational landscape since colonial times, are private schools that teach religious doctrine and values along with an academic curriculum. Th roughout most of their long coexistence with public and other private schools, these institutions have carried out their mission while attracting little public notice. In recent decades, however, because of the perception that Catholic schools are educationally eff ective and effi cient in their operations, they have drawn the attention of researchers and policymakers interested in comparing their performance and organization with that of public schools.
