We come together this year for the second time meeting in conjunction with Catholic Press Association members. This has been a benefit for about half of our attendees who are members are both the Catholic Academy and the CPA. It has also been something of a challenge for us to communicate our programming among the larger number of CPA-oriented offerings. The two organizations are continuing to explore the benefits and the challenges of meeting together.

As it is in many dioceses and Catholic organizations, this continues to be time of challenges for the Catholic Academy. Last spring you elected a new Board and officers, who hit the ground running. And, a result of a Board willing to roll up their sleeves and engage in planning we were feeling quite confident about our attempt to make sure the Catholic Academy is a relevant, meaningful association fulfilling its mission in the Church.

As I’m sure you know, any planning exercise leads you to look at what the business world likes to call “core competencies”. This is the area the Board is focusing on right now.  As you will see in the financial report, finances is one area of challenge for us. Given the cutbacks in communication-related functions in dioceses and organizations, membership is another area of concern. We have to be able to articulate – and provide – practical services for our members and forward the communications mission of the Church.

Some of the areas of hope we have seen in the past year

§         A number of helpful exchanges during Web chats

§         A joint Vision 2010 committee made up of Academy and CPA members looking at ways the two associations can collaborate

§         The addition of the Catholic Communicators of Southern California as an organizational affiliate member

§         Last November, Catholic Academy delegates participated in the SIGNIS Assembly on the theme of Media as a Culture of Peace. This document has become a part of our website and the sessions on production, radio, media education, and internet will provide benefits to the Academy through workshop ideas and potential white papers.

§         A special Gabriel Award ceremony in conjunction with the USCCB’s professional day in September 2005. This year on October 20, the Gabriel Awards will be held in conjunction with the City of Angels Film Festival in Los Angeles.

§         Grants to help support a special Gabriel Award given in Archbishop John Foley’s name.

One of our disappointments in this year was the withdrawal of the matching grant from Mr. John Herklotz for the Archbishop John Foley Endowment Fund for Catholic Communications. As you know, we had pledges of more than $130,000 toward the $150,000 matching grant. However, we did not reach the matching amount in the time provided and the grant was withdrawn. We appreciate all of your efforts in trying to help us reach this goal. In the process, we learned a great deal.

It is good to remember that the Catholic Academy is only four years old – four years since the merger of Unda-USA and Cine and Media. There is still a lot of growth ahead of us.  I am buoyed by your participation in this meeting and in the Catholic Academy. And, I am unceasingly grateful for the people who make up Academy. I especially want to thank Sue West in our national office, who is for so many of us the daily “face” of the Academy. She is an incredibly committed and competent part of the Academy.

I also want to raise up in this report a special congratulations to EWTN Global Catholic Network, which marks its 25^th anniversary this year. EWTN has been a long-time member of first Unda and now the Catholic Academy and we are grateful for their presence and participation.

Respectfully submitted,

Jeanean D. Merkel

President