The issue is poverty; it is a grinding, corrosive poverty. These students living in Newark, NJ live with this feeling of vulnerability because they are so poor. Many come from poverty-scarred homes. That can mean, in some cases, students who literally live out of the family's car. One student was forced with her mother to find shelter beneath a highway overpass after an eviction. Over 200 of our students suffer from hunger during the summer when school breakfasts and lunches are not provided. Even when returning in the Fall, they are not guaranteed having supper in the evening. The Friars believe no child should go to bed or wake up feeling hungry. These kids don’t even get a chance to dream, much less have a dream. But you can help us change that! Any donation, big or small, will help us keep these kids on track to a bright future.
Prepare Our Kids
"I am a person of promise." This statment is recited in classes preparing students for their work assignments. It's a counter message to one that students hear regularly, that minority kids from Newark can't expect to amount to much.
Feed Our Kids
Over 200 of our students suffer from hunger during the summer months when school breakfasts and lunches are not provided. Even when returning in the Fall, they are not guaranteed having supper in the evening.
Educate Our Kids
Once a week, students leave the classrooms and venture off to workplaces in Newark or nearby cities and suburbs. They are paid a stipend that goes to pay for their schooling and, in the process, earn an education about the real world.
Meet Fr. Robert Sandoz, OFM
Father Sandoz, a Franciscan with the Order of Friars Minor, serves as the President of Christ the King Prep in Newark, New Jersey. He has been instrumental in ensuring the success of students throughwork programs with over 44 businesses and organizations located in North Jersey. The work experience not only helps offset a significant portion of a students' tuition, but it also contributes to their maturity and socialization. Along with his experience in education Father Sandoz has been engaged in retreat ministry, parish ministry, urban ministry and various chaplaincy ministries. He has had ministerial experiences in Guatemala, Japan and Zimbabwe.
"The School That Works"
What makes Christ The King a different kind of school? Christ the King is part of the Cristo Rey Network, an innovative, nationwide 34-school educational approach to reach the urban poor with a Catholic high school education. Once a week, students leave the classrooms and venture off to offices and workplaces in downtown Newark, the nearby office park suburbs, or to Manhattan. They are paid a stipend that goes to pay for their schooling and, in the process, earn an education about the real world.
DONATE NOW