The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme in U.S. Catholic High Schools: An Answer to the Church's Call to Global Solidarity

The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme provides an academically challenging curriculum that when combined with moral and religious formation prepares graduates of Catholic secondary schools to succeed in college and to live as Christian citizens in an interconnected global society. Although the financial cost of the program is high, this paper will argue that the adoption of the International Baccalaureate Diploma increases academic rigor at the high school level and serves as an effective marketing tool to attract students to Catholic schools. Using examples from several Catholic high schools, this paper will also examine how the International Baccalaureate can help schools deepen the realization of Catholic identity and provide educators with an ordered, humanities-based curriculum that although secular in origin draws on Catholic intellectual tradition