Wanjura To Lead Diocesan Catholic Schools

Amarillo—Christine Wanjura, Superintendent of Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Lubbock and Head of School at Christ the King Cathedral School, Lubbock, is the new Superintendent of Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Amarillo.
 
Wajura replaces Father Robert A. Busch, Ph.D., who stepped down as Superintendent of Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Amarillo after eight years. Wanjura will continue in her current positions in Lubbock. Father Busch will continue in his current assignment as Pastor of St. Ann’s Church, Canyon.
 
“It will require a little bit of coordination, but I am excited to work with fantastic leadership in the Diocese of Amarillo,” she said in a July 24 interview on The West Texas Catholic: The Audio Version, on St. Valentine Catholic Radio.
 
In some ways, Wanjura is another generation participating in Catholic Education.
 
“My extended family—aunts, uncles and grandparents—have all been involved in Catholic Education,” she said. “I tutored at Christ the King and St. Joseph’s Schools in Lubbock when I was going to college. My husband and in-laws all graduated from Christ the King School. Education wasn’t really my plan to begin with. But here it is, 23 years later, and I am still involved in Catholic Schools in Lubbock.”
 
What has Wanjura learned from her previous 23 years of experience as a Catholic educator?
“It has taught me the importance of family, community and working together in a labor of love,” she said. “It definitely requires the commitment of the entire Catholic community, not just the parents who pay the tuition. My goal is really to promote the schools for the entire Catholic region.”
 
In her role as Superintendent, Wanjura said Catholic Schools need to remember the importance of being Catholic.
 
“We need to reclaim our Catholic heritage,” she said. “One of my responsibilities as Superintendent is to carry out the Bishop’s decisions and mission, by forming families of Faith. We need to make our schools affordable, accessible and an option for all people. We need to find a way our schools can support families as the first educators of their children, which is the main goal in Catholic Schools. We also need to identify ways we can support our families in rural areas, to promote opportunities for early childhood programs, after school programs and to connect our families.”
 
What are her goals for her first year in Amarillo?
“I want to get to know the principals, to work and collaborate together,” Wanjura said. “I want to become more familiar with the community and work with our diocesan Catholic Schools.”