Catechist Recertification Requirements
Catholic School Teachers – Click here for the recertification guidelines. For questions on extensions, exemptions, or exceptions, please contact your principal or the Catholic School Office. Applications received within a month of due date will be processed, those received after that (June 1st) will be sent back for Principal/Superintendent approval.
Hours: 24 hours of continuing education are needed every three years for Diocesan Catechist Recertification. 8 additional hours of continuing education must be submitted for every year your certification lapses. If your certification lapses for a full cycle (3 years) you are required to retake the full series.
Areas of Formation: Topics for recertification MUST be taken from one of the following areas. The areas for recertification are intended to be a deepening of the themes presented in Catechist Certification:
- Divine Revelation, Scripture, and Christian Philosophy
- Old Testament
- New Testament
- Principles of Evangelization and Catechesis
- Catechetical Methods
- Liturgy and Sacraments
- Theology of the Body
- Morality
- Catholic Social Teaching
- Prayer
Approved recertification formation opportunities in the Diocese of Phoenix: Recertification hours can be accepted from the following local institutions/programs:
- Adult Faith Formation and Parish Leadership courses offered by Kino Catechetical Institute.
- Workshops and Conferences offered by Kino Catechetical Institute.
- Retreats and workshops led by priests, deacons, as well as Diocesan certified catechist trainers and master catechists, of the Diocese of Phoenix. A maximum of 6 retreat hours every 3 years.
- Catechetical workshops provided by the Catholic Schools Office of the Diocese of Phoenix.
- Any workshop through Franciscan At Home franciscanathome.com Each workshop is 4 hours. We do require typed up notes or an email confirmation that you have completed the workshop.
- Classes, both live and online (for online classes, typed up notes will need to be submitted), of the St. Thomas the Apostle Institute of Catholic Theology, www.ictphx.org
- St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology https://stpaulcenter.com/
- Discipline with Purpose training workshops and Meditation with Children do not count toward recertification.
- An annual retreat/renewal experience is recommended and can count towards the 24 hours of continuing education. A maximum of 6 hours within a 3-year period will be accepted toward recertification.
- Safe Environment training courses cannot be used towards catechist recertification hours.
- Curriculum/School accreditation courses do not count towards catechist recertification.
Other Formation Opportunities: Other formation opportunities, both inside and outside of the Diocese of Phoenix, can be used for catechist recertification as long as the topic of the formation is in one of the areas listed above and the presenter is either:
- A priest or deacon in good standing with his local bishop.
- Meets the qualifications of a certified catechist trainer in the Diocese of Phoenix. These qualifications are listed at or www.kinoinstitute.org under ‘Catechist Formation’.
For Parish Missions, please contact Kino Catechetical Institute for more information.
For questions on whether specific formation can be applied to catechist recertification, please email Kino Catechetical Institute at kinoinstitute@dphx.org.
Acceptance of Online Formation: Credit will be granted for online courses only if a typed copy of the participant’s notes for each individual session/class is attached to this form. These notes must include the following:
- Name/instructor/date of the Class/Workshop.
- A one sentence summary of the Class/Workshop.
- Your notes from the Class/Workshop.
- One to two points of application for your catechetical work that you take away from the Class/Workshop.
Catechist Recertification Requirements
Catechist Recertification Application PDF
Catechist Recertification Application WORD