“We have a great respect for the intellect and belief that an education in the truth leads to both great scholarship and great spirituality. We believe that the teaching of truth reveals God’s creation. Some of the truths are intellectual, and others are spiritual. These truths complement one another, and neither contradict nor conflict with each other.” – The Basilian Network of Education and Evangelization

Becky Dowdy, the Dean of Science at St. Thomas High School, holds strong in her faith while teaching subjects like Chemistry and Earth Science. From her perspective, science and religion have seats at the same educational table.

“When we begin to think about the truth, part of that is moving kids to think about the truth of science,” Dowdy said. “And how science echoes and mimics the truth of the spirituality of God and the creation of everything.”

In the curricula Dowdy teaches and creates, her mission is to draw students closer to the connection between science and faith, emphasizing the importance of both in relationship to each other.

“One of the biggest concerns in the world we live in is that kids believe there is a disconnect between what science tells us and evidence of God,” she said. “Part of what we, here, are trying to do is to move kids to the connection between them.”

To achieve this goal, Dowdy works closely with her fellow science teachers to create coursework that harkens back to Basilian values. In Environmental Science, students learn about climate change and discuss it through the lens of the students’ responsibility to care for God’s creation. In Earth Science, they discuss the connections between the Big Bang, different theories of time, and God.

In her experience, the connection between faith and science is never more evident than when looking at and teaching the Periodic Table.

“The orderliness of it, the amazement in how those elements all come together,” she said. “If the world was truly chaotic, why would that happen? Why would this be so orderly? That is always a key point towards a divine Creator.”

This year, the Science Department is implementing questionnaires and discussions to their lessons, tracking students’ perspectives on the intersection of faith and science before and after the class.

She also collaborates with members of the school’s Theology team to ensure that both subjects are reflecting the values of the other, creating a well-rounded educational experience for each St. Thomas student.

In the future, Dowdy hopes to implement new classes that specifically touch on the intersection of science and faith. A dedicated theology class, taught in tandem with Dowdy and a member of the theology team, is on her list of courses to introduce next.

“When we open this dialogue, it really suits the Basilian education, because it’s staying in tune with what Basilian educators have always done, which is educating the whole child,” she said. “It is vitally important, as Basilian educators, that we identify the misconceptions and the disparity of general knowledge—social media, everything like that—and that we show children the truth.”