“When these more recent figures are added to those of the past several decades, they paint a shocking portrait of decline. In 50 years, the number of Catholic schools has dropped by nearly 5,800, more than all the elementary public schools operating in the state of California. In the same period, Catholic schools lost more than 3 million students. Where Catholic schools once dominated the private-school sector, claiming nearly 90% of the market, they now represent only one in five nonpublic schools. And of those Catholic schools that remain, only one out of every eight is located in an inner city.” (Smarick,120)