The New York Archdiocese will close 24 Roman Catholic schools in a cost-saving move. Ten of these schools are in the Hudson Valley, and school administrators say they are figuring out what to do.
The Archdiocese will close 22 elementary schools and two high schools by the end of the school year, with more than 4,000 students affected. Rosalie Fegan is the principal of St. Joseph School in Millbrook, in Dutchess County – one of the schools on the closing list.
Joseph Zwilling is a spokesman for the Archdiocese of New York.
Before the announcement Tuesday of the list of schools that would be closing, there was a list put out in the fall of at-risk schools. Zwilling explains the process.
Paul DeLisio is chairman of the finance committee at St. Joseph School in Kingston, one of the schools on the final list of closures. He says he was surprised when St. Joseph appeared on a list of at-risk of closing schools in the fall.
He says he is confounded by the decision to close St. Joseph, because, he argues, the school has exceeded expectations in relation to such matters as enrollment, finances, and capacity.
He says they have made the superintendent of schools for the Archdiocese of New York aware of this situation regarding the number of students, and that the superintendent will visit Monday. Joseph Zwilling from the Archdiocese says he could not speak to situations pertaining to specific schools. However, he did say:
In Kingston, St. Joseph School’s DeLisio says there is a plan for his school.
And to do that, he says, the cardinal must permit the school to use “Catholic” in the name, and continue to offer low rent on the facilities.
In Millbrook, here’s the plan from St. Joseph’s Rosalie Fegan.
She says not only are the students affected, but faculty and staff will lose their jobs.
The other elementary schools to close in the Hudson Valley include, in Rockland County, St. Peter and St. Augustine; along with five schools in Westchester County. Four other schools that had been targeted will stay open, two of which are in the Hudson Valley - Sacred Heart in Newburgh, in Orange County; and Regina Coeli in Hyde Park, in Dutchess County.