SCHENECTADY — St. John the Evangelist School will close in June because of declining enrollment.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany announced the closure in a statement Sunday.
In a letter to parents, Diocesan Superintendent of Schools Sister Mary Jane Herb said the Diocesan School Board reviewed a recommendation from the parish finance committee and the school's principal and board that the anticipated low enrollment for next school year, coupled with the increased financial support needed from the parish, necessitates the need for the school to shut its doors.
About 84 students are enrolled for the 2012-2013 school year, less than half that occupied the school six years ago.
"Despite the sacrifices that parents make to pay tuition and the increased fundraising efforts, the school would need to rely on the increased financial support of the parish. The parish is not able to sustain the increased reliance of the school for financial support," Sister Jane said in the statement.
The diocese said it will work with families to place students at St. Helen, St. Madeleine Sophie or Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons, or any other school, to continue the child's Catholic education.
The decision to close the school was approved by Bishop Howard J. Hubbard following a recommendation from the Diocesan School Board, based on the enrollment numbers and communications from St. John the Evangelist School and Parish.
Schenectady Catholic elementary school to close By Lauren Stanforth Updated 12:38 p.m., Sunday, March 18, 2012
SCHENECTADY — St. John the Evangelist School will close in June because of declining enrollment.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany announced the closure in a statement Sunday.
In a letter to parents, Diocesan Superintendent of Schools Sister Mary Jane Herb said the Diocesan School Board reviewed a recommendation from the parish finance committee and the school's principal and board that the anticipated low enrollment for next school year, coupled with the increased financial support needed from the parish, necessitates the need for the school to shut its doors.
About 84 students are enrolled for the 2012-2013 school year, less than half that occupied the school six years ago..........................>>>>.................>>>>..................Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/loca.....48.php#ixzz1pUVYJH5b
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Homeonwers, who have to foot the bill for rebuilding downtown AND pay the taxes of the downtown millionaires, simply do not have money to pay the tuition.
And others who have perhaps fled the city but continued sending their children there have seen it's no longer a good thing to send their children into the city for schooling.
Something else, did anyone on these boards notice how sparsely attended that Maas was? TV news was there, and before some certain board participant choose to spew babble that the filming was probably done a half hour before Mass started or half hour after it ended--well, it is 100% positive that filming was indeed done during the Mass, someone was doing a reading and the priest was sitting in a chair.
This church used to have 5 Masses on Sunday mornings. Now they have just 2. Family member has photo album from a 50th anniversary some 25 years ago, and the church bulletin is in the album.
This was the biggest parish in the city. And then I'll bet that the church up the road from them on Eastern Ave that closed, and St John the Baptist and Holy Cross, well, three churches within walking distance of St John's which you'd think would have parishoners start going to St John's when their churches closed, but obviously not.
Often when people move out of a city, they often would continue going to their church, but it's obvious that those who filled the pews at 5 Masses on Sundays don't even want to enter the city to go to church---just two Masses and the church is practically empty. But, that's the so-called renaissance.
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Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
Who can live in the city, pay 8k in tax and then send the kids to private school?
"While Foreign Terrorists were plotting to murder and maim using homemade bombs in Boston, Democrap officials in Washington DC, Albany and here were busy watching ME and other law abiding American Citizens who are gun owners and taxpayers, in an effort to blame the nation's lack of security on US so that they could have a political scapegoat."
Quite a lot of the students who attended St John the Evangelist came from neighboring towns and communities -- so trying to blame the demise of the school on the city is completely ridiculous. In fact, most of the Catholic parishes in the city have fairly large numbers of parishioners who live outside the city --- and I know of a number of people who live in the city and choose to attend parishes in the suburbs. People will drive a distance to attend the church that they prefer .. and preferences change over the years.
I would also sharply disagree with the critics who are blaming the bishop or the diocese. The bishop and the diocese do NOT have huge piles of money just laying around. The financial resources to run our local parishes and our diocesan operations COME FROM THE GENEROUS SUPPORT OF THE PEOPLE. The diocese spends tens of thousands of dollars supporting Catholic education by subsidizing local parish schools. Every parish - even those without a school or students in Catholic schools - pays an annual assessment to support these Catholic schools.
While it is certainly sad to see St. John the Evangelist School close, I know for a fact that the pastor and the bishop and many others have worked very hard over the past few years to keep that school open. It did not close due to lack of support by the bishop or the diocese or the many others who struggled so hard to save it.
George Amedore & Christian Klueg for NYS Senate 2016 Pete Vroman for State Assembly 2016[/size][/color]
"For this is what America is all about. It is the uncrossed desert and the unclimbed ridge. It is the star that is not reached and the harvest that is sleeping in the unplowed ground." Lyndon Baines Johnson
Many other dioceses - including mine, are expanding and building new elementary and high schools - the support is phenomenal and attendance is about maxing out, requiring a waiting list, or new building!
Seems like Albany, led by the most detrimental bishop in Albany history, is the one that's got the issues. Hubby paid HOW much to defend himself in the sex scandal (to hire his own private investigator) ? How many priests either killed themselves (ya, right) or got re-assigned under dear sweet hubby. Albany's got enough money to take care of it's own, continuously remodel the cathedral - yet can't promote their own school system - let alone defend the ONLY Catholic Hospital in Schenectady.
Quite a lot of the students who attended St John the Evangelist came from neighboring towns and communities -- so trying to blame the demise of the school on the city is completely ridiculous. In fact, most of the Catholic parishes in the city have fairly large numbers of parishioners who live outside the city --- and I know of a number of people who live in the city and choose to attend parishes in the suburbs. People will drive a distance to attend the church that they prefer .. and preferences change over the years.
I would also sharply disagree with the critics who are blaming the bishop or the diocese. The bishop and the diocese do NOT have huge piles of money just laying around. The financial resources to run our local parishes and our diocesan operations COME FROM THE GENEROUS SUPPORT OF THE PEOPLE. The diocese spends tens of thousands of dollars supporting Catholic education by subsidizing local parish schools. Every parish - even those without a school or students in Catholic schools - pays an annual assessment to support these Catholic schools.
While it is certainly sad to see St. John the Evangelist School close, I know for a fact that the pastor and the bishop and many others have worked very hard over the past few years to keep that school open. It did not close due to lack of support by the bishop or the diocese or the many others who struggled so hard to save it.
Your first paragraph above, I pretty much agree with. Sure, people moved out of the city neighborhoods and out to the suburbs, regardless of reason, yet still generally continued to attend their churches in the cities; I'm sure you can agree that in many cases it was that ethnic/cultural connection. I would think the percentage of city people who go out to the suburbs for church is lower, but yes it does happen.
The annual asessment that you reference however is merely the annual bishop's appeal, and the money is NOT earmarked specifically for Catholic schools, it is used for a wide variety of purposes.
Now here is a question. The story of the closing of St John's talks about the increasing need for the "parish" to subsidize the "school" Gee, is the school separate from the parish and is therefore a burden?
Another thought, DV, your parish once had a school. So it closed some number of years ago, and I'll guess that some of the cost of the school came from the income of the "parish". When St Adalberts school closed, where did the students who had attended there go to school? Did the parents just remove them from Catholic schools education? Or did the parents send them to other Catholic schools in the city? I'm guessing in large part is was the latter. So, if "parish" reseources where being used for the "school," then what happened when the school closed? Did the "parish" just wash their hands so to speak of any spending on Catholic elementary school education? Or did they give money to the other schools, albeit less? To make an example, let's say the "parish" was subsidizing the "school" in an amount of $100,000 per year. When the school closed, did the parish wipe it's hands clean of education costs or did they perhaps give a lesser amount, let's say $40,000 divided up among the remaining Catholic schools in the city?
And before you talk about the "annual assessment" again, that is NOT an "assessment to pay for schools." St John's (the parish) also pays into that assessment and as the largest parish in the city (I think that's still true) they probably have the highest assessment in the city. So, if you claim parishes "pay an annual assessment to the diocese to support those schools," well then, the parishoners of St John's were paying twice, sort of.
So forget talking about the "annual assessment" that is used for many other purposes. I'd like to know if the existing parishes throughout the city which had schools (St Lukes, St Pauls, St Anthony's, St Adalberts, Immedulate Conception, Mt Carmel, St Josephs', St John the Baptist, am I forgetting any, I'm sure I am), did they all just erase that "school subsidy" cost in their budgets or did they choose to create a line in their budgets that said "money to other parishes in the city for continued operation of their respective schools" and DV, I rather think that they all wiped their hands clean.
And you claim that you know for a fact that the pastor there tried hard to keep the school open? I guess you sit on their parish council too? Perhaps you visit him regularly, maybe in the course of your visits to city hall that you have written about). Someone reminded me that St John's used to have some fall festival, with food, rides, games, white elephant sale type stuff. It was three days, I had forgotten about that. Festival I'm sure largely done by volunteers and donations yet it drew attendees I'm certain from not only the school community, but the parish, from Union College across the street, and from the residents of the city. But all the money from that went to the school and the church's current pastor put a stop to that festival. Why? But you claim he worked hard to keep the school open? Let me guess, he held a few of those candy sale fundraisers or the cookie dough or wrapping paper fundraiser sales. Why did the number of students drop from 300 or 400 (depending on source cited) to less than 100?
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Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
OK, I have to say this. I see from the news that parents got a letter on Saturday and it was announced at their Masses on Sunday. Parents were quoted saying that even at a meeting a couple weeks before, that there was not even a clue that a closure would be coming.
I went to the church website, they don't keep it updated, three months into the year and they still say "2012 church bulletins coming soon" and not one is posted? But I see the pastor is also the pastor at St Anthony's. So I looked at that church website.
To read the news stories and see the TV news, you'll notice that their pastor (that DV claims tried oh so hard to keep the school open), did anyone notice that he was not interviewed by the news? Why not? Where was he? He wasn't even at the meeting for parents on Monday night.
Where was he? He fled the country on Sunday!
Very convenient timing, yes?
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Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
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