Diocese of Pittsburgh to close 1 school, merge 10 others

As part of a five-year planning initiative, the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh will close one school and merge 10 others, officials confirmed Saturday.

Holy Redeemer Catholic Elementary School in Ellwood City with close in June because of declining enrollment. Holy Redeemer, which was established in 1945, has 42 students currently enrolled in grades K-6, and 13 students in prekindergarten.

At the same time, 10 schools in the North Hills will merge under the direction of the region’s 32 parishes.

"The purpose of regionalization is first and foremost to benefit our students and to strengthen Catholic education,” Bishop David Zubik, of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, wrote in a letter to parishioners and parents. "This new, regional form of school governance seeks to address concerns voiced by our pastors and parishioners, many parents among them, regarding the financial pressure on parishes that currently sponsor individual schools."

Before making his decisions, Zubik and his representatives consulted with the pastors and lay leaders of the parishes that currently sponsor schools, as well as principals, teachers and school parents, according to a news release from the diocese.

"It’s far better for us to take a move like that than to see one school after another close," Zubik said.

Three groups of schools formed task forces to consider options and survey parents, the news release stated. Zubik approved all of the task force recommendations:

• St. Alexis and St. Alphonsus schools in Wexford will merge to form a new elementary school with two campuses. Pre-K classes will be held at St. Alexis and grades K-8 will be located at St. Alphonsus.
  
• St. Bonaventure School in Shaler Township, St. Ursula School in Allison Park, and St. Mary of the Assumption School in Glenshaw will merge to form a new school with two campuses.  Pre-K classes will be held at St. Bonaventure and grades K-8 will be located at St. Mary of the Assumption. The St. Ursula school building will close in June.
  
• St. Sebastian School in Ross Township and St. Teresa of Avila School in Perrysville will merge to form a new school with two campuses. Pre-K and kindergarten classes will be held at St. Teresa of Avila and grades 1-8 will be located at St. Sebastian. While the K-8 model is the parent-preferred model in the North Hills schools, the recommendation of Pre-K and kindergarten at the Saint Teresa site was, in fact, reflective of that particular task force.
  
• Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary School in Bellevue and Northside Catholic School in Brighton Heights will develop strategic plans for the 2017-18 academic year. No changes are planned at this time.
  
• St. James School in Sewickley and Christ the Divine Teacher Catholic Academy in Aspinwall are not scheduled for reconfiguration and will operate under the same regional governance structure as the eight schools listed above.

While the churches will support the schools, the nonprofit corporation North Hills Regional Catholic Elementary Schools Inc. will provide administration and oversight.

"I do believe that you have to move forward and go with the times and times are changing and you do what you do to grow and stay alive," Zubik said.

NHRCES will operate under the leadership of a board consisting of five pastors and four lay persons, the diocese said.  The board has appointed a regional administrator, Michael C. Killmeyer, to oversee all elementary schools in the region. Each school will have a principal who will work under the direction of the regional administrator.

"Regionalization is intended to reinforce Catholic schools' identity and mission; reallocate resources to enhance academic excellence and stabilize tuition and enrollment; and enable greater collaboration in curriculum, technology, professional development, athletics and fundraising," the news release stated.

St. Sebastian parishoner Sharon Rombach said she hopes the merger doesn't impact the quality of education.

"A lot of people just can afford the tuition, said Rombach, whose children attended St. Sebastian. "But I'd be hoping that maybe by some miracle that they can continue to keep most of the schools open."

The names of the new schools will be announced at a later date. Officials said the hope is that teachers will not lose their jobs, but the issue is being worked out by Kilmeyer.

Cox Media Group