Youngstown Diocese closes another school

Four Catholic schools in the diocese have been closed in the past three years.

STAFF REPORT

YOUNGSTOWN — Declining enrollment has claimed another elementary school in the Catholic Diocese of Youngstown.

Dropping numbers over the past several years were the major factor in the decision not to reopen St. Clement School in Navarre, Stark County, this fall, according to Dr. Michael Skube, superintendent of Catholic schools for the diocese.

St. Clement hasn’t been the only parochial school severely affected by declining enrollments in recent years.

Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Niles closed at the end of the 2006-07 school year, and St. Matthias School on Shady Run Road and Immaculate Conception School on Oak Street were both closed at the end of the 2005-06 school year.

St. Clement had 193 pupils in kindergarten through the eighth grade 10 years ago. The number dropped to 110 in 2006-07, and last year, enrollment was down to 68 children.

The diocese put a registration procedure in place to determine the interest and commitment of parents in maintaining the school for the 2008-09 year, but sufficient support wasn’t there.

Parents were asked to provide a $300 per family registration/commitment fee (which would be applied toward tuition) by May 1 of this year. The diocese said at least 75 pupils had to be registered at that point, and the first tuition payment was due Aug. 1. Only 61 pupils were enrolled at that point, and two later withdrew, leaving the number registered at just 59, according to the diocese.

“It is evident that St. Clement Parish community had made extraordinary efforts to support and maintain their school despite declining enrollment,” said Monsignor Robert Siffrin, vicar general of the Diocese of Youngstown. The priests and dedicated laywomen and laymen who staffed the school over the years, and the countless families who have entrusted their children to St. Clement, deserve gratitude and appreciation, he said.

Skube said the Diocese of Youngstown is committed to providing Catholic education to those who desire it and will make every effort to provide a smooth transition for St. Clement pupils to other Catholic schools.

“For generations, St. Clement School has provided quality Catholic education and Christian values to our young people,” said the Rev. Edward Beneleit, St. Clement pastor.

St. Clement Parish was founded in 1832, and the school opened in the latter part of the 19th century, closed in 1917 and reopened in 1945. The parish has made every effort to keep St. Clement School a vital part not only of the parish but also of the village of Navarre, Father Beneleit said, encouraging parishioners to seek other area Catholic schools for their children.