Budget woes force Byzantine school to close

By Harold Gwin

Youngstown Christian School has expressed an interest in buying the Boardman building.

BOARDMAN — Byzantine Catholic Central School had a good economic base when it opened its doors in 1955.

It was supported by five local Byzantine parishes, not by a single parish as were other schools in the Byzantine Archeparchy of Pittsburgh.

At one time there were 10 of those schools, but all but Byzantine Catholic Central have disappeared over the years as their parishes were no longer able to support them financially.

Byzantine Catholic still has its five parishes — St. Nicholas, St. Mary and St. George in Youngstown, Infant Jesus of Prague in Boardman and St. Michael in Campbell — but it’s no longer enough.

The school will close its doors permanently with the end of this school year in June, said Bernie Kosar Sr., school administrator for the last two years.

The school was in debt when he took over and has been unable to recover, he said.

“Economics made the decision for us,” he said, although the final word came from the archbishop in Pittsburgh.

The school on Youngstown-Poland Road had more than 400 students in kindergarten through the eighth grade during the 1960s and 1970s.

The enrollment has gradually declined over the years as demographics changed and families moved away as jobs were lost in the Mahoning Valley.

Today, the school has 162 children in K-8. Most of the students aren’t from the five parishes, a fact the school attributes to its strong academic heritage that helped draw pupils of all faiths and ethnic backgrounds.

“The parishes are pressed,” Kosar said, explaining that they can no longer adequately support the $750,000 annual school budget. It’s almost too heavy a burden for parishes that, like the school, are shrinking, he said.

Kosar said he notified the school’s dozen teachers April 2 that their contracts wouldn’t be renewed for next year, and he met with school parents this week to explain what was happening.

“There’s anxiety,” he said, but Diocese of Youngstown parochial schools, particularly St. Nicholas in Struthers and St. Luke in Boardman, have informed him that they can accommodate Byzantine Catholic Central’s students in their buildings next year.

There is also a chance the school building will remain as a school, although in different hands, Kosar said.

Youngstown Christian School on Southern Boulevard in Youngstown, located about three miles away, is interested in buying the facility, he said.

“We’re interested,” confirmed Michael Pecchia, president of Youngstown Christian.

No decision has been made yet, but Youngstown Christian is looking at the location as a feeder school for its high school, he said.

Youngstown Christian, with 420 students in K-12, is at capacity at certain grade levels and has been experiencing growth in recent years.

Enrollment is up 100 from just three years ago, Pecchia said.

The Byzantine Catholic location could become a Youngstown Christian K-8 or junior high school, he said, adding that Youngstown Christian is studying the idea now.

Any offer to buy would have to be presented to the Byzantine archbishop in Pittsburgh, Kosar said.

gwin@vindy.com