Parochial schools in Boardman, Struthers consider consolidation

By Harold Gwin

The two schools expect to have a proposal to present to the bishop by April.

BOARDMAN — Should St. Luke School in Boardman and St. Nicholas School in Struthers consolidate and close one of the two schools this fall?

Or, would it be better to consolidate but keep both buildings open, perhaps sending children in kindergarten through fourth grade to one school and fifth through eighth graders to the other — while sharing a principal and aligning curriculum and textbooks?

Or, how about consolidating, but essentially keeping the schools intact as they are but again sharing a principal and other services to reduce costs — while looking at a possible consolidation with St. Charles in Boardman and Holy Family in Poland down the road?

One thing is certain: St. Luke and St. Nicholas, hit with declining enrollments and rising costs, must do something soon, said the Rev. Joseph Fata, pastor of St. Luke.

The schools expect to come up with a recommendation to present to Bishop George Murry about April 1, he said, adding that the three scenarios above are the options under review.

Two other Youngstown Diocesan schools have already announced plans to combine this fall. St. Joseph and Immaculate Heart of Mary elementary schools in Austintown will become one entity, although details are still being worked out, including which school will remain as a school building.

There will be a parents meeting for those two schools at 7 p.m. March 12 in the St. Joseph School Social Hall to offer an update on proposals being compiled by the Home and School Association from both schools.

Father Fata and the Rev. Bernard “Bob” Bonnot, pastor of St. Nicholas, said they have also had parent meetings at both of their schools and are looking for guidance and assistance from that group as merger plans are drawn.

Parent surveys have been handed out to help determine which avenue the schools should pursue and to make the parents part of the process.

People are addressing the issue seriously, Father Bonnot said, adding that everyone wants to reach the best solution for the schools and the children.

Declining enrollments are a key factor in providing money to run a school, but socialization is also important to a child’s education, he said. As class sizes shrink, that socialization opportunity is reduced, and that is something that must be considered, he said.

St. Luke, St. Nicholas, St. Charles and Holy Family are all part of the Mahoning South Catholic Schools Leadership Team formed in October 2004 to help foster Catholic education.

That historic connection could some day lead to the four schools combining into a single entity, Father Fata said, a move that would fall in line with Bishop Murry’s suggestion that Diocesan schools might become regional schools as enrollments decline. The bishop has asked the four schools to continue their affiliation through the leadership team and come up with some suggestions, he said.

All four have experienced some decline in enrollment, although the situation has reached the serious stage at St. Luke and St. Nicholas, he said.

“This is all very tentative,” said Monsignor William Connell, pastor of Holy Family, cautioning against reading too much into the discussions now going on between the four schools. “This is very much in the planning, proposal process.”

Enrollment at Holy Family remains very stable, he said, a situation different from that faced at St. Luke and St. Nicholas.

Discussions involving the four schools is almost distinct from what St. Luke and St. Nicholas are going through right now, said the Rev. Philip Rogers, pastor of St. Charles.

“Our goal is to assure Catholic education well into the 21st century,” he said.

St. Charles School, the largest of the four, is also considered stable in terms of enrollment.

Any long-range plan involving the four schools would be developed over a period of three years, Father Fata said. The preliminary discussion suggests they could eventually become one, but with each retaining its campus while sharing some administrative and teaching staff and aligning curriculum and textbooks, he said.

gwin@vindy.com