Students, parents, faculty bid fond farewell to St. Joe’s

By Jon Moffett

Declining enrollment and a bad economy forced the merger.

A building is made of just bricks and mortar.

The people and the events within make it special, John Rozzo told those assembled for the final day at St. Joseph School in Austintown on Friday.

The principal addressed students, faculty, staff and families for the final time at the New Road facility. The school will merge with Immaculate Heart of Mary School and begin a joint curriculum at the Immaculate’s Norquest Boulevard location in the fall.

On the school’s last day, the school family said goodbye with a ceremony. Students from each grade level wrote their favorite school memory on cards and attached them to balloons. After Rozzo’s countdown, the students and teachers let the balloons fly.

Teary eyes looked on as the maroon and white balloons disappeared into the cloud-covered sky. And while students, both current and former, let go of the balloons, they clung to the memories.

“It’s been very emotional; walking in here was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do,” said Gina Scott, a graduate. When asked about her favorite memory, Scott recalled her second-grade teacher, Sharon Machuga.

“She’s the reason that I’m a teacher,” Scott said. “My daughter [Dana] got to have her, and that’s the best thing that I’ve taken from this school.”

Dana, 10, will attend the fourth grade at the merged school in the fall. She said her favorite memories are of her classmates and other people at the school. She said Mrs. Machuga is her favorite teacher.

“I’ll miss having a great time with my friends and teachers,” Dana said.

“Everything I’ve done has been to the best of my ability for the kids,” said Machuga, who has been at St. Joseph for more than 30 years.

“I love these kids and their parents. It’s just a great place.”

Machuga hopes she’ll be one of the teachers to be hired for the new school. Both St. Joseph and Immaculate Heart of Mary will make cuts in staffing.

Rozzo expects to enroll about 260 students at the new school, which is being referred to as St. Joseph and Immaculate Heart of Mary School. This past year St. Joseph had 176 students and Immaculate Heart of Mary had 155.

It is a difficult time for Catholic education, especially parish-based schools, Rozzo said. He cited declining enrollment in Catholic schools and a bad economy as some reasons for the merger.

“Parish-based schools are probably a thing of the past. I hate to say it that way, but it is. There are too many issues to deal with. You’ve got the finances, the economy and the fact that people are moving out of this area. In some instances, it’s just not enough to sustain a school.”

Rozzo will be the principal at the new school. He said though it is disappointing and bittersweet to leave the St. Joseph campus, he is looking forward to the merger and is encouraged by the response.

“We look at it with a sense of positivism for this new experience,” he said. “We’re one of the first ones to merge, so we may be paving the way for other schools in our diocese.”

Despite a dwindling enrollment, Rozzo stressed the importance of Catholic education, saying it lasts from “womb to tomb” and that its values are unmistakable.

“What we’re interested in is making sure we have a presence,” he said. “If it means you have to make some changes to what you’ve got, then you go ahead and do it. It’s all for the kids.”

jmoffett@vindy.com