Diocese forgoes combining St. Luke, St. Nicholas schools

By Harold Gwin

YOUNGSTOWN — St. Luke School in Boardman and St. Nicholas School in Struthers will remain separate entities for the 2009-10 school year.

The two Catholic Diocese of Youngstown elementary schools had been considering a consolidation for this fall, but that scenario has been scrapped for now.

The Rev. Bernard R. Bonnot of St. Nicholas and the Rev. Joseph Fata of St. Luke confirmed Friday that the two schools will remain intact.

The schools, plagued by declining enrollments and the resulting declining revenues, had been looking at three possible changes that would have linked them beginning this fall.

One called for an outright consolidation and the closing of one of the two.

A second proposed consolidation but keeping both buildings open with kindergarten through grade 4 attending one and grades 5-8 attending the other while sharing a single principal for both.

The third called for consolidation but keeping the schools intact while sharing a principal and perhaps other services while looking at a broader consolidation down the road that could include St. Charles School in Boardman and Holy Family School in Poland.

Father Fata said meetings with parents of both St. Luke and St. Nicholas showed that none of the scenarios was particularly attractive.

The decision was made to take another year to explore all of the possible options while giving both schools time to boost enrollment, he said.

St. Luke has 124 students this year, and St. Nicholas has 153.

The schools will work at adding elements to their curriculum to make them more attractive to prospective students, Father Bonnot said. That could include language arts and more, he said.

Father Fata said St. Luke has already hired a Spanish teacher for next year.

Meanwhile, talks among all four of the schools about the possibility of an eventual consolidation will continue, Father Fata said, noting that will be a three-year process.

gwin@vindy.com