Despite group’s push for more time, closing of Byzantine school finalized

By Elise Franco

BOARDMAN — The finance committee for the Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh has finalized plans to close Byzantine Catholic Central School here at the end of the 2008-09 school year.

The committee made its final decision during a meeting in Pittsburgh on Wednesday afternoon, with the details announced Monday.

Tina Henderson, of a 14-member committee from the Boardman school, said everyone who has heard the news is upset.

“I think speaking for myself and the committee, we’re very unhappy,” she said. “Leadership wasn’t willing to give us the chance to help ourselves first.”

During the past several weeks, the school’s preservation committee met to develop and present a plan to eliminate a $356,000 debt and stay open for at least one more year.

The preservation committee presented the plan April 22 to about 200 parents, alumni and administrators, explaining how $392,000 could be raised through a summer festival, Friday pirogi sales, midnight bingo, a tuition increase and a sale of inscribed bricks and benches.

Al Massullo, athletics director and preservation committee member, said the decision to close was made because the presented plan would necessitate an entire school year to raise the money.

“In their minds, they thought we could cover the debt, but they couldn’t see down the road us not getting back in debt,” he said. “Everything was going to be all right down the road with the budget that we’d planned.”

Massullo and Henderson said one year should be a reasonable amount of time to raise the money, but the finance committee in Pittsburgh didn’t agree.

“Basically, in their minds, our plan was acceptable,” he said. “Their main concern was it was going to take a year to raise the money.”

Henderson said others outside Byzantine knew the school was in trouble before teachers and staff.

“Youngstown Christian was walking through and touring our school [looking for space] before we even knew anything was wrong,” she said. “Wednesday evening, before anyone knew about the decision, Youngstown Christian was touring again.”

Henderson said many parents are holding out hope that the school will remain open and have yet to search for a new school for their children.

“They are holding onto a last hope,” she said. “Some of the parents still haven’t begun looking at schools for next year because they believed in our plan.”

Massullo said the preservation committee hasn’t agreed with how quiet the archbishop has kept the news. He said teachers were told Friday, and no official announcement has been given to parents.

“For them to not even make an announcement when this decision was reached last Wednesday is a total lack of respect and compassion to our students, parents, alumni, faculty and parishioners,” he said.

Byzantine, which opened in 1955, is the last school of 10 in the Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh to remain open.

The school at Youngstown-Poland Road had more than 400 students in kindergarten through the eighth grade during the 1960s and 1970s, but enrollment has gradually declined due to changing demographics and job loss. Today, the school has 162 children in K-8.

“We’ve been in the area for 55 years, and now it’s going to leave,” Massullo said. “When they close the school, that Byzantine name is going to leave completely.”

efranco@vindy.com