Catholic School Administrators Learn Fates

The administrators of Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia have now been told what fate awaits their schools. The information will be released to the news media and public officially at 4 p.m. Friday.

Among the school communities awaiting or getting word from their leaders are and

NBC10 News reports that five high schools will be closed. According to the report Archbishop Carroll in Wayne will remain open.

School Administrators left a meeting at Neumann University at noon after hearing the news. Those interviewed live on local TV news refused to reveal the recommendations of the Blue Ribbon Commission appointed by former Archbishop, Cardinal Justin Rigali.

Several emphasized the points made by current Catholic Diocese Archbishop Charles Chaput in a letter sent to area Catholics Thursday. In it, Chaput sets the scene for the announcement Friday afternoon and calls catholics to remember the pragmatic frugality of former Archbishop St. John Neumann.

Here is the letter:

Message from Archbishop Chaput: Education, the Church and the legacy of John Neumann

The Church in Philadelphia has the benefit of two excellent monthly publications in The Catholic Standard and Times and Phaith magazine. But life happens on a daily basis. A bishop needs to speak with his people much more frequently than once a month. So beginning today, I’ll be writing this weekly web column as a means of talking about the life we share as a Church in a more direct, immediate way.

We have a great many challenges ahead of us in 2012 – legal, financial, and above all, pastoral.  The real problems in a Christian community are never finally material. The resource and organizational issues always come from some deeper spiritual problem: a lack of zeal, a lukewarm faith, an eagerness to fit in, a hunger for influence and a comfortable life.

These shadows live in all of us to one degree or another, including those of us in ministry. The more we let them draw us away from loving Jesus Christ and doing the work of discipleship, the weaker and more dishonest our common life as believers becomes. The “habit” of being Catholic is not enough. It’s not even close to enough. There needs to be a fire for being Catholic in our hearts.

One of my favorite stories about my early predecessor in Philadelphia, Bishop John Neumann, is that he owned a single worn out pair of boots that he used for his entire adult life as a priest. He was famously frugal with himself, and famously generous in his love for others. That’s the spirit we need to recover.

Nothing great is ever accomplished without suffering. Building or rebuilding anything of value always takes effort. This beautiful Church of Philadelphia – her thousands of faithful laypeople; her hundreds of good priests, deacons and religious; her extraordinary legacy of Christian witness – now needs all of our energy and all of our devotion to make her whole again. She is worth every sacrifice we make to renew her.

Today, January 5, is St. John Neumann’s feast day. We rightly remember him as one of the founders of Catholic education in the United States. He built scores of schools for thousands of students during his years as Philadelphia’s bishop. He set an example for the entire country.  But his dedication to Catholic schools was a subset of his real and greater vocation:  He was a missionary first.

For Neumann, schools were not an end in themselves. They were a means to an end. And that end was the building up of the Church, the salvation of souls, the ennobling of young minds and the conversion of American culture. More than 150 years later, the conditions we face in Philadelphia are very different. In some ways our situation is much more difficult. Nonetheless, the goal of Catholic education remains the same.

Tomorrow, January 6, I will receive the final report of an impressive Blue Ribbon Commission that has spent the past year reviewing and re-imagining Catholic education in the Archdiocese.  News media have already suggested that dozens of poorly attended, financially troubled Catholic schools will be asked to combine or close; but a careful pruning of our educational system for the health of the larger mission is clearly necessary. Public school systems, both locally and nationally, have had to face the same tough decisions. But the substance of the Commission report will be much more comprehensive and much more positive than the closing of specific schools. It will create the foundation for a new and stronger future for Catholic education in the Archdiocese.

I’m therefore grateful to Cardinal Justin Rigali who began this important process; to Bishop Michael Fitzgerald and the Office of Catholic Education; and especially to Chairman Jack Quindlen and members of the Blue Ribbon Commission for having the courage to see this demanding project through to its conclusion.

John Neumann was a missionary first. Everything else was second. You and I are called to exactly the same vocation. Let’s begin that work today. Difficulties can be overcome. Problems can be solved. We can renew our Church and make Catholic education grow and thrive again. But we need two things to do it – the grace of God, and hearts truly on fire for Jesus Christ. The rest will follow.

•What led up to Friday Afternoon's announcement

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia released a letter in December outlining what it will be announcing Friday at 4 p.m. and what it could mean for local parish schools, including and .

The letter reads:

In January 2011, the Blue Ribbon Commission appointed by Cardinal Justin Rigali began a comprehensive study of the elementary, special education and secondary schools of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia as well as the Parish Religious Education Programs (PREP) in the parishes across the Archdiocese.

The Commission identified the critical trends facing the future of Catholic schools: declining Church attendance and contributions, shifting demographics, diminishing enrollment and rising tuitions as well as underutilized school buildings. Parishes that support a school have also seen their finances strained as they work to offset operating deficits of their schools. In the last ten years, parish subsidies to schools have increased from an average of $255,450 per school to an average of $319,162 per school—an increase of 24.9%.

As a result of this study, the Blue Ribbon Commission developed a comprehensive strategic plan focused on the ability to provide quality, affordable and sustainable Catholic education for present and future generations across the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Simply leaving each school on its own to achieve this goal has become much more difficult over the years, as indicated by the announcements of school closings each year.

At a meeting for priests, school administrators and directors of religious education on January 6, 2012, the Blue Ribbon Commission will provide the specifics of its plan. As Archbishop Chaput indicated in his Pastoral Letter on December 8th the Blue Ribbon Commission will likely recommend that some, and perhaps many, schools must close or combine. It will also offer a framework for strengthening our schools going forward.

This renewed vision provides great hope for the future of Catholic schools and their service to children and families in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. The time is here for all of us to step forward with the support, good will and ongoing involvement enabling our long held tradition of Catholic Schools to be here for our children and for the children of future generations.

On Friday, January 6, 2012 at 4:00 p.m. there will also be a news conference with Archbishop Chaput unveiling the Blue Ribbon Commission’s recommendations. You will be able to view the news conference live on the Archdiocesan website at www.archphila.org. At the conclusion of the news conference a new website, www.faithinthefuture.com, will go live. This site will offer tools which will guide us all through the coming days, weeks and months ahead.

During this time of transition in Catholic education let us ask the intercession of Saints John Neumann and Katharine Drexel. May they comfort and inspire us to provide the best quality Catholic education possible for today’s children and tomorrow’s generations.