Three parochial schools to close at end of academic year

By Peter Finney Jr.
Clarion Herald

Three Catholic elementary schools of the Archdiocese of New Orleans – St. Rita in New Orleans, St. Mary Magdalen in Metairie and St. Rosalie in Harvey – will close at the end of May because of low enrollment and concerns about future financial viability, Dr. RaeNell Houston, superintendent of the Department of Catholic Education and Faith Formation, announced Friday (Jan. 7).

Each school was below the 200-student benchmark that often is considered a major element in sustaining a school’s vitality. Faculty and staff were informed of the closures after school on Friday, and parents were notified by email and text messaging. The closures were jointly announced by the schools’ office and the pastors of each school.

“These conversations have happened over the last couple of years,” Houston said, referring to concerns over enrollment and financial viability. “It’s been a tough week – a tough couple of weeks. … These very difficult decisions were made after prayerful discernment and with the support of Archbishop Gregory Aymond, school leadership and pastors.”

In announcing the closures, Houston cited “continuous and steady declines in enrollment and concerns about future financial stability.”

Collectively, the closures will affect 544 students and 68 teachers. 

Houston said her office will host parent meetings at all three schools next week to answer questions and facilitate enrolling their children in other Catholic schools. The office also will host “school information nights” at each of the closing schools so that other schools can set up information booths for parents to learn more about what they have to offer.

Parent meetings will be held Jan. 10 at 5 p.m. at St. Rita’s Moreau Center; Jan. 11 at 6 p.m. at St. Mary Magdalen Church; and Jan. 13 at 6:30 p.m. at St. Rosalie’s cafetorium.

“We invite all the area schools to set up a table so that parents can come and introduce themselves to the school leaders to try to help them figure out where they want their children to be,” Houston said.

 Also, Houston said, most elementary schools host individual open houses this month, and parents from the closing schools are invited to attend those or make arrangements for private tours.

Parents from the closed schools will be able to apply for admission at new schools along with returning students “so that they’re not caught in that ‘new student’ application period,” Houston said.

Additionally, a job fair for teachers and staff from the closing schools will be held Feb. 21 from 4 to 6 p.m. at Schulte Hall next to Notre Dame Seminary, 2901 S. Carrollton Ave., New Orleans.

“That will be part of the process for those staff members and faculty members who want to be placed in another Catholic school,” Houston said.

“Our prayers are with all the families and parish communities affected by these closures,” she added. “We know the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and Hurricane Ida have created new and unique stress on our community and that this could be another cause for anxiety. We understand that change is difficult and stand ready to assist our Catholic school families and our dedicated faculty and staff in any way that we can during the transition.”

St. Rita School is the oldest of the three schools to close. The parish was established in 1921 by Archbishop John Shaw, and the school opened in 1924, staffed by the Marianites of Holy Cross. 

St. Rosalie Parish was established in Harvey in 1949 by Archbishop Joseph Rummel and turned over to the administration of the Salesian Fathers in 1964. The school opened in 1958 under the pastorate of Father Marion Schutten, who also was the first director of the school, with May Strassel serving as first principal.

St. Mary Magdalen School had an enrollment of 2,000 students at its height in 1964 – several years after its opening on West Metairie Avenue in the late 1950s. The school was staffed by six Sisters of Christian Charity and 29 lay teachers. In 1967, the school had an enrollment of 1,700 students. The nuns lived for a few years in a section of the main school building and then moved to a small home in Airline Park before their convent was dedicated in 1964.

[email protected]