Parents Fight to Keep School Open

Some parents who send their children to the St. Joseph School in Vernon are launching a campaign to keep the school from closing down.

The Diocese of Norwich recently told staff and parents that the Catholic school will close at the end of this school year unless enrollment improves, according to parents and a spokesman for the Diocese.

It opened 105 years ago.

"I was thinking, 'No it's not going to happen. I'll do everything I can to stop it' and then the next day I just couldn't stop myself from crying," said Claire Gordon, who is in the third grade at the school.

A group of parents is now organizing a campaign to recruit more students. They've printed flyers and plan to actively recruit students at various events around Tolland County.

"We love the school and the parents that we know here love it and it would certainly be a loss not only to us but to the community as well," said Lori Chester, a parent who will have two children at the school next year if it stays open.

The parents have been told by the Diocese that they need to recruit 20 to 30 new students by mid-May. They're hoping to get at least 25 new students to sign up, according to Ken Gordon who is the campaign coordinator.

"I think we have a good chance but its tricky because we're fighting against parents here who are still thinking of looking at other schools," said Gordon, who hopes to send two children to the school next year. "That's why we've got to get this campaign done within a month to show the Diocese that we're viable as a school, to show these other parents that we're viable, and the teachers that we're viable before anyone makes any drastic decisions."

The St. Joseph School has traditionally had about 130 students a year in its pre-K through eighth grade programs. Enrollment has declined in recent years due to the economy and stood at just 50 students for next year when the Diocese made its decision, according to Gordon.

There are now 127 Catholic schools in Connecticut with more than 33,000 students, according to the Connecticut Federation of Catholic School Parents. Over the past five years, enrollment in elementary schools has dropped two to three percent a year while enrollment in high schools has increased slightly, according to the federation. As a result, some Catholic schools have closed or consolidated around the state.

At the St. Joseph School in Vernon, so far they've recruited another nine students. If they reach their goal, parents say the Diocese has told them to school will stay open.

"It's a really good school and I want them to sign up for it so it won't close," said third-grader Claire Gordon.