Schools

Six LI Catholic Elementary Schools to Close

Diocese of Rockville Centre Bishop William Murphy said "like public schools, we must face the harsh reality that we no longer need as many school buildings as we may have had in the past."

The Diocese of Rockville Centre is closing six of its 53 elementary schools on Long Island at the end of the 2011-2012 school year.

According to the Diocese of RVC website, the six schools that will close are:

  • St. John Baptist de La Salle Regional School (Farmingdale)
  • St. Catherine of Sienna School (Franklin Square)
  • St. Ignatius Loyola School (Hicksville)
  • Sacred Heart School (North Merrick)
  • Our Lady of Perpetual Help School (Lindenhurst)
  • Prince of Peace Regional School (Sayville)

Along with the aforementioned schools, Diocese of Rockville Centre Bishop William Murphy said he has asked five schools, three in Suffolk County and two in Nassau County, to form a "strategic collaboration." It wasn't clear what that collaboration would include.  

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The remaining 42 schools will remain open next year.

The decision to close the six schools was arrived at for various reasons, including what Murphy described as "changing demographics and difficult national and local economic conditions."

Find out what's happening in Rockville Centrewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Murphy also said that his Bishop’s Advisory Committee on Catholic Education completed a thorough evaluation of each of the elementary schools on Long Island. The evaluation took into account enrollment and school age demographic trends, the financial position of schools and parishes, and a review of the facilities, technology and programs offered.

"Given the decline in school-age population and the economic climate on Long Island we, like many public school districts, must face the harsh reality that we no longer need as many school buildings as we may have had in the past," Murphy said.


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