Valley Independent Sentinel

Parents Save Derby Catholic School

by Eugene Driscoll | Apr 1, 2010 12:35 pm

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Posted to: Derby

Derby —

The St. Mary-St. Michael School will not close, parents said they were told Thursday.

Word from the Hartford Archdiocese was passed to parents through the school’s principal, parent Arthur Gerckens said.

Officials from the Archdiocese were not immediately available for comment.

Gerckens was part of the parents’ group that presented a financial plan to church and Archdiocese officials Saturday.

The parents made a successful case for keeping the Catholic school open at the meeting, Gerckens said.

“To lose the school, not only would it have been sad, but another piece of Derby history would be gone,” Gerckens said.

News of the possible closure came down Feb. 23, during a meeting between parents, church officials and staff.

The meeting was heated — and parents, surprised to hear the school might close, came away confused.

The plan presented Saturday, as students rallied outside St. Michael Church, includes an aggressive marketing plan to increase enrollment.

The idea is to take out ads, send mailings and hang banners in the Valley, Gerckens said.

They also plan to start tapping into an extensive alumni database.

There are also plans to start a pre-k program at the school, along with before-and-after-school programs. Those could drive up revenue.

Finally, some sort of school board will be created so there is more supervision of finances.

St. Mary-St.Michael has 114 students. Enrollment is expected to dip next year to 109 students. But, with the addition of a pre-k program, the number will shoot to 119 students.

Many of the ideas for future success at St. Mary-St. Michael still need approval from the Archdiocese.

Gerckens said unstable leadership at St. Mary-St. Michael put the school in a tough spot.

There have been a number of principals and pastors in recent years — some aspects of financial planning simply fell by the wayside.

Now, with active parents, the school has a shot, Gerckens said.

A meeting to update parents has been scheduled for Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the church hall of St. Mary’s on Elizabeth Street.

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