Parents vow to keep school open Parish-school recovery plan to be developed
By Kathleen Ogle
Managing Editor
MILLTOWN — Parents, family, alumni and friends of Our Lady of Lourdes School are formulating a recovery plan to save the school from closing. The school’s supporters must raise approximately $250,000 over the next year to continue operating the school, according to the diocese’s Office of Finance.
Nearly 250 parents, students and alumni met with representatives of the diocese March 16 in the school’s lunchroom. Superintendent Ellen Ayoub opened the meeting by reading a letter from Bishop Paul G. Bootkoski which outlined the school and parish’s financial crisis. The bishop asked the parents to “dialogue on the proper course of action going forward.”
Thomas G. Toolan, the diocese’sdirector of finance, reviewed Our Lady of Lourdes’ parish and school financial statements from the past nine years with the parents. “Your financial situation is dire,” Toolan said.
“It is projected that the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes will have $70,000 in cash at the end of this year after experiencing another loss of $200,000. It would be the third straight loss of this amount and it puts the parish in a situation where the payment of next year’s bills are questionable,” Toolan explained.
Since 2002-2003, the parish’s subsidy to the school has increased from 30.2% to 61.4%. During this period, parish income has steadily decreased.
Parish subsidies to schools average 15% across the diocese’s 39 parish schools with tuition covering 70% of school expenses and fundraising covering the remaining 15%. At Our Lady of Lourdes, tuition and fees cover 50% of school expenses, fundraising covers 6% and the parish subsidy covers 44%.
Parents reacted with shock and anger to the news of the school’s potential closing. Several questioned why they were only now hearing about the school’s financial troubles. Nancy Gilroy, assistant superintendent, responded that two years ago she and the previous superintendent had met with the school’s then-principal and Home School Association executive board. “We assured them we were not there to close the school; however, we did raise the flag at that time,” Gilroy said.
The parents said they are determined to reverse the school’s dismal financial situation and requested time to formulate a plan to keep the school open. The superintendent gave the parents a deadline of March 31. She said the Office of the Schools would review the plan and present it to the bishop.
Toolan advised the parents that the plan needed to take into account the future of the parish and school. “You can’t just look at the school. Can the parish afford the subsidy? The parish needs to be able to support itself,” he said.
On the school side, he told parents that enrollment had to be increased for each grade and the parish’s subsidy to the school needs to be reduced. On the parish side, revenue needs to increase and expenses need to be reduced.
“The school is a ministry of the parish,” Toolan said. “Everything has to be worked out between the church and school.”
Initially, some parents angrily blamed the diocese for school’s precarious financial situation and suggested that it was the diocese’s responsibility to correct it. Not so, Toolan said. “The reality is the parish of Our Lady of Lourdes is closing the school.”
Taking the microphone, Deacon Robert Gerling said, “We have to take ownership of this. This is a parish problem. We do have to present a plan. It’s too late to point fingers.”
“We’re going to do whatever it takes,” said Tom Olson. Four of his five children graduated from Our Lady of Lourdes and a fifth is currently in the fourth grade.
Olson said parents were first informed of the meeting March 10, when students came home from school with a letter announcing the meeting to discuss the future of the school. “We assumed the worst.”
He said he was encouraged by the turnout for the meeting as well as the diocese’s response. “We are very pleased with their interest and willingness to stay and talk with us,” he said. “We thought we were going to be told no.”
Organizing themselves into various committees to tackle specific issues, the parents, alumni and parishioners met again March 20 to begin formulating a plan.
“There’s hope that the school will continue,” Olson said.
Bishop’s letter
Below is the text of Bishop Bootkoski’s March 16 letter to the parents of the students at Our Lady of Lourdes School.
Dear Parents: On Jan. 10, your pastor, Father Tom Perunilam, met with me. He was deeply troubled about Our Lady of Lourdes School. He told me his parish could not afford to subsidize the school beyond this school year. Here is the situation facing your parish. Over the past five years, Our Lady of Lourdes parish subsidy to the school has more than doubled. For the 2003-2004 school year, the subsidy amounted to $255,000. Last year, the amount rose to $288,000 and I have been told it will be even more for the current school year. The latest subsidy represents 61 percent of the parish’s income. Putting these figures into perspective, Father Tom said that in the past two years, the church has lost almost $200,000 a year, and these funds were paid for from the church’s surplus cash. With most of its surplus now depleted, it is projected that by June 2006, the church will only have $60,000 left in its surplus account. This situation puts your parish in serious financial trouble, especially since the number of your parishioners has steadily decreased over recent years. Should your school remain open, given the current projections, there will be no funds to subsidize the school during the fiscal year 2006-2007. The question I am struggling with is what should be done. As your bishop, I have the responsibility to ensure the viability of our parishes. Therefore, tonight I ask you and our diocesan staff to dialogue on the proper course of action going forward. I pray that God will guide us all. Sincerely in the Lord, Most Rev. Paul G. Bootkoski |
*The attached/referenced article was originally published in The Catholic Spirit, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Metuchen, and is protected under U.S. and international copyright law