Archdiocese Informs Principals, Families of 13 Schools About Consolidations

The Archdiocese of Baltimore informed principals and student-families today that the following 13 schools will be consolidated at the end of the current school year.

• Ascension School
• St. Bernardine Catholic School
• St. Clare School
• Catholic Elementary & Middle School
• Holy Family School
• St. Katharine School
• Mother Mary Lange Catholic School
• Our Lady of Fatima School
• St. Rose of Lima School
• Sacred Heart of Mary School
• Shrine of the Sacred Heart School
• St. William of York School
• The Cardinal Gibbons School

The Archdiocese has identified nearby Catholics schools with capacity to accommodate every student currently enrolled in a consolidated school.  Archbishop Edwin O’Brien has instructed Archdiocesan central services staff to communicate directly with each affected family to ensure a smooth transition.

There are 325 employees in the consolidated schools, including 231 teachers. The Archdiocese will make every effort to place impacted staff in the remaining 70 Catholic schools in the Archdiocese.

“The Archdiocese of Baltimore remains as committed to the education of children-all children-as it was when the nation’s first Catholic school opened in Baltimore more than two centuries ago,” said Archbishop O’Brien. “In order to do that, however, we need to address a number of factors-mostly demographic and economic-that have long affected our schools to preserve the history of Catholic education and transform its future.”

Archbishop O’Brien will hold a press conference tomorrow at 11 a.m. at which time he, and representatives of the Blue Ribbon Committee on Catholic Schools, will share further details of the consolidation plan as well as several new programs and initiatives to strengthen Catholic schools in the Archdiocese.