The merging of St. Patrick and St. Mary schools in North Little Rock’s inner city this fall is a positive step for Catholic education, superintendent Vernell Bowen said.
On Jan. 29 Bowen announced the creation of North Little Rock Catholic Academy to serve 314 students in pre-kindergarten to eighth grade. Msgr. J. Gaston Hebert, diocesan administrator, OKed the merge Jan. 25 and the next day teachers and parents were notified. Parishioners were told during weekend Masses.
“This is to ensure the future viability of the schools,” Bowen said, adding that the diocese wants to make sure “quality education” is also “affordable” and “accessible.”
Declining enrollment at St. Patrick School, shifting demographics and financial concerns were cited as the reasons for the reconfiguration, Bowen said.
The west campus, formerly St. Mary School, will serve 3 year olds in pre-kindergarten to fifth grade. The east campus, formerly known as St. Patrick School, will house sixth, seventh and eight grades.
Denise Troutman, who has been a volunteer, teacher or principal at St. Mary School since 1969, will be the administrator of the new school. David Grimm, principal of St. Patrick School, will be the assistant administrator. The leaders will have duties at each campus.
“It’s inspiring to see how the parents have rallied around this,” Troutman said. “It’s really exciting to me that we are breaking new ground in North Little Rock.”
Since fall 2005, the Diocese of Little Rock has been examining the educational needs of Pulaski County schools as part of its strategic planning process for the county. One of the recommendations last spring from the plan was to look at the reconfiguration of St. Patrick and St. Mary schools, which are less than a mile apart.
St. Patrick School was founded in 1895. Enrollment has dropped from 252 students in 1991 to 140 students today.
St. Mary School was founded a year later. Enrollment has increased from 184 in 1991 to 235 today. Both schools were initially staffed by the Sisters of Mercy and were established to serve the immigrants who were moving to North Little Rock to work for the railroad.
Both schools are 56 percent Catholic.
The development of a strategic planning committee for reconfiguration for St. Mary and St. Patrick schools was the result of recommendations from a strategic plan developed for Pulaski County Catholic schools in consultation with the National Catholic Educational Association in 2005-2006.
In November, a 14-member reconfiguration committee was created with an equal number of parishioners and parents from both churches. The two principals and one teacher from each school also worked on the committee. After examination of enrollment trends and the finances of both schools, the committee recommended a reconfiguration of the schools to pastor Father Warren Harvey and Msgr. Hebert.
The new academy will continue to be a mission of the two parishes but will be financially independent. North Little Rock Catholic Academy will operate on a balanced budget and will be supported by second collections at each parish, Bowen said.
Tuition will remain the lowest of any Catholic school in the county, Bowen said. Catholic families will pay $1,800 for one child and $700 for each additional child.
Bowen said the reconfiguration became evident after assessing the demographic data gathered for the strategic plan for Pulaski County Catholic schools. If the reconfiguration didn’t occur, St. Patrick School would have had to close, Bowen said. The school will end this school year with an estimated $200,000 deficit.
“This is a great opportunity to enhance the education, embrace the long traditions and to ensure the viability for Catholic education in this area of North Little Rock,” she said.
Declining enrollment and financial concerns are common themes in many Catholic schools in Arkansas. In 2005 Holy Redeemer Church in El Dorado had to close its school. Last May Our Lady of Good Counsel School in Little Rock closed. Other schools outside Pulaski County might have to close in the next couple of years.
“I don’t know what will happen in the outlying areas,” Bowen said. “We have to be more visionary in how we provide Catholic education to those communities.”
This is the first time Catholic schools in Arkansas chose to merge and operate two separate campuses.
“Catholic schools across the country are having to assess the way they are operating,” she said.
Troutman said over the next few months the school communities will be looking at their traditions, school songs and mottos to see how they can merge them. She said it would be a transition for the schools with more than 110 years of history.
“And now we are starting back at one,” she said.
