PARAGOULD — As one of the smaller Catholic schools in the state, St. Mary School in Paragould is proving that leaders from the school, parish and community can work together to keep the school open and viable.
The school for kindergarten through sixth grade is home to approximately 53 students. The school was established in 1890, making this year its 122nd year of operation.
The reason the school has survived is because of the commitment of the parishioners; they look upon the school as their #1 mission.
“I believe it is a great mission. In just the few years I have been here, I have seen numerous miracles occur with students and staff,” principal Sharon Warren said. “It is indeed a special place where the Lord’s presence is a daily occurrence. Past students return yearly to visit and fondly reminisce about days of the past and to keep this school a priority in our community.”
St. Mary School is not without its struggles.
“The lack of commitment from parents providing a Catholic education for their children concerns me.” Warren said. “The atmosphere, liturgy training, the daily exposure to Scripture and Catholicism, the academics, safety and the over all desire of success and love for students cannot be touched in a public school today.”
Father Mike Sinkler, pastor of St. Mary Parish, said, “Upon coming to Paragould three years ago, I was impressed at the pride and interest taken in the school by the parish at large, even those whose children had graduated or never had children in the school.”
Tuition at St. Mary is $2,900 for non-Catholics and $2,150 for Catholic children. Enrollment is down this year from 57 students in the 2010-2011 school year, but surveys taken by the student’s families demonstrate that parents are pleased with the school. There are currently 45 children pre-registered for the 2012-2013 school year with several new families expressing interest, which is a good sign that enrollment will improve, Warren said. The school’s goal is to have 60 students every year.
“Depending on fundraisers and bequests, subsidy is about $100,000 which is about one third of the parish budget.” Father Sinkler said. “There are several fundraisers throughout the year including monthly spaghetti dinners and weekly bingo that raise $40,000 annually. For the last three years our end-of-year fundraiser is a bike-a-thon in which the students contact family and friends to sponsor them. They raise an average of $10,000 annually.”
Three years ago the school undertook a renovation project asking the parish to pledge along with a second collection each month to cover the $90,000 renovation cost. The pledges and second collections ended this spring and have exceeded $100,000.
Father Sinkler noted, “To bigger parishes and schools this may not seem like much but for a school that has two grades per classroom and maintains an average enrollment of 45-50 children yearly, that expresses a large commitment from its parishioners.”
“Another contributing factor to the financial picture is the trust fund,” Warren said. “Most parishioners use the school trust fund as a place for memorials when there is a death in their family. As of now we have not had to use money from the trust fund but understand that it may be needed in the future. It is very comforting to know that it is there if we need it. The previous school I had worked for, which is now closed, exhausted their trust fund before I entered the picture. They didn’t have the kind of security we do.”
