Sacred Heart School in N. Merrick to close

Updated: Dec. 12, 2:13 p.m. After more than 50 years of educating South Shore children, Sacred Heart School in North Merrick is expected to close in June next year. The announcement was made on Dec. 6 by the Diocese of Rockville Centre. Sacred Heart will be one of four Nassau County Catholic schools to close next year, including St. John Baptist de La Salle Regional School in Farmingdale, St. Catherine of Sienna School in Franklin Square and St. Ignatius Loyola School in Hicksville.

In a letter written by Bishop William Murphy, which is posted on the diocese website, he explains that the decision comes as a result of “a decline in school-age population and the economic climate on Long Island.”

To arrive at the decision, Murphy formed the Bishop’s Advisory Committee on Catholic Education in June 2010 to conduct a study on the viability of all 53 schools within the diocese. The committee studied schools’ enrollment and demographic trends, financial positions, and facilities, technologies and programs. In September 2011, after more than a year of research, Murphy approved a plan to begin closing schools.

The 19-member committee comprises officials from the diocese and the New York State Education Department. “Their goal and mine is to ensure the long-term sustainability, growth and excellence of Catholic elementary schools,” said Murphy.

According to Diocese of Rockville Centre Education Department enrollment reports, the number of students in Catholic schools in Nassau and Suffolk counties dropped from 20,000 to 16,000 between 2004 and 2010, a 20 percent decrease. Over the same period, public school enrollment in Nassau and Suffolk has seen a less drastic decrease, from 320,000 to 305,000, a 4.7 percent decline. Additionally, according to the diocese, kindergarten through eighth grade enrollment in diocesan elementary schools has dropped 34 percent in the last 10 years in Nassau and Suffolk.

“We, like many public school districts, have faced the harsh reality that we no longer need as many school buildings as we may have in the past,” said Murphy. “Financial assistance from the diocese, even if it was available, would not offset the steep enrollment declines at these schools.”