By:Jennifer Marino and Nicole Falco
Holy Name of Mary and Blessed Sacrament schools in Valley Stream buck the trend of declining enrollment in the Rockville Centre Diocese. Holy Name boasts an increase in enrollment of approximately 25 percent over the past three years. In September 2001, the school-s enrollment was about 260, but it has steadily increased since then. The current enrollment is 329, according to the Rev. Thomas Harold, Holy Name-s pastor.
Blessed Sacrament-s enrollment has remained at or near capacity, according to Principal William Fahey. Blessed Sacrament-s current enrollment is 235 students; the school-s capacity is 260. Fahey said that Blessed Sacrament did pick up a few students who had attended St. Boniface in Elmont, which closed last June due to decreased enrollment.
According to a report by the Catholic Elementary School Study Committee, while enrollment at Catholic high schools in the diocese is up, overall enrollment in its 57 elementary schools has decreased by 20 percent in the past five years and 30 percent over the past two decades. It could be a variety of reasons, said Helen Newman, a committee member and co-principal of St. Agnes Cathedral School in Rockville Centre. Total enrollment for the 2004 school year is 23,825 students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade, down from 28,709 in 2000. Families- financial constraints and Long Island-s changing demographics are two reasons most often cited for the decline.
Besides studying trends, the committee also came up with recommendations for increasing enrollment. One suggestion is for schools to market themselves. According to Newman, there are a lot of misconceptions about Catholic schools, especially regarding the quality of teachers.
Harold attributes Holy Name-s success to a proactive approach to marketing. When we were down to 260 or so students [in 2001], it was really necessary for us to become more serious about attracting students and increasing enrollment, he said.
In January 2002, the school appointed a full-time enrollment coordinator. Denise Kassebaum, a Holy Name graduate and the mother of six current and former Holy Name students, handles parents- inquiries about enrollment and publicity for the school. Before Kassebaum was hired, those responsibilities were shared by a number of people. School officials also took the time to listen to parents- concerns, Harold said.
I think parents are seeking the values that our school promotes, Harold said. The values of prayer and Gospel and being able to speak about a person-s faith faith having such an important impact on a person-s life.
In both Valley Stream schools, Catholic Schools Week in January is an important time to advertise. Besides the church bulletin, the schools will advertise in local papers. Fahey said that Blessed Sacrament also sends letters to families who have recently baptized a child as an early reminder that the parish has a school.
In addition to faith and values, Holy Name is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, a distinction it earned earlier this year. Holy Name-s teachers are fully accredited, and hold master-s degrees, Harold said. Sister Elizabeth Marie is the school-s longtime principal.
Blessed Sacrament is in the process of becoming accredited by the Middle States Association. Like Holy Name, its faculty members are all state-certified. All of our teachers are highly qualified, and could earn a lot more money teaching in public schools, but they are here mainly because they see this as a vocation, Fahey said. It-s a ministry for them.
Both schools offer expanded early-childhood programs. Holy Name introduced a second kindergarten section this year, and the school offers both nursery and pre-school classes. The average class size at all grade levels is 26. At Blessed Sacrament, kindergarten enrollment is down slightly, but pre-kindergarten and nursery-school enrollment has increased by about 50 percent, from 62 students last year to 90 students this year.
Fahey and Harold both said that their students often surpass the county-s averages for the proportion of students who meet or surpass state standards on fourth- and eighth-grade state English and math tests.
As for finances, tuition at Holy Name is $3,500, and at Blessed Sacrament it-s $3,600, for students in kindergarten through grade eight. Each additional child is incrementally less. Because Catholic schools receive little funding from the state, they rely on tuition and on both mandatory and voluntary fund-raising efforts of parents. With the help of the community and parents, the schools host fund-raisers, including raffles, bake sales and bingo to raise money. To offset the cost for families, the parish also subsidizes the school.
The diocese hopes to have a foundation in place by next year to create an endowment to fund scholarships and special programs. There will also be a special collection once a year at all Masses, with those proceeds going directly to the foundation. It will provide partial scholarships for students based on need, in the hope that there eventually will be an angel program, in which a donor would provide financial support for a student for several years.
The final recommendation of the committee was to form a Commission on Catholic Elementary School Education. The commission would assist in implementing the committee-s recommendations, and its own committees would help guide schools in areas such as finance, development and marketing.
The diocese has made a commitment to Catholic education, said Newman.
Comments about this story? NFalco@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 208.
