Declining enrollment and mounting financial difficulties have made it necessary for St. Mary School in Bordentown to bring its long-standing ministry of Catholic school education to an end, it was announced March 8. The school will officially close its doors at the end of the current school year.

In a March 4 letter to Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., Father Michael J. Burns, pastor of the sponsoring St. Mary Parish, described insurmountable challenges that have saddled the school for the past decade. He writes, “It is with a heavy heart that I am writing to inform you that St. Mary’s Parish is no longer able to sustain our parish school. Over the past few years, our enrollment has declined to a present total of 112 students, with no reasonable hope for a significant increase in these difficult economic times. Last year our parish provided over $400,000 in school support, which amounted to over 50% of our collection income. We have completely exhausted our financial reserves, and can no longer meet all our expenses.”

Calling the decision to close the school, “difficult and painful,” Bishop O’Connell said that it is nonetheless necessary when one considers the challenges that have beset the school. In a letter approving Father Burns’ request to close the school, Bishop O’Connell states, “While no one can doubt the long and wonderful history of St. Mary’s School and all the many lives to which its Catholic education has so positively contributed over the years, economic realities force our hands when we would much rather allow such institutions to continue. Given the steady decline in enrollment and the inability to turn that around as well as the increasing costs involved in keeping the school operating each year requiring substantial subsidy from the parish, it is simply not feasible or realistic to keep St. Mary’s open.”

Benchmarks of viability established by the diocese for all schools cite a minimum enrollment of 220 students, with no more than 30 percent of parish collections being used to fund the parish school’s operation. With enrollment decreases in five of the last six years, and a need for parish subsidy that had grown to $400,000 annually – more than 50 percent of collections – St. Mary School’s status grew increasingly vulnerable. Efforts to boost enrollment had not met with any measurable success, records show.

A letter announcing the decision was sent by Father Burns March 8 to school families. The letter read, “We are all saddened by this decision, particularly as we look back over 150 years of quality Catholic education that our school has provided to the children of our parish and community. In my 22 years as pastor, I have witnessed the positive growth of many children who have become fine Catholic young adults through their experiences here at St. Mary School.”

A parent meeting will be held in the coming days to respond to questions about this decision and begin to assist in transitioning students from St. Mary School to one of the Catholic schools in that area. JoAnn Tier, the diocese’s superintendent of schools, has committed that her staff will facilitate in connecting families with the schools, many of which will host open houses and offer tours for students and their families.

The school’s 19 faculty and staff were informed of the school closure on March 8. Details concerning their severance packages and unemployment benefits will be provided later. In addition, teachers’ resumes will be shared with other Catholic schools in the diocese.

St. Mary’s is the first school that Bishop O’Connell has had to close since being placed in charge of the diocese in December, 2010. During that first year, Bishop O’Connell pledged to keep all schools open until a sustainability study could be conducted to strengthen the future of Catholic school education in the diocese. The bishop established a special fund drawn from the 2011 Bishop’s Annual Appeal that provided an additional $800,000 in extraordinary tuition assistance to help schools while the study was conducted.

St. Mary School required further funding from the diocese to meet its expenses, and even with that, Father Burns reported, the school will finish out the year with a debt that is well in excess of $100,000. Given the extreme financial burden, Father Burns did not feel it was possible to remain open while the Schools Sustainability Commission, which Bishop O’Connell formed in 2012, completed its work.

Bishop O’Connell affirmed Father Burns’ assessment, stating in his letter, “To postpone this particular decision would be irresponsible and bad stewardship of already limited and strained resources.”

St. Mary School was established in the mid-1800s, the first school founded by the Sisters of Mercy in NJ. In its nearly 150 years of existence, the school has educated tens of thousands of students and guided them on a path to fully formed Catholic adults. In 2000, the Sisters of Mercy discontinued their service to St. Mary School, but the Mercy charism, the tradition of loving and caring, has been embodied in the work of the lay staff. The building that now serves to educate students was erected in 1888.