I guess from there they'll decide

 

NEW CANAAN, CT — Saint Aloysius Catholic School will not reopen this fall after serving students in New Canaan for over six decades due to declining enrollment, according to the Diocese of Bridgeport.

In a letter sent to families Tuesday, Diocese Superintendent Steven Cheeseman said the Diocese has been working to address enrollment issues at the school for a number of years, however enrollment has continued to decline 40 percent over five years despite those best efforts.

He also noted only 22 students had fully re-enrolled or registered for the next school year as of Tuesday, with an additional 43 having started the process.

"While I am grateful for those parents who have chosen to re-enroll/register and for the recent efforts to raise funds in the hopes that the school could remain open, the simple fact remains that there are not enough students to provide a high-quality Catholic education," Cheeseman said in the letter. "Therefore...I write today with tremendous regret to inform you that St. Aloysius Catholic School will not reopen in the fall."

Recently, the school transitioned to a temporary location at Holy Spirit Campus in North Stamford. The school was planning to move to a new location in New Canaan in the fall of 2024.

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Principal Adam Fielding, who has been with the school since August, said Friday he was disappointed the school was unable to grow.

"It's sad," Fielding said to Patch. "St. A's has been a part of the community in New Canaan for almost 70 years now, so it's sad that we couldn't quite save it despite the best efforts of the parents, the staff and everybody who really came together through the transition last year to try to just grow. Sadly, we weren't able to."

Prior to serving as the school's principal, Fielding worked at All Saints Catholic School in Norwalk for about a decade.

"I was aware of St. A's," Fielding said, "and I knew the transition it was going through in moving from New Canaan to the temporary location in Stamford. I was hopeful that we would be able to kind of work together and get the enrollment up, but we just weren't able to."

Cheeseman said the Diocese would do all it could to facilitate a transfer into one their other Catholic schools and that Fielding would follow up with information regarding school open houses and shadow day opportunities. He also provided families with contact information for enrollment coordinators at area Catholic schools.

The last day of school at Saint Aloysius is currently scheduled for June 15. Fielding said news of the closure was "still pretty new" but he hoped to find a good way to let students and staff say goodbye to the school for now.

"Now we're just trying to figure out how to send the school off correctly," Fielding said.

Father Rob Kinnally, a pastor at Saint Aloysius Parish, also released a letter this week addressing the school's closure, in which he noted the decision was made "after serious deliberation and repeated attempts in recent years to increase enrollment" at the school.

"For more than 65 years, St. Aloysius School has been a beacon of learning and faith for generations of families, and the loss is felt by many," Kinnally said in the letter. "However, at the same time, I wish to assure you that St. Aloysius students and faculty will find a place in nearby Catholic schools, and that the religious education of our children and families remains a priority in the parish."

According to Kinnally, construction on the parish's new building is still scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2024 and will house a religious education program. He also noted church officials are hopeful about adding a Pre-K program there to meet a growing need in the community.

"I think there's definitely a possibility somewhere in the future that they would start some kind of an education program there," Fielding said. "I know they're definitely going to do Pre-K, because there's a dire need for that in the area, and then I guess from there they'll decide what's the best course moving forward when the building is up and running."

In an email to Patch, First Selectman Kevin Moynihan also acknowledged the school could potentially re-open in the future "because the education building will have [been] built to accommodate it."

Though he was still in his first year serving as principal for the school, Fielding said he will miss the school community he had bonded with as they transitioned into their temporary Stamford location prior to the expected move back to New Canaan.

"I think the thing that I will miss most is the community that we were able to build in such a strong time," Fielding said. "They truly were a great group of parents, a great group of students and an absolutely amazing group of teachers who worked tirelessly to provide a great educational experience, and then we just needed to grow, so it's a double-edged sword. The good memories will be the community that we built."