Bucks County: Catholic school enrollment up amid COVID-19 pandemic

With the pandemic still raging and there is no vaccine, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia is confident of plans to bring students back to the classroom.

Catholic district schools reopened in September at the beginning of the school year, and today many Catholic schools have waiting lists for families waiting for admission.

As enrollment rates rise, educators will celebrate the first National Catholic School Week in decades. Now, students study in classrooms that were previously dormant. The idle space of many schools has been declining for a long time, and the social distance recommended by the CDC can now be controlled.

"Our phones rang, but they still rang," said Stephen D. DiCicco, product owner.

In Tarrytown.

"Many parents want their children to be in the school building," Disico said. "They feel that virtuality is not suitable for them. We have a huge building that can accommodate 1,000 children at a time. Therefore, we can be separated."

Data from the National Education Statistics Center shows that adding three dozen students does not seem to be a big deal, but Saint Michael's University has only 187 students in the 2019-20 academic year. The enrollment of 219 students indicates that the enrollment rate for one year has increased by 17%. 

In a huge hall below St. Michael in the Church of the Archangel, the dining hall tables are now laid out, with chairs six feet apart. Floor stickers remind students to pay attention to social distancing. Even during the cold months of January, some windows remain open to improve airflow.  

DiCicco is the principal in charge of 22 years, serving the team that designed the reopening plan of the archdiocese school. The team has developed an overall plan, but the principal must design a plan that suits the building and the number of students. 

For example, some high schools adopt a mixed plan, placing students in classrooms two to three days a week. On other days, they attend classes virtually. 

In Archbishop Wood in Warminster, all students and staff must complete daily health checks before arriving at the building.

The school’s operational plan requires students to wipe the tables with hand sanitizer after class and use antibacterial cleaners after meals in the cafeteria. The students were monitored through temperature checks and sent home with a body temperature of over 100.3 degrees.

"Our goal is to provide our students with as much face-to-face learning experience as possible," said Sister Maureen McDermott, the principal of the Archdiocese Middle School.

McDermott said: "During school days, COVID safety precautions have protected teachers and students from any widespread outbreak." "Our biggest challenge is to hold social gatherings outside of school, which may not require masks or Social evacuations. In one or two cases, a good idea family hosted students overnight, causing many students to contract the virus, and the entire sports team was quarantined."

The Archdiocese did not answer questions about the overall enrollment of the entire system, even though documents on the church's website indicate that the parish school in Bucks County lost students between 2014 and 2018.

Signs dropped 

, Across the middle and north of the stag.

Recruit students at the Lower Bucks and the parish school in northeast Philadelphia

.

According to the National Catholic Education Association, in the 1960s, Catholic schools provided education to 5.2 million American children and youth.

According to NCEA data, the enrolment rate began to decline in the 1970s, and by 1990, only 2.5 million children had received Catholic education. 

According to NCEA data, by 2020, Catholic schools enroll only 1.7 million students, and 98 schools across the country have been merged or closed.

Although enrollment in some schools in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia may increase, other schools will be closed in 2021.

John W. Hallahan Catholic Girls’ High School in the Fairmount section of Philadelphia, Bishop McDevitt High School in Cheltenham and St. Gabriel Catholic School in South Philadelphia are all scheduled to close in June.

In Jenkintown, Saint Basil Academy is also scheduled to close this summer. It operates independently of the church through the Ukrainian Catholic Sisterhood of St. Basil the Great.

Back at St. Michael's Cathedral, DiCicco led the morning prayer to pray for the people infected by the coronavirus.

He said: "The pressure is huge." "Teachers are heroes. They wear masks every day and follow the instructions in the building. The plan to have the courage to join and trust these children is incredible."

Contact reporter James McGinnis at jmcginnis@couriertimes.com