SS. Peter and Paul School in Alton will close at end of year

ALTON – SS. Peter and Paul School in Alton will close at the end of the year due to enrollment and financial reasons, Fr. Jason Stone, Pastor of SS. Peter and Paul parish, announced Feb. 22 to teachers and staff.

He also sent a letter home to parents and parishioners Feb. 22. His letter will also appear in the parish’s weekend bulletin.

Please see Fr. Stone’s letter attached for further information.

February 22, 2019, Dear Parishioners and Parents of SS. Peter and Paul,

When the Lord Jesus founded his Church upon St. Peter, he promised that the gates of hell would not prevail against it. The Church endures until the end of time, but her institutions arise and recede as her mission, the salvation of souls, calls them forth.

I am writing today to inform you of a significant change in the life of SS. Peter and Paul's School. After the 2018-19 academic year, SS. Peter and Paul's School will end its programming and close its doors. Reaching this decision has been extremely difficult and painful, and much study, prayer, and consultation went into it. Knowing the pain that would be caused has made the process more arduous.

As you know, our enrollment has been declining, This year, 2018-19, and last, we began the year with approximately 64 students in pre-K through 8th grade, down from 79 in 2016-17. The fixed costs of running a school have meant that it has become impossible to keep the financial balance between setting a proper and affordable tuition, fundraising efforts, and a parish subsidy that the parish can afford to pay on an ongoing basis. The combined parish-school budget is projected at a deficit of $345,000 for the current 2018-19 fiscal year. The previous fiscal year showed substantially the same deficit. Our debt to the diocese has grown to some $750,000.

After consulting with the parish finance council, pastoral council, and the school board, separately and jointly, I held a parish meeting to discuss our situation and seek ideas for a sustainable plan for the future. At that meeting, the love for our school was apparent, as well as the desire to do what it takes to keep going. To market the school aggressively carries with it the implied promise that we are going to be here in the future, not just from year to year.

As our debt to the diocese has reached critical levels, a promise to be here means a commitment to closing the annual budget deficit. To put that number in perspective, the Sunday collection last year was $370,000. A capital funds drive, in which the people of the parish are asked to prayerfully make a sacrificial gift for a major project, can be expected to gain at most three times the annual offering, with the pledges paid over three years. To keep the promise implied in a marketing campaign, that would be equivalent to a million-dollar capital campaign, which is at the very edge of our wherewithal as a parish family. As the pastor, I am both the father of the family and the chief financial steward of our parish. At the end of the day, I could not ask the people of God for a sacrificial gift of one million dollars in order to keep the wolf from the door for three years, in hopes that a professional marketing campaign would finally reverse years of declining enrollment and the longstanding public perception that we are about to close. | felt that I had no alternative but to ask Bishop Paprocki for permission to close the school.

So many people have for so long supported the mission of SS. Peter and Paul School. For every parishioner, school family, and friend, I cannot thank you enough. I am forever grateful for your gifts of time, talent, and treasure for our school. I would also like to specifically acknowledge our dedicated faculty - past and present - including the principal, Mr. Harry Cavanaugh, as well as the school board and P.S.A., and everyone whose time and treasure made our school so great for so long. A tip of our collective hats is also due to the Ursuline sisters who taught our children for so many years. May God reward you!

We are turning a significant page in our life as a parish family, but we are not at the end of the book. We will offer new faith formation opportunities both for adults and for children, as well as seeking other opportunities for advancing the Kingdom of God in Alton and the world. Our mission has always been about the Kingdom of God. The means may change, but the mission remains until Christ returns to take us to himself.

The next few months will be a time of transition for our community. I ask for your prayers for everyone involved: for our families as they make new educational choices for their children and especially for our faculty and staff as they seek new employment. Our school staff will help all families who will be seeking to find a home in another Catholic grade school for their children. The pastors of St. Mary's and St. Ambrose have graciously offered to take our students at the parishioner tuition rate.

The 34th Psalm tells us, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.” As we prepare to begin Lent at SS. Peter and Paul, the Cross has fallen heavy on our backs. Beneath the Cross, we are close to Jesus and Mary, though they may be hidden for a time from our eyes. If we are faithful to the Cross, it will bring us to resurrection and new life. May Our Lord look upon each of you with his love; may he bless, sustain, and carry you.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Fr. Jason P. Stone Pastor

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