James Horstkamp addresses attendees at a meeting at Mother Catherine Spalding School in Helen
Helen, MD — Mother Catherine Spalding School in Helen will become an independent Catholic school beginning July 1. The school will be run by lay leaders through a non-profit legal entity which will own and operate the school.
The Catholic Archdiocese of Washington announced in a press release on Friday that the school would close at the end of the academic year, which meant that the Archdiocese would cease to run it. But the Archdiocese through Archbishop Cardinal Donald Wuerl has given its blessing to its continuance as an independent school.
A large number of parents and other community members packed the school gym on Tuesday evening and enthusiastically embraced the historic change. A detailed Power Point presentation on how Mother Catherine Spalding would operate as an independent school was given by James Horstkamp, a member of The Friends of Mother Catherine Spalding School, a task force charged with coming up with a plan.
The working name for the new school is Mother Catherine Spalding Academy, although that could change before the formal reopening.
Horstkamp explained, “A formal agreement will exist with the Archdiocese of Washington wherein the school’s religious mission, religious formation, and religious curriculum would be accountable to and accredited by the Archdiocese.”
The Archdiocese would lease the school’s facilities and land to the new non-profit group for a dollar a year. Horstkamp said details would have to be tied down as to the length of that lease agreement.
The major change would be in governance, whereby the school would be administered by the Board of Trustees who would hire a principal and vice principal. Interim Principal Linda Miedzinski (shown) spoke passionately about the school’s new direction and said she would apply for principal of the new independent school.
Future finances were on the minds of many attendees, as the school’s enrolment and future financial situation caused the Archdiocese of Washington to announce it was ending its affiliation with the school. According to Horstkamp, 90 percent of the school’s current budget comes from tuition and fundraising. The other 10 percent comes from contributions by the five parishes in the school’s area and other support from the Archdiocese.
Horstkamp said the Archdiocese has agreed to continue to supply the new school with its current annual endowment of $40,000 yearly plus would also continue parent tuition assistance. The first year tuition was estimated to be $5,200 with a $150 registration fee (minus $50 per child if registered by February 26). Registration opens on January 26 for the next school year.
The school currently has 123 students and was predicted to break even. Horstkamp says that even with 100 or fewer students he believes the school can make a go of it next year. He says examples of other independent schools, including a Catholic elementary school in Texas, showed that they began to blossom in their second year, with dramatic enrollment increases.
One of the reasons for optimism for the new plan is the potential for a big fundraising effort that was somewhat hindered in the past by oversight by the Archdiocese. For instance an idea for a brick purchase campaign was nixed.
It was reported at the meeting that some people in the community suggested the school reopen as a Christian school, but the decision was made to continue in the faith that has been the school’s tradition since its open by the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth 50 years ago.
Horstkamp said there will have to be some initial cost cutting measures, including looking at salaries, although he said they weren’t suggesting any layoffs. But he said he would like to see if the new school can entice an order of teaching nuns to return. Housing is available for them.
Miedzinski emphatically said that with whatever cuts are made, “The curriculum should not be touched.”
Pastor of Holy Angles in Avenue and Sacred Heart in Bushwood Rev. Charles Cortinovis and Administrator of Our Lady of the Wayside Church in Chaptico Rev. Charles Gallagher attended the meeting. Father Cortinovis said he and Father Gallagher told their parishioners on Sunday that they supported the opening of the independent school. “I did everything I could to prevent it from closing,” Father Gallagher said.
Father Cortinovis said the level of financial support from his two parishes for the new school would have to be determined by their church council. “I want to be supportive. I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t,” he said.
President of the Commissioners of St. Mary’s County Randy Guy attended the meeting and said he supported the effort for the school to continue. Guy attended St. Michael’s Catholic School in Ridge. “I believe i9n the school and Catholic education,” he said. It was reported during the meeting that the county would continue to provide school bus transportation for the new school.
Those in attendance quickly voted to solicit volunteers to be on an ad hoc, five-member interim board which would later be succeeded by a more permanent board on July 1. The Friends of Mother Catherine Spalding School Society will receive applications for membership on the interim board until February 3rd. Members don’t have to live in the school’s area or have children there, just have skills that would be helpful to the board and have an interest in the school succeeding.
Anyone interested in serving can email task force member and president of the school’s Parent-Teacher Partnership Kristie Norris at norrissk@yahoo.com
A community meeting on the new school will be held at Mother Catherine Spalding School on an as yet-to-be-determined date in the near future.