May God's Will Be Done
Why We Won't Be Registering
Go to: Concern over the future of SETON CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL
One Family's Viewpoint
On March 25, 2004, Bishop Joseph F. Martino of the Diocese of Scranton met with 18 priests from the Pittston Deanery.
During this meeting, he presented the priests with a letter which the Bishop, or one of his representatives from the Catholic Schools Office of the Scranton Diocese, had composed. The Diocesean symbol was on the letterhead, but nowhere on the letter was Bishop Martino's name. Instead, the letter had the names of the 18 priests listed, in two columns and alphabetically by chronology, on the last page.
The letter was addressed to parents of students at two Catholic schools in the Region 7 (Pittston area) of Diocese of Scranton: St. John the Baptist Elementary School in Pittston, and Saint Mary's School, Avoca. In the body of the letter was the bombshell announcement that the two schools would be closing in June, and that parents should choose a new school for their children. The names of the four remaining schools in the Region 7 area were listed in the letter;
Saint Mary the Assumption School, Pittston
Sacred Heart School, Dupong
Wyoming Area Catholic School, Exeter
Holy Rosary School, Duryea
The priests were instructed by Bishop Joseph F. Martino (Auxilary Bishop Dougherty was also present) to copy the letter and send it out to the parents of the children of SJB and SMA. No discussion on the matter was held. Priests later informed parishoners that they were in "shock" that two schools so close together (approximately 2.5 miles) and with such a large, combined census - nearly 300 students - would be closed at one time.
The next day, on Friday, March 26, 2004, a meeting was held for faculty for the both schools. It was during this meeting that faculty and staff of the two schools learned, for the first time, that their two schools were closing.
Needless to say, there was shock, grief, and disbelief in that room. St. John the Baptist School's principal, Mr. Robert Kaluzavich, who has spent 39 of his 55 years as a student, teacher and principal at SJB, and who not only spends his days at the school but his nights coaching basketball, going to meetings, hadn't even been consulted about the possibility of a closing of his beloved school. A modest man, he would be the first to deny it, but "Mr. K', as the students have, for many years, affectionately called him, is, most definitely, one of the finest principals in any school system, Catholic or otherwise. His dedication to the school, and to Catholic values, is unquestioned. He did NOT deserved to be treated in the disrespectful way in which he was treated by both the Bishop and the Catholic Schools Office.
Word quickly spread about the school closings which, especially in the case of St. John the Baptist in Pittston, (St. Mary's had been having financial difficulty and enrollment decline for a few years) was totally unexpected. Children had already registered for the next school year at Saint John's only the previous month. Kindergarten registration and Open House was less then two weeks prior to the announcement by the Bishop that he wanted to close St. John the Baptist.
Parents from both schools immediately began to organize in an effort to prevent the closings and find out the facts. The result of that organization is this web site, and numerous rallies, prayer vigils, and organized protests in front of the Diocese of Scranton buildings. Media attention was also immediate and wide-spread, especially when it became known that many of the priests did NOT approve of the Bishop's plan to close the two schools, even though their names were listed on the letter composed by the Scranton Diocese.
Within two days of the announcement by Bishop Martino, he was approached by a large group (hundreds) of praying students and parents at Mount Carmel Church in Pittston, where he had come to attend a mens' "smoker".
Bishop Martino, reacting to resolve of the parents and students not to allow their schools to close, and to the television cameras and microphones waiting for him on the steps of the church, emerged from the social gathering after an hour. He addressed the crowd while standing on the steps of Mount Carmel and, while expressing sympathy for our "pain", made it clear that he would not reverse his decision. His reasoning was that closing the schools would save money.
Since that time, even during a closed door meeting where parents of SJB and SMA students presented an alternate plan whereby the two schools could merge into one large, strong school which would be about equal in savings to the Scranton Diocese as would closing the schools, Bishop Martino and his financial staff have reiterated that he will NOT reverse his decision. During the April 14 meeting in Scranton, the Bishop made it quite clear that he did not want to be known as a bishop who reversed a decision once it was made. No matter what.
The Diocese of Scranton has repeatedly denied a request by parents to push back registration at the four remaining schools until parents and students have answers to their many concerns and questions. The only concession given to parents regarding Registration is that it will not be housed at Seton Catholic High School in Pittston instead of at the four schools.