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Here is a letter written by one Transfiguration parent to the Diocese of Scranton Superintendent of Schools:
Dear Mr. Casciano,
Hello. My name is Ann Kulick.
My son, Benjamin, attends Transfiguration Catholic School. He is in the first grade. My other son, Liam, was to start the school’s pre-school program for the 2006-2007 school year. That was until I heard the disturbing news that our school might still be closing, even after the board of pastors did the study on our school last January and with the Bishop's approval stated our school was to remain open. It upsets me greatly to think that the union we have at Transfiguration could all be gone by next year.
Have you ever met a 7-year-old boy who gets excited to go to Mass? Or a whole school, for that matter? Well, I have. I see it every week at our school. When Father Bob holds Mass, it is so different than any other. He connects with our children in such a way, they enjoy his Mass as much as the rest of us. During his sermons, if he asks a question that is not directed to our kids, they raise their hands so high they can reach the heavens, just waiting for him to call on one of them.
Ms. Ambrose, our school principal, is so involved with the school, the kids and the parents. She, herself, would be enough to save our school. Every morning, rain, snow and sunshine, she is at the front doors of the school greeting each and every child with her smile, until the last one is in and ready to begin the day. She also recently played a big part in our school Christmas play, which included 40 school kids and an audience of 210 proud parents and relatives, not including the public.
Not only do we have a principal that cares, and a pastor that our children could love and trust, we have our teachers that make sure our children are getting the most out of their Catholic education. They treat our kids like their very own.
Our folk group has recently been invited to sing the national anthem to open up the Penguins hockey game in March of 2006. Also, they sang for the Rose Mass, last year in Scranton. Those are the things that make our kids’ eyes sparkle.
Furthermore, the school has us.
We are the parents who believe in this school and who are willing to fight for it.
You will not find another school that has parents that will put time in like we do at Transfiguration. Every day, we attend the school’s lunch and help serve our children. We prepare for the students’ extracurricular activities. A few weeks ago, six of us had a good time preparing over 800 hoagies, when we could of easily purchased the tickets. We spend hours preparing for our annual Octoberfest, which every year has such an unbelievable outcome; there are over 60 local businesses that also support us for this event. We have the St. Theresa Society that spends a lot of time cooking for the school activities. Most of all, we have our Home and School Association, who spend uncountable hours to make sure our kids and our parents have a memorable experience at Transfiguration, year after year.
For all this to disappear from our children would be sad. I, myself, and I do speak for others, will fight to the end, to see our school stay open. This might not be the first and it sure won't be the last time you hear from us parents, regarding the situation.
I hope you consider what it would do to our children, if they lost all of this.
Our kids, the parents, and you, yourself, will never find another school like this.
We are one of a kind.
Ann Kulick,
NOTE: It was recently announced that Transfiguration School in Hazleton is targeted for closing, in addition to the 2 schools that were already scheduled to be closed. The parents and supporters of Transfiguration have vowed to fight this closure, and feel that their school cannot be replaced. We, the parents of the former SJB and SMA students, certainly understand the pain, anguish and fear of great loss these parents are facing. We pray that they are successful in their bid to keep their beloved Transfiguration School open.
Hazleton
HERE IS ANOTHER LETTER RECENTLY PUBLISHED ABOUT TRANSFIGURATION'S PROPOSED CLOSING:
Monday, 26 December 2005
Editor,
Rumor or fact?
Once again, the members of the Board of Pastors in the Hazleton area are jeopardizing our Catholic religious education.
It has come to my attention that they are doing another study of the Catholic schools and their decision will be sent to the Scranton Diocese (Mr. Joseph Casciano and Bishop Joseph Martino) for approval. It appears that Transfiguration campus in West Hazleton is on the chopping block, instead of Holy Spirit Academy, which was originally to be closed at the end of the school year 2005-2006.
I just attended the folk group Mass at 11 a.m. Sunday morning in Transfiguration Church.
The children from pre-school through grade six sing at this Mass. At the end of the Mass, the children sang a Polish song for the Christmas season in Polish.
Some of these younger children, who do not even know how to read, sang this song without a flaw. It was a very moving experience, especially to see the folk group teacher (Mrs. Tracy Smith and Father Bob Timchak) moved to tears, so much so, it was difficult for him to finish Mass.
I am a parishioner of Transfiguration parish for many years and I was brought up with a Catholic education. Our diocese always promoted Catholic education and a need for more vocations to the religious life and priesthood. How can these young children get a Catholic education if the diocese continually closes our Catholic schools?
It is very saddening to see that the parents of these children attending this school now and the people who attended this school many years ago, like myself, with tears running down their cheeks after attending Mass, such as today, and knowing in the next few months and years to come, there will not be any more services like this, because of the closing of our school and many more like it.
A few years ago, it became public that children of our diocese and I am sure other dioceses, as well, were physically abused, now, they are being put on an emotional roller coaster, because they do not know where they will be at the end of a school year; they make friends and lose them in nine months. Is this fair to our children? How do you answer a 7- and 5-year-old when they ask, “Who are the evil people that are closing our schools? Don't they care about us?
Bernice Rockovich,
West Hazleton
St. John the Baptist School, Pittston = 161 Students
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St. Mary's School, Avoca = 127 Students
118 students from these schools chose NOT to re-enroll in the other Catholic Schools. Instead, they were placed by their parents into the public school system. And that is just the first wave.
Does this sound like a sound "restructuring plan" to strengthen Catholic education in the Region 7 of the Diocese of Scranton?
If we ever had any doubts about the Diocese of Scranton officials reading this web site on a daily basis, they were put to rest yesterday. Within hours of the publication of the link to our enrollment study, which points out that several schools in Williamsport, Hazleton, and Scranton have enrollments lower than St. John the Baptist and St. Mary's, there was a press release issued by the Diocese of Scranton that an in depth study of four Hazleton Catholic schools, involving pastors, parents, principals, and other interested parites, will be conducted. Yes, plans for the "study" were already underway. However, it is interesting that The Diocese found it necessary to release news of the study yesterday...
The Times Leader carried the story today based on a press release issued yesterday morning by the Diocese of Scranton. Hazleton Catholic schools, where several Catholic schools have enrollments of significantly less than St. John the Baptist and comparable to St. Mary's School , will now be given the courtesy of a study before being shut down by Bishop Joseph F. Martino:
"15 pastors, the four schools' principals, a faculty member and two parents from each school, other parents familiar with the schools and diocesan representatives."
UPDATE 2005: THE TIMES LEADER ARTICLE ABOUT THIS DECISION IS NO LONGER ONLINE. SORRY!
We are happy for Hazleton, and wish them the best: if all of our parents', students', and supporters' efforts for justice have possibly safeguarded Hazleton Catholic schools from the unfair hatchet job done to our Pittston area Catholic schools, perhaps all this was worth it.
It certainly appears, by his decision to give Hazleton Catholic schools a truly "in depth" study, that Bishop Martino has admitted that he was wrong- without saying so. And he needs to be held accountable. Bishop Joseph F. Martino should undo all the harm he has done to our schools, allow them to either stay opened unscathed - or merge them - and give OUR schools the year or so that he is granting the Hazleton Catholic schools.
Will Bishop Martino's seemingly unquenchable pride allow him to do the right thing and reverse his "hard decision"?
The Citizens' Voice's article, written by Joe Sylvester, is written in a way which could easily convey, to the genereal public, that the same sort of study being given to Hazleton was also given to the Pittston Catholic schools: St. John the Baptist and St. Mary's in Avoca. Nothing could be further from the truth.
The article, which can be read here, describes, in the second paragraph, how extensive the Hazleton study will be:
" About 40 pastors, principals, faculty and parents met earlier this month to begin the first phase of what the diocese says is an in-depth study of the schools."...
The CV article continues:
"The examination of the Hazleton area Catholic elementary schools comes after the diocese decided, after a study, to close two elementary schools in the greater Pittston region. The sudden announcement March 26 sparked protests, prayer vigils and a lawsuit against the diocese.".
It should have been pointed out in the Citizens' Voice article not only were faculty, principals, parents and students kept in the dark about the "study" that was being conducted into the Pittston Catholic schools, but that the "study" into the St. John the Baptist, Pittston and St. Mary's Avoca situation was absolutely anemic compared to what consideration is being given to Hazleton.
Hazleton's situation is, in our opinion, being handled the correct, compassionate and Christian way.
Scranton papers, published by the same publishers as is the CV, did not run a story on the Hazleton Catholic school study being undertaken by the Diocese of Scranton that we could find. And the Scranton papers have never, to the best of our knowledge, published the address of our web site.
The fact remains that the "study" of the Pittston Catholic schools seems to have amounted to one meeting in March of 2003, and an inspection of the buildings in February 2004. Period. There was no known imput by the majority of the pastors, nor by ANY of the faculty, principals, parents, students, or parishoners. The whole atmosphere regarding the closing of SJB and SMA is still being treated in a cloak-and-dagger fashion. Even on the air (Ask the Bishop), Bishop Martino has been evasive, and some might even describe his behavior as hostile, when a caller tries to pin him down with hard questions about his "hard decision" to close St. John's and St. Mary's without proper justification or study.
The closing of the Pittston Catholic schools, if it is carried out, will forever remain a travesty of fairness and decency- and, perhaps most importantly, Christian principles.
St. John the Baptist Elementary School in Pittston (1917- June 4,2004) and Saint Mary's Grade School in Avoca, PA (1919 - June 4,2004), closed on June 4, 2004 despite a long battle, which included a lawsuit filed by parents of SJB, to keep them opened.
Many of the students' parents have, as a result of their disillusionment with Bishop Joseph F. Martino, the Diocese of Scranton,and the Catholic Schools office, enrolled the children in public school.