ST. LOUIS — It appears that an agreement has been made to keep the doors open.
According to an archdiocese statement, “St. Mary’s has accepted the terms of a three-year lease from the archdiocese.” A press conference is scheduled for later this morning to discuss St. Mary’s future.
For decades, this school has been a landmark in the Dutchtown neighborhood. According to St. Mary’s Facebook page, the school’s management and board have devised a realistic route for the historic and iconic school’s long-term existence.
According to our Post Dispatch partners, the Marianists, a catholic religious order, will become St. Mary’s sponsor. The archdiocese requires a spiritual tie in order for a school to be considered a Catholic school.
The archdiocese stated in September that St. Mary’s and Rosati-Kain high schools would be closed as part of a reduction strategy. Members of the St. Mary’s community, on the other hand, committed to keep the school open.
Mike England, the school’s president, told the Post that the school had raised more than $3 million for future operations. News of the school staying open was all the conversation at last night’s St. Mary’s basketball game.
We spoke with parents and the school’s assistant athletic director about the situation here and what they were hoping to hear this morning.
Michelle Neals, St. Mary’s Parent: “That they’ll be staying open long term, and it won’t just be for one year; they’ll be staying open forever, and that they have a solid plan to achieve that, and it’s going to take some work from us as parents because we have to support the vision as well.”
Bryan Turner, assistant athletic director: “It’s a bit scary. “We have faculty that kind of went through the transition of other Catholic schools closing throughout the year, and you’ve got some teachers that actually left two different schools and have been here at St. Mary’s.”