After almost an hour of anxious anticipation at a recent school assembly, students of Holy Family Academy gave a rousing cheer to the news that the school will not close or relocate in June 2009.
Judy Bielan, a spokesperson for “I Believe in HFA, Inc.” – a group of alumni, community leaders, local business owners and parents – told the morning assembly that she had good and bad news for the students.
Some students seemed to hold their breath when Bielan said that the bad news was that the current seniors would not hold the legacy of being the last class to graduate from Holy Family Academy.
For a moment, a puzzled expression came over the faces of many students, until Bielan added that school supporters had come to an agreement with the Sisters of St. Joseph of Chestnut Hill in Philadelphia, Pa. – who have owned and operated the all-girls Catholic high school for 83 years – to lease the current location, and that the doors of Holy Family Academy will remain open. In other words, the school will not close at the end of this school year.
“We will be opening our doors in September 2009,” Bielan said.
Originally, one year left
Last January, the Sisters of St. Joseph announced that they could no longer afford to keep the school open past June 2009. Initially, the Sisters of St. Joseph ordered the school to cease enrolling freshmen. But school officials and parents apparently won a reprieve, based at least in part on a possible plan for supporters to find a way to purchase the school.
The Sisters of St. Joseph, who founded the school in 1925, proposed closing the school due to reduced enrollment and continued costs for running the institution. The school receives no funding from the Archdiocese of Newark, only from the Sisters of Saint Joseph.
Declining enrollment
The graduating classes have averaged around 50 students, down from more than 100 students in the 1980s. The school currently has 166 students and projects about 45 seniors for September 2009. In order to build up enrollment for the fall, HFA will hold an open house from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 9.
Despite its small size, graduating classes of HFA have a remarkably good academic reputation, with 100 percent of the graduates going on to college, averaging about $5 million in total scholarships for each graduating class. The graduating class of 2008, comprised of 55 students received more than $6.2 million in scholarships and grants.
Rescue organization
Last February, I Believe in HFA, Inc., a not-for-profit organization, was formed to rescue the school.
Behind the scenes, negotiations have been going on for some time, although a breakthrough seemed to come in September when the Sisters of St. Joseph asked the leaders to present them with a business plan for the future of the school and to come up with a lease agreement for the current location by mid-October.
The lease agreement would allow seven nuns to continue to live on the grounds, six of whom work at the school as faculty.
Although the news is good, the school is not yet secure. HFA needs to continue its intense fundraising efforts in order to meet the estimated $2 million-a-year costs. Last May, the not-for-profit group set an initial goal of $500,000 to assure a solid start for the school.
Through fundraising efforts, marketing campaigns, strategic planning, and general support, I Believe in HFA is uniting parents, faculty, current and prospective students, alumni, and community leaders and has raised about $300,000 in cash and pledges.
A parents’ meeting at the end October drew as many as 100 people, who offered support for a more intensive fundraising effort. This enhanced effort will kick-off almost immediately now that the school’s location is secured.
Kevin Boyle, a spokesperson for I Believe in HFA, said the school has already begun a campaign to boost enrollment.
“We have a tremendous alumni base and uncapped potential,” he said. “First, we will look to recruit more freshmen and transfer students.”
With new groups of people coming together in alumni and parents’ committees, Boyle believes the effort will generate additional funds and will move the school closer to being self-sustaining.
He said these groups are reaching out to Catholic elementary schools throughout Hudson County and Staten Island. Due to the expansion of the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail line to Eighth Street – only a few blocks from HFA – the school becomes even more accessible.
Students thrilled
Students – even seniors who will no longer be here next year – were thrilled with the news.
Monica Canmano said she was happy that the school will get to continue on at the current location.
“Even though I’m a senior, I still want it to be here,” said Canmano, who has aspirations to become an actress.
Morgan Clemente, also a senior who will graduate in June, said she and other students got involved with the fundraising efforts, as well as raising awareness about the school’s plight. Like other students, Clemente said she owes the school for preparing her for a career in pharmacy science and business.
Amanda Francis said the news of the closing upset her, even though she was going to graduate shortly.
“I wanted it to be here for others to graduate from,” she said.
Gena Alvarez, a junior, said the initial report of the school’s closing in June 2009 upset her because she had already invested three years here and wanted to graduate from Holy Family.
She said she and other students got involved in finding ways to raise funds and will continue to do what they can to make sure Holy Family has a secure future.