In surfing headlines of TV and newspapers, this one caught my eyes. Two Catholic schools in Erie are merging, kinda.
High school sports fans are familiar with Erie Cathedral Prep through their football success, and with the Villa Maria Academy in Erie for their girls' basketball.
ECP is all-boys, and VMA used to be all-girls, but now is about 75% girls. Both will merge, and be under the same name. Yet, ECP stays all boys and VMA goes back to all girls for classes. All activities will be co-ed. The diocese operates ECP, while the Sisters of St. Joseph's of NW PA oversaw VMA. Some VMA alumni wanted the school returned to its all-girls roots. The diocese will still have a co-ed high, Mercyhurst Prep. Declining enrollment and the economy were mentioned in all reports as to a cause for the agreement between the schools.
That got me wondering... will something like this every happen in our area? If our population was higher and economy greater, then perhaps. But with how the Allentown Diocese and Scranton Diocese recently closed a number of schools, I think that staying open is more of an issue than seperating the genders. It could have a put a few of the closed buildings to good use, i.e. Cardinal Brennan.
Buckle up,
TS
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