St. Basil, Holy Family Safe Following Blue Ribbon Commission Report

Two Phoenixville area elementary schools won’t be affected by plans by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia to close and merge schools.

Despite being named as one of the lowest enrollment Catholic elementary schools by a local news site, St. Basil the Great in Kimberton, with 174 students, is safe from the effects of the Blue Ribbon Commission’s report, which was released Friday afternoon. Holy Family in Phoenixville was also not on the restructuring list, which included 44 schools throughout the greater Philadelphia region.

At a news conference going over the 37-page Blue Ribbon Commission report, Ed Hanway of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia said the school restructuring was only one aspect of the commission’s work but proved to be the most challenging and controversial.

“It is also the most necessary and in fact the most overdue,” Hanway said.

He cited increasing parish subsidies to the schools, declining enrollment, increasing operating deficits, future demographics and “less than fully competitive academic programming” as reasons for the changes in the Catholic school system in the area.

In nearby Royersford, Sacred Heart Elementary will close, with those students heading to St. Eleanor in Collegeville. In Malvern, St. Patrick will see new students coming from St. Monica in Berwyn.

To see the full list of schools affected by the commission’s recommendations, visit Philly.com. For more information or to view the commission’s report, see www.faithinthefuture.com.