PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) ? Students enrolled in more than 150 Catholic schools run by the Philadelphia archdiocese braced on Friday for major restructuring plans that may shutter schools.
Church leaders and members of a special blue-ribbon commission on Catholic education were set to announce their decision in a late afternoon briefing.
The Philadelphia archdiocese is the sixth-largest in the country with 1.5 million Catholics. It operates 156 elementary schools, 17 high schools and four special education facilities in five counties in the Philadelphia area.
While the archdiocese remained mute about its plans, they were foreshadowed in a pastoral letter released in December by the newly appointed leader in Philadelphia, Archbishop Charles Chaput.
"The archdiocese remains strongly committed to the work of Catholic education. But that mission is badly served by trying to sustain unsustainable schools," Chaput wrote.
"In the coming year we will face very serious financial and organizational issues that cannot be delayed," he added. "They must be addressed."
Parents fretted about the yet unknown decisions, posting comments on a Facebook page called Catholic Parents Respond.
Some comments assume that schools are going to be shut, and one begged that schools slated for closure be given a one-year notice so that students can find alternatives.
"I can't help but think of all the children trying to go about their day while waiting for answers. This is cruel to do to anyone, especially our children!!!" wrote one parent.
The blue-ribbon commission was appointed in December 2010 by Chaput's predecessor, Cardinal Justin Rigali, who retired in July after suspending dozens of priests being investigated in a child sexual abuse scandal.
At the time he appointed the panel, Rigali said: "Archdiocesan schools face challenges -- changing demographics, lower enrollments in some schools and the continued struggle to keep Catholic education affordable for the many families who wish to make this investment for their children's futures."
(Editing by Barbara Goldberg and Peter Bohan)
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