An announcement about the long-term fate of the historic Cathedral High School in Springfield, Massachusetts is now expected by mid-February. Advocates of rebuilding the school that was wrecked in the 2011 tornado are encouraged by word the school will operate for one more year, at least, at its temporary campus.
Springfield Bishop Mitchell Rozanski will begin a series of meetings on January 24th in what will amount to the final due diligence on whether to rebuild the Catholic high school with a 130-year- history in Springfield.
"So, by the middle of February we should know what we are doing and how we are going to do it," said Monsignor John Bonzagni, Director of Pastoral Planning for the diocese. He said Rozanski will meet with about 15 people, chosen to represent the various groups with a stake in Cathedral’s future. These include students, parents, alumni, and neighbors of the school.
" He ( Rozanski) is being aided greatly by the people who participated and is looking forward to making a decision that is best for the entire diocese," said Bonzagni. " His major concern is sustainability. Yes, we could put up a building, but would we have to close it in four years?"
The diocese has raised concerns about Cathedral’s enrollment—down to 217 students currently—which officials point out was dropping even before the June, 2011 tornado wrecked the school building and forced the relocation of classes to a former elementary school in nearby Wilbraham.
The diocese has provided $12 million to subsidize the high school’s operations in the last 15 years.
Rozanski, who became Springfield Bishop in August, ordered a study in November to determine what should happen to Cathedral. Bonzagni said a fact-finding process, which was delayed because of the Christmas and New Year holidays, will wrap up this week.
A group of activists has been pressing for more than a year for the diocese to commit to rebuilding Cathedral at the Surrey Road campus in Springfield, where the high school was built in 1959. They’ve ratcheted up the rhetoric in the last two months with two rallies, lobbying, lawn signs and bumper stickers in a bid to demonstrate broad public support for rebuilding the school at the Surrey Road site.
The diocese has a $50 million insurance settlement and $38 million from FEMA that could be used to rebuild Cathedral, according to members of the Committee for Cathedral Action.
The diocese announced Monday that Cathedral High School will operate for the 2015-2016 academic year at the temporary campus in Wilbraham. Bonzagni cautioned the announcement does not foreshadow any long term decision.
"It is a realization that this is the period of time when schools work on their enrollment for the following year and we have backed up into that because the ( review) process did not work as quickly as we would like," said Bonzagni.
Springfield City Councilor Timothy Rooke, an advocate for rebuilding Cathedral, said the announcement the high school will operate for another year is a positive sign.
" There is a lot of momentum from people who want to see Cathedral rebuilt on Surrey Road. There are a lot of business owners making commitments to support the tuition endowment fund."
Officials hope to establish a $10 million tuition assistance fund for Cathedral students.
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