Diocese pushes back announcement about Cathedral rebuilding to February

Date: 1/22/2015

SPRINGFIELD – Bishop Mitchell T. Rozanski released a statement on Jan. 17 concerning the progress of the process to determine if Cathedral High School (CHS) would be rebuilt.

In response the Committee for Cathedral Action, the grassroots group that has been raising both funds and awareness for a new Catholic high school on its grounds on Surrey Road, also released a statement, in which they noted the group is not among the stakeholders selected by the diocese to participate in the decision-making process.

A decision about the fate of the school will not be made this month, which had been announced last month as a new deadline.

Mark Dupont, the communications officer for the diocese told Reminder Publications, “The second phase of the review will take place this coming weekend. The plan is for each representative to take whatever recommendations they arrive at, and bring back to their constituency groups. Then return hopefully within a short period of time with the feedback.”

Dupont, added, “As some of that timeline is out of our hands, we remain hopeful for an announcement during February.”

Dupont also commented on why the Committee for Cathedral Action has not been part of the stakeholders interviewed by the diocese during the decision making process. “The stakeholder sessions are complete. They consisted of groups made up by clearly defined groups within the CHS community, parents, alumni, neighborhood representatives, faculty, board members etc. All groups that would exist in every Catholic school and not created simply as a response to this situation. If, as we are told, [Committee for Cathedral Action] is made up of a broad base of CHS supporters, then they would have already been represented in our stakeholder groups so their inclusion would have been redundant.”

Rozanski taped a message for the “Real to Reel” television program produced by the diocese, which can be seen here:



Rozanski said, “And among the most pressing and one that will have a long-term impact on our diocesan community is the future of Cathedral High School. Since announcing a review of options last November there has been much public discussion. Unfortunately this has led to some misunderstanding, which I’d like to address now in the effort to clarify the issue before us.

“Let’s start with some facts everyone should be able to agree on … that Catholic schools have played an important role in our diocesan church, that Cathedral High School and its legacy have played an important part in that history. At the same time, our support for Catholic education as a whole and Cathedral High School in particular has increasingly taken up a larger and larger portion of our increasingly limited financial resources. It is a situation, which I must be completely honest with you, is no longer sustainable.

“With this in mind I asked that a coordinated process of facilitated dialogues and problem solving sessions be developed to try to find the best solution for the diocese. I am extremely grateful to those who have given up their time over the last two months to undertake this process. I am pleased to announce we have concluded the first phase and now are preparing for the critical problem solving workshops, which are scheduled to begin Jan. 24.

“Those who will participate in the problem solving sessions will be asked to come not just as representatives of their constituency groups but as members of the diocesan family with an open minds and hearts so as to honestly confront our challenges and develop a realistic plan. This, and this alone, offers us the only route to resolving this challenge.

“Many have engaged in rallies and other public demonstrations of support for Cathedral High School. Their commitment to this beloved school is to be commended and I join them in their admiration for the great legacy of Cathedral High School, but those actions in and of themselves don’t respond to the financial and enrollment challenges we face. That is why I remain committed to this process as the only route to find a realistic solution. A solution which cannot be based on highly speculative projections but based on a realistic plan based on the facts we know regarding our Catholic population and the economic reality of our community.

“The task is daunting, I will grant you that. But as a church we need to be honest and open considering all of the facts – even those which highlight the challenges which have had a negative impact upon our diocese and this school. Although the focus is Cathedral High School this is not a decision limited to one city or neighborhood, but it will have an impact on the whole of the diocese and in some regards the future direction we take for all of Catholic education.”

The bishop concluded, “Ultimately I must decide on what direction to take based on the needs of the whole diocesan community and how to best utilize the limited resources with all of the needs we face.”

The Committee for Cathedral Action released the following reply, “We are delighted to hear from the bishop on this issue of utmost importance to Cathedral students, Cathedral alumni and supporters and active Catholics in greater Springfield … Over the last few months, faithful Catholics throughout the diocese and residents of greater Springfield have voiced their overwhelming support for the building of a new Cathedral High School on Surrey Road in Springfield. We are convinced that with positive, dynamic and strong leadership, enrollment, which has fallen, can be built back to desired levels and be sustained. We commend the bishop for addressing the sustainability issue which diocesan leadership has neglected to address for far too long. Like the bishop, we believe that if the diocese continues to operate the school as it has for the last several decades, it will not survive. That is precisely why we have advocated for a new state-of-the-art Cathedral with new leadership, new marketing strategies and new techniques to engage alumni and others to support the school. As we have shown, there are a plethora of successful and sustainable Catholic High Schools in the Northeast; some in places as challenged economically as Springfield like Central Catholic in Lawrence.

“We understand the financial concerns of the diocese but we believe that having a strictly financial outlook is shortsighted. To the extent that the Diocese believes they have a problem now with the decline in attendance at mass and monies in their coffers; we promise, that closing Cathedral High School will only further exacerbate those problems.
“One of our goals was to make it clear that support for a new Cathedral runs far, wide and deep. We support the diocese and stand ready to help it to achieve our ultimate goal of rebuilding a new Cathedral High School on Surrey Road. We have ideas and are confident that we can help. We have offered to participate in the stakeholder process and, in particular, in the stakeholder meetings of Jan. 24 and 25, but, to date, the diocese has not taken us up on our offer.

“We will even go a step further and say that if the diocese chooses not to rebuild and run a new Cathedral High School will stand ready, able and very willing to form a committee, with professionals, to take the school private and would very much expect the diocese's cooperation in that transition.”

That statement had been made previous to one made by the group’s chair Al DiLascia about the criteria for considering a new CHS.

He wrote, “First, we must carefully examine and learn from the multitude of other successful Catholic high schools in our state and in our region. There [are] a number of examples of successful, thriving Catholic high schools in cities smaller and with the same if not lower median incomes than we have in the greater-Springfield area. If these communities can operate and sustain a viable Catholic high school, we can as well. If Lawrence, with its population of 77,000 residents, median household income just above $25,000 and 34 percent of residents living below the poverty line can sustain a Catholic high school, Springfield can as well. Springfield has double the population of Lawrence, a $35,000 median household income and 21 percent of families below the poverty line. Moreover, Cathedral, like many Catholic schools, has historically and continues to draw its student body from the broader geographic area surrounding Springfield and even into Northern Connecticut. We can and will learn how to succeed from our sister schools who face and surmount similar financial and demographic challenges as Cathedral.

“Second, we must commit to building a new and state-of-the-art Cathedral High School on Surrey Road with a Catholic philosophy at its core. This cutting edge facility will attract students to attend and motivate parents to send their children. Imagine a brand new Cathedral in the heart of East Forest Park that stands as a beacon to the region and the world that also teaches Catholic principles of caring for community, respect for others, kindness and service to the less fortunate. All of this within an environment of academic rigor and excellence.

“Third, we must properly engage the approximately 25,000 living alumni of Cathedral High School to contribute to the success of CHS. These ‘Cathedral People’ must be told the new story of their school and mobilized to show their pride in and gratitude to the institution that gave them so much, so many years ago. An active and giving alumni base will help reduce the tuition burden for deserving families who wish to attend Cathedral and thereby ensure the future of the school. This resurgence of alumni support will spur broader community support from elected officials, neighbors and citizens of the region. We must restore trust in the Cathedral brand to rebuild the support among these key groups.

“Fourth, we must ensure the presence of strong, independent and dynamic leadership at the helm of Cathedral High School, including a diverse, engaged and influential Board of Trustees. This team will prioritize fiscal responsibility and revenue generation on the business side and demand excellence in academics, athletics, arts and citizenry of CHS students on the academic side. Not only will the very successful athletic programs continue to be a draw for Cathedral but parents and students will continue to be confident that if a student works hard in the classroom, the doors of any college will be open to them. Athletics, public service and other extracurricular activities, combined with a strong Catholic curriculum, will continue to shape and mold young people into the respectful and caring people – ‘Cathedral People’ – that many students strive to become.

He concluded, “Last, we must develop and implement a first class marketing plan that revitalizes the Cathedral brand to attract the best and brightest students to attend CHS. Like all private schools, Cathedral will face competition from public high schools, charter schools and other private schools located in Springfield and beyond. Cathedral must be effectively, rigorously and consistently marketed to prospective students to ensure they understand the quality education and Catholic values that this amazing school offers.”