Vincentian Academy Community Reacts To School Closing
ROSS TOWNSHIP (KDKA) -- Vincentian Academy announced it will be closing once the school year ends.
Twenty-seven employees will lose their jobs, including 18 teachers. The students who go there will also have to find a new place to attend classes.
Vincentian Academy does not fall under the Pittsburgh Catholic Diocese.
Spokesperson Dana Hinton said it is run by the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth out of Kentucky
"Due to financial reasons, as a result of lowering numbers of enrollment, we've had to close," Hinton said.
On May 29, the last class will graduate from Vincentian Academy.
A few days later on June 3, the last day of school will be the end of an era.
Staff, students and parents were informed of the closing this week.
The reaction was that of heartbreak and disappointment.
Student Council President Matthew Soller, a graduating senior, talks about the closing and his experiences.
"It hurts because I spent four years here, and I grew up here," Soller said. "I wrote college essays about how I overcame adversity and became a leader. This is where I grew up. It just hurts that some kids will not be able to experience the full four years of Vincentian Academy".
Principal Rita Canton said now the task ahead is to work with students to help them find placement in other schools.
Several private schools in the area, like Winchester Thurston, said they are already getting calls about admission.
Only 63 students are in the graduating class, and about 100 students must now find another school, as well as teachers and staff.
