(KNSI) — Catholic schools in central Minnesota and across the United States are seeing an increase in their numbers since the pandemic began.
Scott Warzecha, President of St. Cloud area Catholic Community Schools (CCS) said enrollment the last few years had been experiencing a drop of about 4% each year, but the decline was reversed at the start of the school year.
“We actually increased enrollment by 6% this year. It doesn’t seem like much, but after a steady annual decrease of 4% this is pretty encouraging.”
According to the National Catholic Educational Association, the 6% swing exceeds the national average of 3.8% growth. Warzecha says he thinks more families are now turning to CCS because they can keep students in the classroom while others can’t.
“Last year, we kept our schools open longer than our public counterparts, and it really met the desire of our parents to help their children learn and do well in the classroom, in person.”
He says they are able to keep doors open because of their small class sizes.
“We, by design, keep our class sizes small to provide better academics and individualized learning, and we’re able to spread out students and still have all students in our school. So, I think it’s attracted families to our school system.”
He says that preschool classes are expected to be filled to capacity again next year. Enrollment for returning and new CCS students is underway for the 2022-2023 school year, and CCS has implemented a new variable tuition model that matches tuition to a family’s ability to pay, ensuring that anyone can send their child to St. Cloud Area Catholic Community Schools.
One is not required to be Catholic to attend Catholic Community Schools; Warzecha notes that about 30% of CCS students are not Catholic.
The Catholic Community Schools system is made up of seven elementary schools (All Saints Academy, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton School, St. Francis Xavier Catholic School, St. Joseph Catholic School, St. Katharine Drexel School, St. Mary Help of Christians and St. Wendelin Catholic School), and Cathedral Middle & High School.
Along with the increase in enrollment in St. Cloud area Catholic schools, registration of the Prince of Peace Lutheran School in Sartell has also begun. Two St. Cloud charter schools, Stride Academy and Athlos Academy have also reported an increase in enrollment since the beginning of the year.
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