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Cambridge Matignon becomes latest Catholic school to close
By adamg on Tue, 05/02/2023 - 11:49pm
Cambridge Matignon School made a somber announcement today:
It is with great sadness that we share the news that The Cambridge Matignon School will permanently close its doors upon the conclusion of the 2022-23 academic year. ...
Although we continue to boast an extensive international student program, strong pipeline to top-tier colleges and universities as well as an immensely experienced and educated faculty, we unfortunately are not immune from the financial challenges that go with continuing this expectation of greatness. While all members of our school leadership group have exhausted all options to continue forward, we have not been able to secure the funds necessary to support the long-term sustainability of the school. That, combined with the challenge of ongoing demographic shifts among middle and high-school-aged children, has resulted in insurmountable financial pressures that forced us to make this decision.
St. Joseph Prep in Brighton announced in February it was closing. Mount Alvernia School in Newton announced in March it was shutting its doors.
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Comments
“ongoing demographic shifts”
“ongoing demographic shifts” is a euphemism for something that I just can put my finger on.
Increased immigration?
And yet much of the immigrant population is coming from Catholic-majority countries in Latin America, as well as Haiti which also has a substantial Catholic population.
So...
...how much is tuition at this school?
For the about-to-end school
For the about-to-end school year it was $17,250 per the Globe's article on the announcement this morning.
Except
That immigrant population just isn't wealthy enough to drop five figures annually on tuition for each kid, especially if they're also sending a big chunk of their paycheck back home to support their families. No doubt they'd send their kids on a scholarship, but the endowments aren't large enough for that to be sustainable for the school.
If only
the school had a connection to some kind of organization with enormous amounts of wealth that could help out.
Enormous but not unlimited wealth
The wealth of the Catholic Church is probably in the hundreds of billions of dollars, including land, structures, art, investments, etc. -- but the vast majority of that is extremely illiquid (i.e. they're not selling St. Peter's or the contents of the Vatican Museum).
So then the question is how much do they have coming in to fund expenses and/or what can they actually sell to help supplement that? And how does funding parochial schools compete with their other charitable activities for available money? Ten grand spent on a food pantry probably helps a lot more people than on a scholarship, even if that scholarship might be incredibly impactful for its recipient.
on top of that...
how much would they have to pay for cambridge public school real-estate taxes.
They don’t want to admit that
They don’t want to admit that religion is quickly dying off.
?
Roxbury and Dorchester have lots of former Hebrew school buildings and synagogues.
Did Judaism quickly die off, or did their base move to the burbs.....just like a lot of Catholics.
Once again, your hatred of Catholicism is masked by only a piece of saran wrap you pathetic bigot.
It's not a euphemism
It's real. The school-aged population in MA is in a gradual decline. The rapid rise in housing costs in Cambridge over the past couple of decades doesn't help, either, as many families are now priced out of the city.
The Archdiocese of Boston has
The Archdiocese of Boston has been going broke since the 1970s. Churches burned down and not repaired, Churches deconsecrated and sold, Catholic schools closing, nunneries and convents as well.
Why has Rome forsaken us?
demographic shifts among middle and high-school-aged children
What are these shifts?
Less Kids - Better Buildings
There are less kids and a lot less practicing Catholics.
Public schools (and charter schools) have fought back. Have you seen the new Somerville high? Edifice complex is winning.
Unless you are sending your kid to BC High, X, Penguin Academy (Yes, that is the name of a newer Girl's Catholic school in Wenham), St. John's or St. Seb's, Newton Country Day, or Ursuline, why pay to send your kid to a place with a shrinking enrollment and a shrinking endowment.
Catholic Schools in Boston, which got a lifeline 50 years ago with busing and the state of Boston schools have been hanging on unless they are one of the ones listed above.
The remaining Catholic schools for the most part are the ones who can compete with ISL schools for money and minds.
Savio is growing under non-parochial control but land is too valuable and enrollments are shrinking. The market will bear only so much.
Less low-cost labor, too.
The average age of a nun in the United States is now around 80. It's not much better for priests at nearly 70.
And there are higher expectations these days both in terms of facilities as well as academic offerings. An expensive private school isn't competitive if it can't offer advanced courses (AP) that set students up for success in college.
I remember seeing Matignon
I remember seeing Matignon hockey at the old Garden several times, with the famous mohawks.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FlvVjsTXoAAd7hJ?format=jpg&name=medium
Sad about this one
I don't know much about the school but I do cut through their driveway often as it's a good shortcut. The school grounds are particularly nice and well maintained. The main building is attractive with the distinct tower. The students seem happy when going to class. Looked like a good place, at least from the outside.
The International (French) school is directly next door. I once made the mistake of thinking the two schools were the same and was sternly corrected. The International school has renovated and expanded a bit recently -- they seem to be doing well. I wonder if they have the means to acquire Matignon's buildings and expand.