Parents demand answers after Catholic school in Westchester announces closure
WESTCHESTER - Parents are demanding answers after a Catholic school in Westchester announced its closing.
"I'm really stressed now. It’s hard to do my homework. My friends are really sad. It’s hard to sleep," Transfiguration 7th grader Mark Lanzetta said.
Lanzetta was about to enter his 8th-grade graduation year at Transfiguration in Tarrytown.
Last week, right before the school was to celebrate its 75th year, the Archdiocese of New York sent parents an email informing them that Transfiguration will close permanently next month. The letter cites the inability of some parents to pay tuition along with "severely low enrollment."
"I’ve been a parishioner here for over 25 years. It’s been my church, my school, my life," Mark's mom Judy Lanzetta said.
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Judy is now scrambling to find her son a school, so he can complete 8th grade before advancing to high school. That would mean that he would have to attend three different schools over the next year and a half.
"Some of them are full. Some of them have waitlists. We don’t know where he’s going to go. What he’s going to do. It’s a lot of stress," Judy said.
"Careful deliberation, research, and analysis went into the final determination of which schools would not reopen. Unfortunately, shifting demographics and lower enrollment have significantly impacted the ability for these schools to continue operation. Affected families will be welcomed in neighboring Catholic schools, with applications for financial aid and scholarships," the Archdiocese of New York said in a statement.