West Philadelphia Catholic High School erupted into celebration earlier today when the Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced that it would not close as expected.

The school, which was put on the Philadelphia Archdiocese closing list in early January and was supposed to shut down in June, will stay open after today’s announcement by Archbishop Charles Chaput, NBC reports. All four Catholic high schools on the closing list will remain open. Chaput said that the community support was substantial after the January announcement and that the cash pledges and donations to keep the schools open reached $12 million. The plan is to raise $100 million in five years to keep all four Catholic high schools open.

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As the search continues for a replacement for Arlene Ackerman, the School District of Philadelphia is holding a meeting tonight at West Philadelphia High School to get community input on the search. The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. and is sponsored by the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania and the Penn Project for Civic Engagement.

Tonight’s meeting is the first of three this week across the city dealing with the superintendent search. Meetings will also be held Wednesday at Strawberry Mansion High School and Thursday at Edison High School.

The Spruce Hill Community Association distributed a letter to the dozens of parents waiting in line yesterday to register their children for kindergarten next year calling on “the community” to “make itself heard.” The letter also restates the association’s stance that every child living within the school’s catchment boundaries has a right to attend Penn Alexander.

The letter begins:

“No one should have to line up in the cold for nearly 24 hours to register their child for kindergarten.”

A full copy of the letter is below.

Kindergarten registration began for schools across the District this morning, including at the Henry C. Lea School, which has received a lot of attention in recent months thanks to the work of the West Philly Coalition of Neighborhood Schools.

Pas Letter

The infamous line for kindergarten registration at the Penn Alexander School began at about 9 a.m. this morning, 24 hours before registration actually begins.

By 10:30 a.m. the line had already swollen to about 70 people. Those in line, some of whom were wrapped in sleeping bags, had begun to devise a plan to provide some relief – maybe two hours on, two hours off – from the freezing temperatures. There are currently three kindergarten classes at the school.

The line has started very early in recent years, including the night before registration last year. This year’s line, however, is unprecedented. Kindergarten registration across the district begins tomorrow morning.

Update: The Blue Ribbon Commission on Catholic Education announced today that West Philadelphia Catholic High School is on the Archdiocese closing list. According to the commission’s website, the school enrollment is currently less than half of enrollment fifteen years ago, with the rate of decline accelerating in the past three years, and only 28% of the school is being utilized. “With an enrollment now below 400, it is difficult for the school to offer a diverse academic program and maintain extracurricular programs,” the website reports.

The following schools are presented as nearby welcoming schools: Neumann Goretti High School (Co-ed), 1736 S. 10th St. (5 miles from West Catholic), John W. Hallahan Catholic Girls’ High School, 311 North 19th St. (2.8 miles from West Catholic), Bishop McDevitt High School (Co-ed), 125 Royal Ave, Wyncote, PA (12.1 miles from West Catholic), and Roman Catholic Boys’ High School, 301 North Broad St. (3.1 miles from West Catholic).

The decision on whether West Philadelphia Catholic High School is on the closing list, along with some other Catholic schools in the Philadelphia area, will be was announced today at 4 p.m. The announcement will be was streamed live on the Archdiocese website.

Catholic school administrators were summoned this morning to receive the news of recommended school closings. Schools with declining enrollments are in danger of closing. The enrollment at West Catholic has fallen down to 360 from 817 in 2001.

A few West Philly public schools are featured on DonorsChoose.org, an online portal that helps raise money for classrooms in need. Teachers at Henry C. Lea Elementary, West Philadelphia High School, Samuel B. Huey Elementary, Anna H. Shaw Middle School and a few other schools in West Philly have posted their projects, mostly in science and literature. An added incentive is that if you contribute today you can deduct from this year’s tax return.

To view the projects and to donate please click on the links below.

Avery D. Harrington Elementary – several projects
http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/search.html?state=PA&community=12358:2&school=90708

Anna H. Shaw Middle School – “Science Journals!”
http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/search.html?state=PA&community=12358:2&school=90723

William L. Sayre High School – “MicroSwitches: Assistive Interfaces For Quadriplegic Teens”
http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/search.html?state=PA&community=12358:2&school=90722

If you want to help other schools, here’s a link to the Philadelphia School District page:
http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/search.html?state=PA&community=12358:2