St. Isidore School to shut down
Dwindling enrollment is forcing a long-time education institution in Steele County to close its doors.
St. Isidore School in Litomysl will be shutting down at the end of the school year after providing Catholic education to students for nearly 60 years, church officials announced last week.
Deb Brown of Blooming Prairie, who once served on St. Isidore’s school board and at one time had four students enrolled in the school, is saddened by last week’s announcement. She loved the school’s small class sizes and the morale aspect it brought to learning.
But she knew the end was coming because the enrollment had been declining for several years. “It wasn’t a big shock, but it’s unfortunate,” Brown said.
Father John Sauer, parish priest of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Owatonna and Holy Trinity, said the school board made the final decision on Feb. 12. It was then submitted to Bishop John Quinn of the Diocese of Winona, who approved the closing Feb. 16.
Sauer met with the school’s faculty and staff Feb. 17 and the parents on the next day to inform them of the decision. General announcements were made this past weekend at masses.
The school will close on May 29, which is the same school calendar as Blooming Prairie school district.
This year’s enrollment at St. Isidore is at 15 students in three classes, including preschool, kindergarten through second grade and third through fifth. Current staff includes three teachers, a part-time principal and office support.
The school began in 1958 with 90 students and once had as many as 100 during the early years.
Church officials, Sauer said, have been monitoring the enrollment real closely for the last few years. He noted the school had circulated surveys with parish families inquiring about potential future enrollment. “The responses we got led us to believe there would not be an uptick in enrollment,” he said.
Part of the challenge facing St. Isidore, Sauer said, was its location in the rural area of the county between Owatonna and Blooming Prairie. “We just didn’t have a population base and families are now smaller and people are more mobile,” he said.
He pointed out that families used to have as many as eight or more children back in the early years when the school opened. “We have less numbers of children in the parish today,” Sauer said.
Sauer said St. Isidore’s closing is not related to the Vision 2016 plan unveiled a few weeks ago by the Diocese in which a number of small churches will be closed and merged into other parishes.
“It’s pure coincidence that the two came out so close together,” Sauer said, noting that Vision 2016 has looked at strictly churches and not schools.
The closing has sparked mixed feelings from church members, according to Sauer. “It’s bittersweet,” he said. “People are sad to see it close, but they understand the pressures we were up against.”
St. Isidore had considered closing back in 2007, but at the time decided to give it one more shot, Sauer said.
“We wish we weren’t in this position, but we are,” Sauer said. “It was not an easy decision. The idea that the school in my parish is closing is difficult for all of us.”
The School Sisters of Notre Dame from Mankato, who lived in the convent above the school, originally staffed the school. In the early years, there was no tuition costs for those attending.
In 1975, half-day kindergarten was added which expanded to an all-day program in 2011. The preschool was added in 2000. Grades 6-8 were discontinued in 2007 due to the declining enrollment.
St. Isidore has proudly served the children of Steele County and provided an excellent education, Sauer said. Students routinely scored well in standard educational assessments and were known for their friendliness and care for others, he added.
Church officials will form a repurposing committee to decide the fate of the building, which Sauer describes as “in good shape.” He added that the parish has always been good stewards with the building.
Said Brown: “I hope they are able to find a purpose for that building.”