My Dear Parishioners and Friends,
While this time of Advent is undoubtedly a season of patience and waiting for Christ, it also calls us to action in preparing ourselves for Jesus's arrival. In meeting with the Parish Finance Council this Tuesday, we concluded now is also the time for action as we look to the future of Mary Queen School.
Our Parish was recently given a generous donation to help Mary Queen School recruit and retain new students. The Finance Council recommended this donation be used both to help our current families, and as specified, to make Mary Queen attractive to new students. To help current families, we are not increasing tuition for the 2016-2017 school year and are simultaneously keeping the multi-student discount.
In addition, the council recommended a new program to attract students to Mary Queen. Unfortunately in looking at the 5-year economic outlook of the school, if our student numbers do not increase, Mary Queen could not continue in its current capacity. So for the 2016-2017 school year, because of the donation, we are able to offer a New Student Incentive program of reduced tuition for new K-8 students. We are hoping that families in the Parish will now consider giving Mary Queen a chance because we can offer tuition for the first year at $3,000. We acknowledge this may not be a complete solution, but we hope it starts a conversation with many of you about choosing Mary Queen for your child's education.
Ultimately, while I know Mary Queen School is not the only mission of the Parish, it is a major mission and central to our faith community. Of current families registered with the Parish, nearly 800 K-8 school-aged students do not attend Mary Queen. We would love to have at least some of these families become part of the school. Please consider taking a tour, coming to Open House or at least beginning a conversation about why Mary Queen School could be the right choice for your child. With the New Student Incentive program, and our ability to offer you almost half-price tuition for 2016-2017, there is no better time than now to join the Mary Queen School community.
Representatives from the school will be at all the Masses this weekend. Please consider stopping by to receive more information and to ask your questions.
God Bless,
Father Dan Noll
Pastor