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Escanaba looks at future with Holy Name

ESCANABA — The recent announcement from Holy Name Catholic School that it is planning to reopen its high school has received attention from Escanaba Area Public Schools Superintendent Coby Fletcher.

For many years, Escanaba and Holy Name have shared suitable instructors, transportation and programming. Of the shared opportunities, some are required by Michigan law and others have been collaborative agreements. With the reopening of the Holy Name high school, Fletcher anticipates there will be some changes to the shared programs.

“Some of the things we do to collaborate with Holy Name — sharing of Title I funds, busing students within the district — these are things we are required to do, so we do it,” said Fletcher.

Other types of collaborative agreements include sharing a physical education teacher and musical programming. These are not required by law.

“Some Holy Name students come over and take advantage of our band and orchestra programs up through the 8th grade. So if they want to participate in band or orchestra in high school, you don’t want them to come into the school programs being behind the other students,” Fletcher said.

Athletics are dictated by the Michigan High School Athletic Association guide lines. According to Fletcher, if Escanaba were to co-op with Holy Name, the membership count from Holy Name would add to the membership count of Escanaba. The total number of athletes could move the school district up a division. Athletics come at a cost to the district.

“While athletics bring in funding, there is a cost to the district,” said Fletcher. “It’s one we’re happy to bear for our own students, but not one we would consider bearing for another school, organization, or district.”

Students at Holy Name come from Escanaba, Gladstone, Rapid River, Cornell and Trenary. Currently kindergarten through eighth grade students attend the school, and once the student graduates from Holy Name they choose a public school to continue their high school education. When Holy Name had a high school, the students could continue in Holy Name with a faith-based curriculum.

In 1971 Holy Name had to close their high school after the Michigan Non-public School Aid Amendment, Proposal C, passed. Proposal C prohibited direct government funding of non-public schools and students.

In 2017, a group of parents prepared a proposal to reopen the high school and gave it to Bishop John Doerfler to review. After reviewing the proposal he requested a feasibility study to see whether the high school should reopen. The study proved the high school could become a reality, and plans have been made to reopen in 2021.

The shared programming will continue between Escanaba and Holy Name as Holy Name continues its “Now is the Time!” campaign. Fletcher and Holy Name Principal Joseph Carlson have not discussed Holy Name’s plan in depth, but they have thought about what shared programming would look like.

“I understand why our shared-time relationship may have to change with Escanaba if Holy Name High School comes to fruition,” said Carlson.

Schools of Choice has also affected how the schools operate.

“Schools of choice has really changed the way that districts interact with each other. We’re still collegial with each other, but now we compete for students,” said Fletcher. “The number of students in our region of the state isn’t increasing, it’s decreasing. So basically, we’re all competing for the same number of dwindling students.”

Shared programming has continued through the years because graduates from Holy Name were expected to continue their education at Escanaba.

“We would take a close look at certain arrangements. Simply because we want students to come to Escanaba, and we would want that programming to entice students to come to the Escanaba,” Fletcher said. “It would be counter-intuitive for us to share programming in a way that incentivizes students to go somewhere else. Because of these reasons, the current cooperative and collaborative agreements between Escanaba and Holy Name would be impacted.”

Carlson understands the concern Fletcher has and is grateful for the shared opportunities Holy Name continues to have with Escanaba.

“I really want to emphasize that we are not making the effort to reopen Holy Name High School because we don’t think that Escanaba is a good school system. We are doing this because we feel that it is a calling from God to do so, and that ‘Now is the Time!'” said Carlson. “We also believe that giving our students an opportunity to continue to grow in their faith and develop a personal relationship with Jesus would be a good thing for our children, our community and our world.”

If Holy Name knows for sure the high school is going to open, Fletcher and Carlson will review the existing agreements between the two schools.

“They have a pretty aggressive timeframe and fund raising campaign,” said Fletcher. “I absolutely understand and respect what they are doing. I know why they are doing it, and those are things I can support. I get it.”

Until the Holy Name high school is reopened, the current shared programs will go on. However, if the high school reopens, there could be changes to the programming offered by Escanaba for students at Holy Name.

“I just want the public to be aware, as this moves forward that there are potential impacts on programming that Holy Name parents have traditionally expected to be a part of in the Escanaba, and that could change with the opening of the Holy Name high school,” Fletcher said.

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