MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A Collierville Catholic school is closing for good, and the impact of the COVID-19 may have forced it to close sooner than school leaders hoped.
Incarnation Catholic School announced it will close its kindergarten through eighth-grade classes as of June 30, although its preschool for children ages 1-4 will remain open.
School leaders said enrollment currently averages below 10 students per grade level, and said the school had been struggling financially for the last several years. Enrollment had steadily declined because of competition from other private and public schools and “transitional demographics” of the area, leaders said.
They’d hoped to keep the school open another year with support from parishioners, but said the shutdown due to COVID-19 proved too much.
“Despite everyone’s hard work, the expense of maintaining a school is far beyond what we as a parish and as a community are able to accomplish,” Rev. Jacek Kowal said in a statement.
School leaders say they will meet with parents and faculty members to discuss the transition.