Why is Mount Alvernia High School closing? Families and community in shock in wake of announcement

Boston’s Mount Alvernia High School announced on Wednesday, March 8, 2023, that they would be shutting down this summer. The school community was shocked by the revelation. The education institution’s founders revealed that they were unable to live on campus solely with their finances anymore.

Mount Alvernia High School, a Newton all-girls Catholic school for those from seventh grade to 12th grade, will be closing its doors in June. It will be merged with Fontbonne Academy in Milton. The former opened in 1927. Sources claim that the institution has around 140 students.

The closure was announced on International Women’s Day, which took place on Wednesday. The founders revealed that they were unable to continue living on the property alone in a sustainable manner.

Those who performed well at the institution will be admitted to Fontbonne Academy, which is a private Catholic all-girls preparatory high school and early college. In their official announcement on their website, Mount Alvernia High School said:

“The MAHS Board of Directors worked tirelessly to explore all options, including maintaining the MAHS community in a new location, if at all possible. In considering these options, we firmly believe our students will have the best opportunity to continue to receive the high-quality education MAHS has provided for nearly 100 years by becoming a part of the Fontbonne family.”

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Mount Alvernia students reveal that they were shocked by the announcement

Several students were left blindsided by the latest announcement. Student Anna Renehan revealed in an interview:

“It’s just heartbreaking to know that I won’t be able to come back to where I’ve grown up.”

Speaking about the strong community the students had built among themselves, student Meghan Murphy said:

“It's more of a family that it is a school, we’re really small, and a lot of girls I got really close with. It’s something I could come to and really just enjoy every day.”

Kathleen Joyce, a board member and alumna of the institution, revealed in an interview that the Franciscan Sisters, who owned the 22 acres property, did not disclose their intentions to sell to a buyer for months. Joyce stated that if they had known about the financial burden in the past, they would have possibly “come up with a plan where everyone was happy."

Expressing her frustration, student Marlene Carter revealed that several girls have been left in difficult situations as they now have to apply to new institutions.

Along with Mount Alvernia High School closing, Bishop Connolly High School in Fall River, Newton, Boston will also be shutting down. They revealed that they made the decision after new enrollments had massively declined and the financial impact of the pandemic also took a toll on their institution. Hoping to aid their students, the heartbroken school organized a zoom meeting to aid students in admission to other schools, financial aid and transportation.

There are three other Catholic high schools in the Diocese of Fall River including Bishop Stang High School in Dartmouth, Bishop Feehan High School in Attleboro, and St. John Paul II High School in Barnstable.