Parents Given Tour of New Consolidated Catholic School During Open House; Media Told to Go Away

As two Wyandotte Catholic schools prepare to close in a few months, parents were invited to an open house Wednesday at the newly formed John Paul II Catholic School.

Flyers for the event said there would be school tours, financial aid information and on-site registration. A raffle for tuition discounts, gift cards and school supplies also were advertised.

And while the event was dubbed an open house, it was closed to the media. 

Wyandotte Patch was denied access to the school and was ordered to leave the premises. Joe Kohn, media spokesman for the Archdiocese of Detroit, was on site and said the event was closed to the press.

"We appreciate the Wyandotte Patch respecting the space of the parents as they got a firsthand look at the school and were able to meet many of those involved," Kohn said in a written statement hours later. "We certainly understand and respect the importance of media coverage, but ... tonight was a night during which we were focused solely on showing hospitality to the families who wanted to learn more."

According to Kohn, about 200 families attended the event.

“Those involved with the establishment of John Paul II School were encouraged by the high turnout, high interest level, and high level of enthusiasm many parents showed for the new school,” he said.

Prompted by a severe decline in enrollment,  and  will cease operations at the end of the school year. The two will merge with Christ the Good Shepherd in Lincoln Park and begin jointly operating on its campus in August. 

Four parishes will serve as sponsors of the new school: Christ the Good Shepherd, , and .  

Members of all four parishes were in attendance at the open house, Kohn said. Parents of area public school children came as well, he said.

Official announcement of the merger came about two weeks ago and was met with mixed reaction among parents. Some parents said they were never officially informed of any school closings or the consolidation. 

However, Kohn said, about 200 to 300 people were at an Oct. 6 public meeting regarding the issue. Letters also were mailed home to every family enrolled in the schools, he said. Since that time, Kohn said, additional letters have gone out from all of the schools involved in the merger. (See PDF above.)

The Rev. Michael Cremin of Wyandotte Catholic addressed why the consolidation occurred in a letter dated Jan. 30.

“We really needed to do something positive to ensure that our children had greater security in availing of a Catholic school education in this area,” he said.

In a Feb. 2 letter to parents and students, the Rev. Walter Ptak of Mt. Carmel said he is excited about what the future holds.

“Our new venture, John Paul II Catholic School, responds to the call to evangelize and bring the ‘good news’ to all people by imparting Catholic values in all that we do,” he said. "I hope you like what you see and look forward to your presence in our school in the coming year."