St. Raymond Academy for Girls, the all-girls Catholic school that has operated in Parkchester for more than 65 years, will permanently close at the end of the 2026-27 academic year. Parish leaders say enrollment has stalled at roughly half the school's capacity, making it impossible to keep the doors open despite years of effort to keep tuition within reach for families.
The school has run as a ministry of the Church of St. Raymond since 1960, according to thegoodnewsroom.org, which reported that the parish determined it could no longer sustain the school at its current enrollment after consulting with trustees. As News 12 New York reported, the closure applies only to the girls academy — it will not affect the boys high school or the elementary school that also operate under the parish.
Rev. James Cruz, addressing the decision in a letter cited by thegoodnewsroom.org, said enrollment has remained at approximately half of the school's capacity despite years of efforts to support the school and make Catholic education accessible to families. “We are committed to helping them continue their Catholic education with support and continuity,” Cruz said, according to the same report.
Tuition Help for Departing Students
Students who complete the current school year will be eligible for tuition assistance to continue their education at either the Academy of Mount St. Ursula or St. Catharine Academy, both located in the Bronx, per the site's reporting. Those who do not already receive a parish scholarship will get an annual parish-funded scholarship of $3,000 toward tuition at either receiving school, the outlet noted.
School leaders plan to schedule an informational meeting in the coming weeks, according to News 12 New York, to give families support in finding new schools and information about available scholarships. News 12 also reported that parents and students have been saddened by the news, a reaction consistent with a community watching a six-decade-old institution wind down. St. Raymond Academy for Girls has been accredited by the New York State Board of Regents since 1965, and school records cited by straymondacademy.org show enrollment at 222 students as recently as the 2022-2023 school year.
Part of a Broader Wave of Bronx Closures
St. Raymond's is not an isolated case. The Office of the Superintendent of Schools announced in March 2026 that a small number of Catholic schools would close and some programs would be consolidated as part of its ongoing School Renewal Plan, according to catholicschoolsny.org, which added that the Archdiocese of New York said every affected student would have the opportunity to continue Catholic education at another archdiocesan school.
Other Bronx institutions have faced the same reckoning. Bronx Times reported that All Hallows High School, Sacred Heart School and Immaculate Conception School all announced plans to close at the end of the academic year, following a February 2023 decision by the Archdiocese of New York to shutter 12 schools citywide, including six in the Bronx. All Hallows had been operating at a $1.7 million deficit projected to exceed $2 million the following year, with enrollment falling from 514 students in 2018 to 325, the outlet reported.
The pressures extend beyond the Bronx. Four Catholic schools in New York City and one in Westchester County were set to close at the end of a recent school year, with officials citing declining enrollment and financial pressures, according to Fox 5 New York, which pointed to tuition costs, declining enrollment and fewer adults joining religious vocations as contributing factors.
Enrollment Declines Reshape Catholic Education Citywide
Citywide enrollment data underscores how deep the trend runs. According to City Journal, enrollment in New York City Catholic schools for kindergarten through eighth grade has declined 42 percent since 2014, while Bronx enrollment specifically has fallen by more than 50 percent; Bronx Catholic high school enrollment has dropped 30 percent over the same broader period.
Similar dynamics have played out across the boroughs. The Diocese of Brooklyn cited ongoing financial challenges and sustained enrollment declines as the main reasons for closing seven schools at the end of the 2025-26 school year, according to amNewYork, which reported those seven schools collectively operated with deficits totaling millions of dollars and saw K-8 enrollment drop into the low 100s between 2019 and 2025. One of them, Our Lady of Trust Catholic Academy, saw enrollment fall from 202 students in 2019 to 115, per the same report.
Manhattan has not been spared either. Cathedral High School, an all-girls Catholic high school, will permanently close at the end of the 2025-2026 academic year after enrollment dropped by nearly 50 percent since the 2023-2024 academic year, according to Cathedral High School, which cited significant enrollment declines, rising operational costs and fundraising limitations. The New York Times reported that St. Barnabas, a Catholic girls' school in the Bronx, closed after 100 years, with its students absorbed by All Hallows after that boys' school broke 115 years of tradition to admit girls — though All Hallows itself later announced its own closure after a fundraising campaign seeking $2.5 million fell $400,000 short.
