JACKSON HEIGHTS — The school year began at St. Joan of Arc Catholic School on Sept. 9 with Principal Agnes Mosejczuk and Father Christopher Heanue, pastor of St. Joan of Arc Church, greeting students as they arrived for class.
However, this year was different from past years, as many more students were there to be greeted. According to Mosejczuk, 105 new students enrolled this year, compared to 60 newcomers last year, bringing St. Joan of Arc’s total to 281.
To accommodate the enrollment increase, the school created five new classrooms.
“It’s a nice dilemma to have,” Mosejczuk said.
The increase, Father Heanue said, marked the highest percentage gain of any school in the Diocese of Brooklyn and pushed St. Joan of Arc well past its enrollment goal of 210 students.
Ted Havelka, director of enrollment management and financial assistance for the Office of the Superintendent of Schools in the Diocese of Brooklyn, said there are enrollment increases across the diocese.
“More than half of our Catholic schools are experiencing enrollment growth,” he said, “reflecting continued demand from families seeking bold academics, joyful communities, and an unapologetically Catholic education.”
The superintendent’s office did not provide enrollment figures.
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Mosejczuk attributed the enrollment increase at St. Joan of Arc to its accessibility to parents seeking a school to enroll their children. She said she always tries to accommodate parents’ questions and tour requests.
“I try my best to accommodate them on their schedules,” Mosejczuk explained. “You have to make time for people.”
Father Heanue also cited outreach to parents of the recently closed St. Bartholomew Catholic Academy in Elmhurst as a factor in the enrollment increase. Mosejczuk noted that 60 of the 105 new students are from that school.
After the closure was announced, Father Heanue celebrated Mass at St. Bartholomew Church to pray for and with the school community. He also spoke to parents and asked them to consider sending their children to St. Joan of Arc.
“We’re so happy, obviously, to see our school growing. But we also recognize that we’re called to make our school a home for those who sadly saw their schools close,” Father Heanue said, adding that “It’s a great gift that (St. Bartholomew parents) decided to send their children to our school.”
Father Heanue also highlighted the involvement of St. Joan of Arc parishioners as another important factor in the school’s enrollment increase.
Unlike a Catholic academy, which has a connection to a parish but is run by a board of trustees made up of laypersons, a Catholic school is operated by a parish with the pastor directly overseeing its administration and finances.
“Parishioners are responding to a call for action,” Father Heanue said. “They’re responding to supporting the school.”