Catholic school leaders ask that private school families, nonprofits be eligible

Leaders from 10 Catholic schools in St. Paul, including St. Agnes, St. Peter Claver and Cretin-Durham Hall, asked Mayor Melvin Carter to include Catholic school families and nonprofits in a proposed St. Paul Bridge Fund set to go before the city’s Housing and Redevelopment Authority April 1.

“(The bridge fund) is an important relief package for our St. Paul families living under incredible stress due to low income and job losses,” the school leaders said in a March 30 letter to the mayor and members of the HRA.

Proposed by Carter March 25, the $3.85 million fund would provide immediate emergency relief to low-income families and small businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.

The Catholic school leaders asked that a recent revision to the proposal be maintained, allowing Catholic and other private school families to be eligible under the fund, not only families of students in public schools.

They also asked the mayor and HRA members to include nonprofits among small businesses eligible to receive funds.

“Our parishes have lost significant income due to the fact that we no longer offer public weekday and weekend Masses and services,” the letter said. “As you may know, we rely on collections at weekend Masses for the bulk of our individual churches’ budgets. Those collections have been significantly reduced due to COVID-19. The goal of the fund is to ensure organizations stay solvent and do not have to lay off workers. There is no reason to distinguish between for-profit and non-profit entities in this regard.”

Leaders from the following schools also signed the letter: St. Thomas More, Holy Spirit, Maternity of Mary – Saint Andrew, Chesterton Academy of the Twin Cities, Nativity of Our Lord, Highland Catholic and St. Mark’s Preschool.