Despite the past two years being hampered by the covid-19 pandemic, officials at the Catholic Diocese of Greensburg are encouraged by other trends that have emerged over the past 24 months — namely, a 20% bump in Catholic school enrollment across the diocese.

“I think that’s outstanding,” said Bishop Larry Kulick, who is marking his first year leading the diocese.

Those additional 350 students are in the midst of Catholic Schools Week, with special programs scheduled at school all week. Kulick attributed the enrollment bump to two things.

“First, we stayed open during the pandemic,” he said. “Secondly, we had a very generous anonymous donor come forward who’s very committed to Catholic education and who helped allow us to continue the St. Pope John Paul II Tuition Opportunity Partnership program, which will provide nearly $20 million in tuition assistance over the next five years.”

Kulick said the church has used a little more than $2 million in TOP funding in each of the past two years to provide tuition assistance to more than 900 students.

The donor has agreed to extend the program an additional five years, with the help of new donors including Jay W. Cleveland Jr., president and CEO of Cleveland Brothers. More than 100 other businesses and individuals have committed to the Pennsylvania Educational Income Tax Credit program, bringing the five-year outlook for tuition assistance to approximately $20 million, according to diocese spokesman Clifford Gorski.

“What it does is, essentially, anyone who desires a Catholic education can receive one without worrying about the tuition cost,” Kulick said.

Kulick said he hopes those new students’ positive experiences help to continue the growth in enrollment.

The larger Catholic community in Southwestern Pennsylvania has undergone a series of setbacks in recent years, from the mortifying revelations in a 2018 statewide grand jury report on sex abuse in a half-dozen dioceses, to the closure and consolidation of a number of longtime parishes, and the attendance restrictions amidst the worst waves of the covid-19 pandemic.

Kulick said he hopes the growth among Greensburg diocese school students is a small step on the way to bringing more people back to the church.

“In this day and age, for us as Catholics, so much has changed with regards to family structure and the larger community,” he said. “Our Catholic schools are our largest opportunity for youth ministry. We’re able to have these young people five days a week and immerse them in a Catholic culture where it’s not just religion class, but our core values and identity being emphasized.”

By the numbers

12

Number of Catholic schools operated by the Diocese of Greensburg.

350

Number of new students in Diocese of Greensburg schools over the past two years.

$300,000

Capital project donations throughout the diocese from Lindy Paving, Golden Triangle Construction and Arch Masonry.

$2.7 million

Tuition assistance utilized by Catholic schools in Western Pennsylvania through the St. John Paul II Tuition Opportunity Partnership, or TOP.

$20 million

Total TOP tuition assistance expected to be available over the next five years, enough to offset the cost of 250 new students.

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