Corrected: This story gave incorrect information about which Roman Catholic archdiocese runs the nation’s largest parochial school system. It is the Archdiocese of New York, with 108,000 students.
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, which has the largest parochial school system in the country, plans to close 23 schools by next school year. It will also consolidate four additional schools into two.
“A decreasing number of Catholics in certain areas has resulted in a significant decline in enrollment, making it economically unfeasible to continue operating many of our schools,” Nicholas Wolsonovich, the superintendent of the archdiocesan schools, said in a press release.
The Chicago Archdiocese now enrolls 107,000 children in its schools. As of September, the archdiocese will have 210 elementary schools and 40 high schools.
