Parents vow to fight on

Holy Cross parents, around a circle, in shock. Their hundred-year-old school has only a few months left. "We honestly thought we would be celebrating today, we thought it would go on for another hundred years, the plan presented, I don't know how he could say no to that," said Julie Swan.

Their plan, they say, included a way for Holy Cross to sustain itself financially, operate without help from the diocese and keep enrollment steady. "We had a plan that projected enrollment and our finances out five years, and showed that we not only were in the black, but that we made a modest profit," said parent Karen Covacos.

But they aren't sitting around wondering why they were rejected... They say they know why. "If we were to remain open, we represent dollars that would have been taken out of the remaining system that they have in place," Covacos said. To that end, it appears the bishop is in agreement. In a statement, Bishop Clark says that "Reopening a school would jeopardize retention and enrollment goals for the 11 remaining schools, thereby impacting financial stability of the system as a whole."

These parents admit they're down, but not out. "We have a committee of very capable people that will be getting together, to brainstorm our next steps," said Michelle Smits. "You can't even put it into words. It's not a building, it's not a desk/they're children that are the future of this church and of this diocese," said parent Michele Begemann.