The drop in the registration, the monthly payment of electricity and the increases to the minimum wage were some of the reasons offered by the director of Nuestra Señora de la Monserrate schoolin Mochaby announcing, to parents and employees, the definitive closure of the educational institution.
In a letter sent on February 10, the priest Ángel Ortiz Vélez He informed the school community that the expenses, which include “major repairs” to the campus, raise the projected operational budget to $ 550,000.
“To cover expenses, the institution needs a registration of 212 students. Currently, the College has a registration of 127 students and a reduction of students is projected for next year ”read part of the letter.
Ortiz Vélez also explained that, since February 2023, the parents and employees of the “precarious economic situation” were alerted and that they would evaluate “year after year” the continuity of the work.
He also indicated that it is offered, as an alternative, that students continue their studies at the San Sebastián Mártir Academy, in San Sebastiánwhich remains 15 to 20 minutes from the Mocana institution.
“The closure of this Catholic educational institution has represented a very difficult and painful process for all. Unfortunately, the enrollment has reduced year after year and currently has only 127 students, which leads school to economic unsustainability, ”he said, in written statements, the Superintendent of Catholic schools of the Diocese of Mayagüez, Ivette Rodríguez Rivera.
According to its Facebook page, the school was founded in 1988 and offers a bilingual education, from prekinder to eighth grade. It is also the only educational center, in Moca, which is part of the School System of the Diocese Mayagüezana, according to its Web page.
“The Nuestra Señora de la Monserrate school closes its doors physically, but will remain alive in the heart of each student who went through their classrooms. (…) The principles and values taught will always accompany them and, the academic excellence they received will allow them to successfully face the challenges of tomorrow”Rodríguez Rivera added, in his expressions to The new day.
The Mocano Educational Center joins a long list of private schools that have closed their doors in recent years. In 2024, at least eight institutions in San Juan, Carolina, Bayamón, Yauco, Villalba, Mayagüez and Guaynabo announced the cessation of operations.
According to data of the State Department, the amount of Students enrolled in private schools, from Kindergarten to twelfth grade, amounted to 107,129, for last year 2023-2024. This represented a 28% decrease compared to the 2013-2014 school year, when private institutions had 148,919 students.
