Salve Regina Catholic Academy to close

Salve Regina Catholic Academy is located at 237 Jerome Street in East New York. It is the renamed St Michael parish school. Sad to relate, it will close in June, 2024.

Spectrum News

Salve Regina Catholic Academy, East New York

In February, 2016, the informative and well-maintained website of Salve Regina Catholic Academy may be found HERE.
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The website of the Brooklyn diocesan newspaper, The Tablet, includes a lengthy article about the high enrollment and other success at the new Salve Regina Catholic Academy.  The writer states that 732 students are currently enrolled (October, 2011) in grades N-8, with three sections per grade.  A grade-by-grade breakdown of enrollment is not provided.
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The academy uses the buildings at Jerome Street and Liberty Avenue, pictured in this blog within the St. Michael's parish heading, linked here.  The address of Salve Regina Catholic Academy is 237 Jerome Street, Brooklyn NY 11207, telephone 718-277-6766.
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This article dated 11.21.2011 appeared on the web of The Brooklyn Ink, providing much information on how the three schools have formed one.   Of particular note to me is that only thirty students transferred from St. Sylvester's school.  Distance matters.

Two more Catholic academies in Brooklyn

Please see Msgr. Harrington's announcement dated March 1, 2011, linked here.  It describes the creation of one Catholic academy in Queens and two in Brooklyn.  In Brooklyn, Salve Regina Catholic Academy (that is, elementary school) will be formed from the merger of three schools: St. Michael, St. Rita, and St. Sylvester. Salve Regina will use the St. Michael building at Jerome Street and Liberty Avenue, East New York.

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The East Flatbush merger concerns St. Catherine of Genoa school moving to St. Therese of Lisieux parish on Avenue D near Troy Avenue.  The combined elementary school will be named St. Catherine of Genoa - St. Therese of Lisieux Catholic Academy. 

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The announcement from Msgr. Harrington does not provide current enrollment numbers for the Brooklyn mergers.

St. Rita, Shepherd Avenue, City Line

St. Rita's church, school, and rectory are located on Shepherd Avenue, just south of Atlantic Avenue, in City Line, Brooklyn. The parish address is 275 Shepherd Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11208, telephone 718-647-4910. The parish website is linked here, but it appears out-of-date. The term "City Line" derives from the border of the City of Brooklyn, prior to the creation of Greater New York in 1898.
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You may click on any photo to enlarge it. To revert to the blog entry, return to the previous page.

St. Rita's church is beautiful with the light and colors of the stained glass windows. The Stations and some of the bas-reliefs appear to be ceramics.

Looking north on Shepherd Avenue, where traffic is one-way southbound.

Pedestrians are free to approach Shepherd Avenue from any direction, but automobiles must travel east on Atlantic Avenue and turn south onto Shepherd. The above photo shows the helpful and clear sign at the corner where one turns.


The above photo, snapped in front of the church, looks north on Shepherd Avenue. This building is the former parish school.  In 2011, this school was merged into the new Salve Regina Catholic Academy,  located at Jerome Street and Liberty Avenue.

The window over the choir loft shows St. Rita of Cascia, 1381-1457. She was canonized on May 24, 1900, together with John Baptist de la Salle, a two-fer ceremony. Soon afterwards, parishes under St. Rita's patronage for established in The Bronx and here in Brooklyn.
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St. Rita's has a page on the East New York project linked here. The creator of that project deserves praise for his work putting together stories and photos of life in East New York and adjacent neighborhoods.



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St Michael, Jerome St., East New York

The office for the parish of St. Michael and St. Malachy is at 284 Warwick Street, Brooklyn NY 11207, telephone 718-647-1818. The office is behind St. Michael's church, which is on Jerome St. The parish website is linked here.
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Up the sanctuary steps and through the left door is la capilla used for morning services. On Monday, August 17, 2008, I found 8:15 a.m. benediction (closing adoration?) and 8:30 Mass. In between a litany was offered that called upon Mary with the various patronage titles that honor her in the countries of Latin America. The parish bulletin listed also a morning mass at St. Malachy's rectory.  Capuchin Franciscans (long ago, German in heritage) staffed St. Michael's, and on Warwick Street a large building has the sign "Capuchin Friary." The Capuchin Province of St. Mary has headquarters in White Plains, New York. 

The parishes of Saint Michael and Saint Malachy have been combined. This is a view of St. Michael's church, looking south on Jerome Street towards Liberty Avenue.

Above, the office for the parish of St. Michael and St. Malachy is at 284 Warwick Street, Brooklyn NY 11207, telephone 718-647-1818. This is behind St. Michael's church. 

Above is Salve Regina Catholic Academy, 237 Jerome St., Brooklyn NY 11207, telephone 718-277-6766. It is on the northeast corner of Jerome Street and Liberty Avenue. Click on any photo to enlarge it. Apparently, some school buses serve St. Michael's. On Atlantic Avenue, just north of the church, is bus route Q24, from Jamaica to Bushwick. 

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As for the church of St. Malachy, a final Mass was offered there in there in January, 2009.  From the second link below, it would seem that the church was soon demolished.
Historic photos of both St. Michael's and St. Malachy's are presented on the laudable East New York project, linked here and here.




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St. Sylvester, City Line

The address of the church of Saint Sylvester is 416 Grant Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11208, telephone 718-647-1995.  It seems that since 2013, the pastor of St. Fortunata parish has administered St. Sylvester's. Each parish has a new website produced by the diocese: St. Sylvester and St. Fortunata. The churches are a mile apart.

The church property, fenced and with well-maintained landscaping, extends along the north side of McKinley Avenue, City Line, from Eldert Lane to Grant Avenue. Here is the main entrance on McKinley Avenue. Ahead is Grant Avenue with the rectory across the street.
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The neighborhood term, City Line, dates from the era when Brooklyn was a city, not a mere borough. If Brooklyn were a city today, it would rank as #4 in population of U. S. cities!

The former school is on the west side of the street, at 396 Grant Avenue. The school was merged into Salve Regina Catholic Academy, a mile to the west.

Above is the parish rectory at 416 Grant Avenue, facing the church.