At 75, Norwood School Carries on Same Mission

By HEATHER HADDON

Ann McKeever had a very similar experience as Lina Flores when they first moved to Norwood from East Tremont and Manhattan, respectively. After asking around, both decided to enroll their children in St Ann's School for a parochial education. The stately brick school was within walking distance for both of their children.

But the streets they strolled were very different, as roughly seven decades separate when their children passed through the doors of the Bainbridge Avenue school. The McKeevers' daughter, May Moloney, was one of the first students to walk through them. "It was a great school then, and it still is," she said. Moloney, who is now in her 80s, was a member of St. Ann's first graduating class.

Moloney got a chance to go back to her alma mater, and meet some of its newer students, during the 75th anniversary celebration held at the church earlier this month. "It was standing room only," said Monsignor Robert Trainor, pastor of St. Ann's Church since 1992.

Other former graduates came from out-of-town to return to a school that has gone through plenty of change, while still maintaining a deep sense of tradition. "It felt good to bring back the memories," Moloney said. Though she lives just blocks away on 207th Street --  and journeys to St. Ann's Church every year to give a novena --  Moloney hadn't been back to the school since her graduation in 1933.

The McKeevers stumbled on to St. Ann's when they moved to the area in 1929, but the local community had been hoping for a Catholic institution for years. For over a year, Montefiore Medical Center let worshipers use space in the hospital on Sundays until the church's first parishioner, Father Martin Cavanagh, began constructing a dedicated space.

The church was completed in 1927 with the school quickly following. Upon its opening, the Catholic News called it "handsome and commodious."

But unlike today, the building's entire top floor housed the four Dominican nuns who were the school's teachers. The first 68 children in four grades were taught in only six classrooms. 

Moloney remembers the nuns, and her studies, with fondness. "It was very advanced for a grammar school," said Moloney, who learned algebra and Latin when she was in the eighth grade.

But it was St. Ann's family-like atmosphere that left the most indelible impression on Moloney. Her graduation class consisted of only 20 students (12 boys and 8 girls). "Everyone knew you by name," she said. 

With the area's large Irish and Italian populations, Cavanagh was intent on expanding St. Ann's. He hoped to build the church out to Gun Hill Road so the school could use the current rectory for classrooms, and the main worship space would become an auditorium. But those plans were shelved during the Great Depression.

"They were living week to week with a very large debt," Trainor said. 

While the long rows of church pews were never replaced with auditorium chairs, St. Ann's continued to grow within its original building. The Dominican order was no longer attracting younger converts, and the nuns left St. Ann's in 1985. Current leader Lucia DiJusto became the first lay principal in 1985, and under her watch, six more classrooms were built on the top floor.

St. Ann's joined many other parochial schools in moving to teachers other than nuns. "My boys don't even know what a nun is," said Flores, whose three children have attended the school. The atmosphere of strict discipline, which Flores so associated with her parochial school days, is not something she sees at today's St. Ann's. 

But much of the tradition remains. The school is a warm and homey environment for its 278 students. Desks are arranged in rows (unlike the clustered seating in most public schools) on restored wood floors. All students wear the St. Ann's insignia on their gray sweaters, with jaunty plaid ties sticking out of the V-neck.

Emi Jimenez, 6, is most interested in the classic subjects --  religion, math and science. Her top-level work hangs on the hallway walls, which also displays bright drawings made with the school's new art teacher.

On a recent weekday, Jimenez and her first grade classmates were practicing simple addition in one of St. Ann's computer labs. The school now has two labs, along with TVs and VCRs in each classroom. "I love to see more computers in the classrooms," said Cecilia Rodriguez, the school's assistant principal. 

During the 1980s, the school added kindergarten and pre-kindergarten classes, along with after-school programs. There are now 10 full-time teachers who oversee classrooms averaging around 30 students.

But all this growth does come at a cost. Tuition was free or a minor cost when the Dominican nuns, who did not receive salaries, taught at the school. Their departure meant bigger bills for parents. 

"I remember bringing a little yellow envelope to school every month with about $25," said Flores, who currently pays over $200 a month for each of her children. "It's a sacrifice that a lot of parents do for a good education and a safe environment."

Flores is emblematic of the dedication that many St. Ann's parents show toward their school. Beginning as a volunteer in the cafeteria, Flores moved on to working in classrooms and is now in her fourth year of paid teaching.

"I feel very supported by the parents," said Principal DiJusto. The school and church communities are especially dedicated fundraisers, and managed to net $50,000 in four months to replace the church boiler last year. 

While Moloney has been more involved in St. Brendan's Church as an adult, she intends to visit St. Ann's school more often since the celebration. To help facilitate this, DiJusto is planning an alumni reunion in May. 

Though Norwood has changed from "a country village to a city," as she puts it, Moloney still feels close to St. Ann's. "A lot of the others have moved away," she said. "But the church has kept me here."

Back to Features Index Page