GREAT FALLS — The Catholic Diocese of Great Falls-Billings announced Friday that St. Patrick's Academy High School will not open for the coming school year after the diocese was unable to find a full-time principal and qualified faculty.
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Bishop Jeffrey Fleming sent a letter to families Friday notifying them of the decision — just days before the school year was set to begin. Nineteen students were enrolled as of last Thursday.
Fleming said he learned on Aug. 20 that all necessary pieces were not in place.
"So on Thursday, I think what was Aug. 20 is when I found out all our pieces were not in place. I then visited with parents that night at the school and laid out where we were at," Fleming said.
The diocese lost about half of its staff over the summer, including administrators.
"So we lost about half of our staff this summer, including our administrators. And so we were able to fill in some of the staff. We had about seven ready to go and, but no administrators. I appointed an interim principal earlier this month, but that and then we were looking for other help and we just were not able to find it," Fleming said.
Some parents offered to assist, but the diocese still lacked qualified and certified personnel.
St. Patrick's Academy was launched in May 2025, bringing together Central Catholic High School, Our Lady of Lourdes and Holy Spirit Catholic School, both K-8 schools, under one rebranded umbrella. The transition had already faced setbacks when, in March 2026, the diocese announced St. Patrick's Academy East — formerly Holy Spirit — would close at the end of the 2025-26 academic year due to decreased enrollment and financial challenges.
Fleming called the decision not to open the high school the toughest he has faced in his three full years as bishop, saying he and his staff have lost sleep over it. He said the contracts of remaining staff will be honored.
Fleming also denied rumors that the school building is for sale.
"We're not planning to sell the building at all. Nobody has been in touch with me about selling the building or even leasing the building," Fleming said.
Fleming acknowledged that with one school closed and another not opening, community trust may be wavering. But he expressed confidence that Catholic secondary education in Great Falls has a future.
"Throughout our religion, we talk about how death brings resurrection and new life. So we're looking for resurrection and new life for our Catholic schools here in Great Falls," Fleming said.
The diocese says it is working to connect students with the support they need.
