St. Patrick Academy, second south Sacramento Catholic campus, to close in June
St. Patrick Academy and a second Catholic campus in south Sacramento will close in June, diocesan officials announced Friday, as part of a consolidation of south Sacramento Catholic schools.
The closure of St. Patrick Academy on Franklin Boulevard ends more than 90 years of service to the community, said academy leaders.
“This decision has been deeply painful for the St. Patrick Academy community and for the families we serve,” St. Patrick Academy announced in a Facebook post.
“St. Patrick Academy has never been just a building. It has been a place where children are known, families are supported, and faith is lived daily,” the post continued. “Its role has extended far beyond the classroom, serving as a steady presence in the neighborhood through years of change.”
A new regional school on the campus of St. Robert Catholic School on Irwin Way will open in August, said Bishop of Sacramento Jaime Soto in a videotaped address. St. Charles Borromeo School on Center Parkway will also close at the end of the academic year as part of the consolidation, Soto said.
“I’ve appreciated the sacrifices you’ve made for the Lord Jesus, the fervor with which you celebrate the Sacraments, and the joy of your thriving fellowship together,” Soto said. “Your schools are facing challenges that must be addressed.”
The announcement from St. Patrick officials included Soto’s video remarks.
“I know your schools are more than places of learning. They are places where faith is formed and friendships are built and where children and families grow together. I also know the news you are receiving brings real emotion,” Soto said in the address.
Georgia Wallace said she was shaken by the news. She raised her family at St. Patrick. All five of her children attended the Franklin Boulevard school, including Scarlett, an 11-year-old in the sixth grade. The elder children each went on to university: Columbia and San Francisco State University, Sacramento State and Loyola University in New Orleans.
“It’s been a tough few days. It’s just been devastating. I’ve been crying every night,” she said. All, Wallace said, while scrambling to find a new school for Scarlett for the fall term ahead of a fast-approaching February enrollment deadline. “This school has been a part of our family.”
For Scarlett, a move will mean leaving close friends behind.
“It’s going to be sad. All of my classmates I’ve known since, like, kindergarten,” she said. “I’m going to miss them.”
Glenda Rubio walked her two children to their car waiting outside the school’s entrance Friday afternoon. The youngest, Juliana Benevides, 8, a second-grader, said plainly: “I don’t want to go to another school.”
“She’s been here since preschool, and my son, since kindergarten,” said Rubio. Diego Benevides, 14, in the eighth grade, was more circumspect: “It’s sad, but, at the end of the day, things happen. It’s a weird feeling.”
Soto later called the impending consolidation “an invitation for three communities to come together ... so that Catholic education may continue with stability and hope for the future.”
A letter to families Wednesday from the Diocese of Sacramento ahead of the St. Patrick announcement cited steadily declining enrollment for its closure. Falling enrollment continues despite what diocesan officials said has been “significant financial investment” in the south area schools.
Officials said projections that showed another three to five years of enrollment declines prompted the decision to merge the schools.
“This investment will more responsibly serve all children gathered at one campus, ensuring Catholic education remains strong and sustainable in the south Sacramento region,” the letter to families read.
St. Patrick itself had taken in other south Sacramento schools in a similar merger 16 years ago, academy officials said in its post.
Soto folded several schools into the academy, a move designed to preserve and provide more stable Catholic education in south Sacramento, said academy officials.
“Since that time, St. Patrick Academy has faithfully carried that responsibility — welcoming students from multiple school communities, honoring their histories, and continuing the mission entrusted to it,” said academy officials.
With news that St. Patrick Academy will soon fall victim to consolidation, the academy pledged to find ways to remain open.
“A 92-year legacy of care and education does not simply end,” the post read.
This story was originally published January 23, 2026 at 12:29 PM.
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