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HOUMA (AP) — A Catholic elementary school that has operated for more than 50 years is closing in south Louisiana.
Catholic diocese officials said Maria Immacolata Elementary in Houma will close at the end of the current school year.
The school has just over 150 students. The Courier reports that officials had planned to close the school after the 2018-19 school year. But last-minute pleas from parents persuaded Houma-Thibodaux Bishop Shelton Fabre to keep it open for another year in an effort to improve its finances.
In a news release this week, the diocese says student enrollment and the school’s economic vitality have fallen to a level that is no longer sustainable.
“While we sincerely regret that these actions are necessary, we remain dedicated to the mission of Catholic education in the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux,” Houma-Thibodaux Catholic schools Superintendent Suzanne Delaune Troxclair said. “We recognize this is difficult news to hear, but we are blessed to have other strong Catholic schools nearby.”
Troxclair said the diocese is working to help Maria Immacolata families enroll in another local Catholic school next year.
In line to pick up her son and daughter Tuesday, Brittney Richardson said she is sad to see the school close, calling it a great environment with compassionate teachers.
“It’s heartbreaking,” she said.
Her children had attended for the past five years. While her daughter was in her final year, she said her son still had one year to go.
In an email to parents, principal Prissy Davis said the school wasn’t able to bounce back after discussion about the closure early this year.
“We lost many families and have not been able to get enrollment back up,” she wrote.
The $100,000 raised in three months by the school would not cover the cost of building improvements requested by the diocese, Davis said in the letter. The improvements include a new roof, new classroom floors and sandblasting and painting the building.
The costs, along with the school’s budget deficit and lost tuition, would put the church in debt by more than $600,000.
“This decision hurts and will be a struggle for many of us. It will be a rough day on Monday when we return,” Davis stated. “My job is to ensure that the next six months are the best they can be.”

LSU will play Oklahoma and Ohio State will face defending national champion Clemson in the College Football Playoff.
The selection committee revealed the pairings Sunday for the national semifinals and the final four was no surprise. The only mystery involved which team would be the No. 1 seed. The 13-member committee went with Southeastern Conference champion LSU. The top-seeded Tigers (13-0) will head back to Atlanta for its playoff game to face the Big 12 champion Sooners (12-1) in the Peach Bowl on Dec. 28.
LSU used a convincing victory against Georgia at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday to move up to No. 1. Ohio State had been atop the committee's rankings last week, but the slipped to No. 2 after coming from behind against Wisconsin to win the Big Ten title.
"Anytime, anywhere, anybody, we ready to play," LSU coach Ed Orgeron said in an interview with ESPN.
The Buckeyes (13-0) will face Atlantic Coast Conference champion Clemson (13-0) in the Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Arizona, on Dec. 28. The national championship game is Jan. 13 in New Orleans.
Pairings for the other New Year's Six bowls were to be released later Sunday..
The final four fell into place thanks to the favorites winning their conference championship games and Utah losing the Pac-12 title game to Oregon. The Utes had been No. 5. That left three undefeated Power Five champions, one with one loss, and nobody else with a legitimate case to claim a spot.
The intrigue was about the top seed, knowing Clemson was likely locked into No. 3. The Tigers have been mauling their opponents for the last two months, but the ACC has not provided Clemson any top-flight competition, either. Ohio State has five victories against CFP-ranked teams, including Wisconsin twice. Clemson's only win against those teams was its 62-17 victory Saturday against Virginia.
Still, drawing Clemson, which has the core of a team that has won 28 straight games, rather than an Oklahoma team that has five victories by a touchdown or less certainly seems like a tougher task for the Buckeyes. Clemson is making its fifth straight playoff appearance, tying Alabama for the most. The Crimson Tide missed out for the first time. Coach Dabo Swinney's Tigers have won two of the last three championships.
LSU is in the playoff for the first time, the only newbie in the field. The Tigers will likely bring the Heisman Trophy winner with them. Quarterback Joe Burrow capped a record-breaking season by throwing four more touchdown passes against Georgia in the SEC championship.
Ohio State is making its third playoff appearance and first since 2016 after just missing out the previous two seasons. The Buckeyes won the first playoff championship in 2014. Their last appearance came after the 2016 season, when they were shut out by Clemson in the semifinals at the Fiesta Bowl. That was all under coach Urban Meyer. Now Ryan Day leads the Buckeyes, and in his first season as Meyer's successor has the Buckeyes unbeaten.
The Tigers are 3-0 all-time against Ohio State, all in the postseason. The Buckeyes enter the playoff with a 19-game winning streak.
Oklahoma is in the playoff for the fourth time, but has yet to win a game. This will be the third consecutive year the Sooners face an SEC team.
Oklahoma and LSU have split two previous meetings: The Sooners won the 1950 Sugar Bowl and the Tigers won the BCS championship game at the Sugar Bowl in 2004.
Former Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts is back in the playoff for the fourth straight year, this time with the Sooners, after going three times with the Crimson Tide. Hurts follows Heisman winners Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray as quarterback transfers to find success in coach Lincoln Riley's offense.
LSU and Ohio State are also led by transfer quarterbacks. Burrow started his career at Ohio State before switching schools in 2018. Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields was at Georgia last season.
Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence led the Tigers to a national championship as a freshman last season.

A deputy stopped a Bayou Vista man for a traffic violation and wound up making an arrest for resisting an officer, St. Mary Parish Sheriff Blaise Smith said in a news release.
—Kaleb Charles Wood, 25, of 3 B’s in Bayou Vista, was arrested at 12:23 a.m. Thursday on four counts resisting an officer with aggravated force or violence and on two warrants for failure to appear on the charges of possession of cocaine and creation or operation of clandestine laboratory.
Deputies were traveling on Jupiter Street in Bayou Vista when they observed a vehicle with only one working brake light. The deputies conducted a traffic stop and made contact with the driver and three passengers, one identified as Wood. Dispatch advised the deputies that Wood held two active warrants for his arrest. During the arrest, Wood resisted being taken into custody, Smith said. Wood was was jailed with no bail set.
Smith also advised that the Sheriff’s Office responded to 31 complaints and reported the following arrests:
—Hank Landry, 43, of Pecan Street in Patterson, was arrested at 11:57 a.m. Wednesday on five warrants for failure to appear on three counts failure to register as a sex offender, failure to pay annual fee and failure to notify change of address. A deputy was dispatched to the St. Mary Parish Branch Office in Morgan City in reference to a subject who wished to turn himself in for active warrants. He was jailed with no bail set.
—Alvontray Bryan Louis, 23, of South Railroad Avenue in Morgan City, was arrested at 6:54 p.m. Wednesday on a warrant for failure to appear on the charge of forgery. Louis was transported to the St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center for housing from another agency. During booking, a deputy learned that Louis held an active warrant for the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office. He was jailed with bail set at $2,500.
—Chuck Newsom, 33, of Carol Road in Bayou Vista, was arrested at 7:23 p.m. Wednesday on charges of possession of a Schedule I controlled dangerous substance (marijuana) with intent to distribute, possession of a controlled dangerous substance in the presence of a minor and possession of drug paraphernalia.
—Jennifer Bond, 30, of Carol Road in Bayou Vista, was arrested at 7:33 p.m. Wednesday on charges of possession of Schedule I controlled dangerous substance (marijuana) and possession of a controlled dangerous substance in the presence of a minor.
Detectives with the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Division executed a search warrant at a residence on Carol Street in Bayou Vista. Through the search, marijuana and drug paraphernalia were found in the residence. Bond was arrested and released on a summons to appear in court. Newsom was jailed and later released on a $4,500 bond.
Morgan City Police Chief James F. Blair reported that the Morgan City Police Department responded to 44 calls for service and the following arrests were made:
—Blake Michael Dinger, 26, of Aycock Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 7:35 a.m. Wednesday on a charge of contempt of court. Dinger was located at the St. Mary Law Enforcement Center and was placed under arrest on an active warrant held by the City Court of Morgan City. He was transported to the Morgan City Police Department and jailed.
—Kytrell Grogan, 18, of Terrebonne Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 10:28 a.m. Wednesday on charges of hit and run and no insurance.
Officers were called to the parking lot of a local business on La. 182 to investigate a vehicle crash and learned one of the vehicles involved in the crash fled the scene. Officers were able to locate the vehicle on Roderick Street and identified the driver as Grogan. A computer check revealed the vehicle Grogan was driving was uninsured. He was jailed.
—Joseph Guillory Soto, 33, of Sixth Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 3:27 p.m. Wednesday on warrants for 13 counts failure to appear.
An officer on patrol came into contact with Soto on La. 182. A warrants check revealed the City Court of Morgan City held 13 active warrants for his arrest. He was jailed.
—Chance Joseph Boudreaux, 25, of Railroad Avenue in Patterson, was arrested at 7 p.m. Wednesday on a warrant for the charge of possession of an illegally modified firearm. The warrant stems from an investigation and arrest of Boudreaux on Nov. 29. During the investigation, It was determined that one of the firearms he was in possession of was illegally modified. The investigating officer was able to secure an arrest warrant. He was jailed.
—Laurie Janell Pritchett, 37, of La. 182 in Morgan City, was arrested at 7:36 p.m. Wednesday on a charge of disturbing the peace. Officers were called to a local business on La. 182 in reference to a disturbance. When officers arrived, they were able to identify Pritchett as the person causing the disturbance. She was jailed.
—Steven Norman Caston, 22, of Belanger Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 2:46 a.m. Thursday on a charge of possession of Schedule IV controlled dangerous substance (Xanax). An officer observed a traffic violation in the area of La. 182 and Seventh Street and conducted a traffic stop. Caston was identified as a passenger in the vehicle. He was found to be in possession of Xanax. He was jailed.
Berwick Police Chief David Leonard Sr. reported the following arrests:
—Jodie Aucoin, 35, of Russo Street in Berwick, was arrested at 8:07 a.m. Wednesday on charges of reckless operation and driving while intoxicated-child endangerment. He was jailed with no bail set.
Patterson Police Chief Garrett Grogan reported no arrests.

While the near-term possibility of a state constitutional convention in Louisiana may have died with Gov. John Bel Edwards’ reelection, there are other ways to tackle the issues convention supporters want to address.
“We don’t see a path to a convention,” said Robert Travis Scott, president of the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana. “Not under the current political circumstances. Certainly not for 2020.”
But Scott says PAR is focused not on a convention but on “constitutional reform,” which will “never be dead so long as there are serious problems with the constitution.”
Holding a constitutional convention has been considered and rejected numerous times by lawmakers in recent years. Critics of the current state constitution argue it is a bloated set of statutes that limits the ability of state and local officials to prioritize spending and should be replaced with a shorter statement of principles similar to the U.S. Constitution.
But others worry opening up the constitution could jeopardize provisions important to them, such as protections for education funding, the homestead property tax exemption and the right to bear arms. Edwards cited those concerns to explain why he opposed holding a convention.
“[The constitution] can be amended from time to time, and we can address those challenges, but now is not the time to be dangerous and to gamble with all of these things that are adequately and properly protected in the constitution today,” Edwards said during a debate with Republican challenger Eddie Rispone, who promised to call for a convention if elected.
While a “limited” constitutional convention has been discussed, it’s not clear whether convention delegates would be legally obligated to stay within the stated limits.
Alfred “Butch” Speer, the longtime clerk of the state House of Representatives, said the last state constitutional convention in 1992 was limited to fiscal issues. No one challenged the limitations, so the concept was never tested, and the results ultimately were rejected by voters, he said.
“I think our staff even has different opinions on that,” said Rep. Franklin Foil, when asked if a constitutional convention can be limited. “I would guess you probably can’t limit it once you call a convention.”
Foil, a Baton Rouge Republican who will move over to the Senate for the next term, is a longtime supporter of a constitutional convention. He said he doesn’t consider holding a convention to be a partisan issue, adding that Republican former Gov. Bobby Jindal also was opposed.
The process works like this: Legislators create a bill that describes the convention’s subject matter and how the delegates would be selected. In 1992, the legislators themselves were the delegates, so the convention was much like a legislative special session, Speer said.
If the bill garners support from two-thirds of members in each body – 70 votes in the House, 26 in the Senate – it goes to the governor’s desk. The governor could veto the bill, but legislators could override his veto with the same two-thirds majorities that approved the bill in the first place.
So technically, the legislature doesn’t need the governor’s blessing to hold a convention. But in practical terms, the governor’s ability to influence the legislative process makes passing a convention bill without his support unlikely.
“Unless we can convince Gov. Edwards to change his position, I think it would be very difficult to get a convention in these next four years,” Foil said.
Of course, the state constitution can be amended in a piecemeal fashion with the approval of two-thirds of each body and a public vote. The current document, enacted in 1974, has been amended more than 300 times, which is a big reason why many convention supporters want to scale it down.
Legislators also could rewrite an entire article of the constitution and present the results to voters as an amendment, which do not require the governor’s signature. Lawmakers who want to unlock dedicated funds and give officials more spending discretion often cite Article VII, which covers revenue and finance, as a possible target.
Foil said he expects lawmakers to discuss an Article VII rewrite. But if they go down that road, interest groups would fight to protect their dedications, which is why he likes the idea of a convention with delegates who aren’t worried about reelection.
Scott, the Public Affairs Research Council president, said taking a possible convention off the table might actually lead to a more focused discussion of what Article VII should look like.
“The fact that we’re probably going to have a pause in talking about a constitutional convention just means we can shift attention to what it is exactly that we want to do with the constitution,” Scott said.