Two foundation-aided Catholic schools will close and be consolidated with two others in what the Diocese of Pittsburgh says will help keep its educational offerings accessible and affordable despite the city's shrinking population.

The reorganization, planned in stages the next several years, involves Holy Rosary in Homewood, St. Benedict the Moor in the Hill District, St. James in Wilkinsburg and St. Agnes in Oakland, each more than a century old.

For two decades, those elementary schools collectively received more than $30 million from the Extra Mile Education Foundation. Founded in 1989, Extra Mile, through businesses, foundations and other donors, has worked with the diocese to subsidize the four schools that collectively serve almost 700 students who are "primarily African-American and non-Catholic," the diocese said in an announcement Friday.

The schools would have closed two decades ago without the foundation's help, something the diocese did not want to happen, in part because of their unique role and the many low-income families served, said the Rev. Kris D. Stubna, diocesan secretary for Catholic education.

Those schools managed to keep enrollment losses the last five years to between 4 percent and 5 percent, and one school, St. Benedict the Moor, had nearly stable enrollment, Father Stubna said. Still, he said the larger trend is unmistakable, citing as evidence a sharp drop in the number of children ages 6 to 18 across Pittsburgh.

"Twenty years later, we're faced with the same problem the public schools are faced with -- there is a decline in the number of school-aged children in the city," he said. "We have too many school buildings for not enough children."

Which sites will be chosen for the consolidated schools hasn't been decided. Extra Mile, the diocese and the parishes involved will form one education site in the East End effective for the 2010-11 school year, according to the diocese. Early discussions are under way to form a second site in the Hill District no sooner than the 2011-12 school year.

Father Stubna said it is hoped the reorganization will save half a million dollars annually, enabling the diocese to provide enhanced offerings at the remaining locations and reduce tuition paid by those students.

Tuition for the first child in a family is $1,850 at three of the schools, and $2,150 for the first child at St. James, Father Stubna said.

Also Friday, the diocese said the Extra Mile scholarship program, which currently assists 120 students at two other schools, will be expanded to cover several more diocesan schools.

Still, even as Father Stubna spoke of preserving each school's essence and tradition, he acknowledged the difficulty of the decision.

"There's always a sadness when we have to close schools, particularly when a school has been around for a long time and served the community well," he said.

The two consolidated schools as envisioned will "have a new name. It will bring along the best of both schools," he added.

The diocese has 96 elementary schools. Earlier this month, it announced a decision to close 101-year-old St. Athanasius Catholic School in West View in June.

Closing the two schools does not necessarily mean the parish-owned buildings themselves will close, Father Stubna noted. They currently serve various functions, including youth programs.

Three of the four schools serve pre-K through grade 8, while St. Benedict the Moor does not have pre-K.

St. Agnes School was founded in 1879 and has 170 students; Holy Rosary was founded in 1903 and has 156 students; St. James was founded in 1886 and has 173 students; and St. Benedict the Moor was founded in 1889 and has 198 students, according to Father Stubna.

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