The last day of school before summer break is usually full of excitement. But for one New York school, it is somber.

After 67 years, Saint Margaret’s School in Central New York is closing.

Through tears, a teacher hugged a first-grader and said goodbye: “Aw, Valencia. I’m a blubbering mess here.”

There were a lot of hugs and tears as students and teachers said goodbye for the final time. Saint Margaret’s School served students in pre-K through sixth grade since 1954.

During the pandemic, the school and the diocese saw increased interest in enrollment, providing five-days-a-week instruction to students. It was not enough to keep the school open.

Early in 2021, Saint Margaret’s Church asked the diocese to allow them to close the school, stating that the financial hardship of supporting the school was unsustainable.

The diocese met with families in February of 2021 to prepare them for the permanent school closing this month. The school principal says he and the diocese have worked hard to employ all teachers and staff at other schools in the diocese.

They have tried to maintain a positive attitude, despite how difficult it is to close a school that generations of families and thousands of students have attended.

"We will not be reopening in September, so that’s made it a little more difficult to get through the day," said Michael McAuliff, the principal at Saint Margaret’s School. "But fortunately, the adults are taking the kids' lead and following their lead with regards to not crying because it’s over, but being happy because it happened.”

McAuliff says there were years when Saint Margaret’s School would instruct about 700 students every year. In recent years, fewer than 150 students enrolled in its elementary school.

The Catholic School Office now drops from 22 to 21 schools in Central New York, the North Country, Mohawk Valley and Southern Tier.