By Lindsay Tice,Staff Writer

A Catholic schools task force has delivered its recommendation to the Rev. Richard Malone, bishop of Portland, outlining how Lewiston-Auburn’s three Catholic elementary schools should merge.

But parents and students will have to wait a while to find out what the report says. Malone is out of town until next week.

“Nobody else will be looking at it before the bishop,” said diocesan spokeswoman Sue Bernard.

Malone has the final say in the future of Lewiston-Auburn Catholic schools. He could follow all or some of the task force’s recommendations, or ignore them completely.

The pastors of St. Joseph’s, Holy Cross and Saints Peter and Paul parishes announced the school merger in January. Facing rising costs and declining enrollment and infant baptism, the pastors said consolidation is necessary to strengthen Catholic education in the area.

A task force was appointed to examine the possibilities and make a detailed recommendation to Malone. The deadline was March 15. The Rev. Frank Murray of Sacred Heart delivered the report Wednesday afternoon.

The task force considered three plans. One would consolidate schools, keeping a single elementary school under the parishes’ control and giving control of a middle school to St. Dominic Regional High School. The second would create one elementary school and one middle school, but both would remain under the parishes’ control. The third would create a single pre-K-8 school, run by the parishes.

None of the three could be fully implemented by next fall.

It is unknown which, if any, plan the task force recommended.

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