4 OCTOBER 11, 2018 RIDGEWOOD TIMES www.qns.com
Middle Village school gets financial
victory in ongoing lawsuit with Diocese
BY EMILY DAVENPORT
EDAVENPORT@QNS.COM / @QNS
Christ the King High School's
(CTK) ongoing battle to allow
Middle Village Preparatory
Charter School (MVP) to rent space
on their campus has won a financial
victory over the Diocese of Brooklyn.
A state appeals court ruled that the
Diocese of Brooklyn will have to cover
CTK's most recent legal fees in the ongoing
lawsuit brought by the Diocese.
The funds, which total more than
$10,400, “will be used to fund scholarships
for deserving students, as soon
as the money is received from the
Diocese,” according to Michael Michel,
president of CTK.
However, according to the Diocese,
the court's ruling indicated that the
Appellate Division granted CTK's reimbursement
for out of pocket costs
to be paid to a third party printing
company.
In May 2017, the Diocese of Brooklyn
took legal action against MVP,
compelling the CTK board of trustees
to disband MVP, which had been
renting space on the CTK campus since
it opened in 2013, because MVP is not
a Catholic school. CTK, which was
originally opened in 1962 as a Diocesan
high school, however the school was
on the verge of permanently closing in
the mid 1970s due to financial troubles.
Led by Serphin Maltese, who serves
now as the school's Chairman of the
Board, a group of parents and students
worked to save the CTK, coming to
an agreement in 1976 that the school
would run independently from the
Diocese, so long as CTK operated as a
Catholic school.
However, the Diocese claimed that
CTK had violated the terms of a 1976
agreement, and made a motion to
remove MVP from the CTK campus.
In September 2017, MVP was granted
a temporary restraining order from
the Diocese, which allowed them to
remain on the CTK campus while
the lawsuit is in progress. The school
later won its appeal that prevented the
Diocese from forcing the school off the
CTK grounds.
In February 2018, New York State
Supreme Court Appellate Division denied
a motion put forth by the Diocese
that would have prevented MVP from
enrolling new students for the 2018-19
school year.
“Throughout this long and really
unnecessary ordeal, we’ve remained
focused on providing the best possible
educational options for young people
and families in the community – and
a great Catholic high school in particular,"
said Maltese. "It’s fitting that the
Diocese’s payment to us for our most
recent legal fees will help families pay
for a Catholic education.”
5th Annual RidgewoodStroll
Featuring Seneca & Catalpa Avenues
Saturday
Oct. 13, 2018
12-5 pm
Rain or Shine
Provided by local businesses.
Work by
Local
Artists
Fun-fi lled afternoon for all ages
Food & Craft Beer Tasting
ALL DAY 12 - 5 pm
Entertainment, Balloons,
Music, Dance & More COP
Seneca Ave. from Cornelia St. to Weirfi eld St.
Catalpa Ave. from Myrtle Ave. to Seneca Ave.
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT WWW.RIDGEWOOD-NY.COM OR CALL 718.381.7974
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