Catholic elementary schools at Athens and Griffin will drop their seventh and eighth grades at the end of the present school.

The requests to eliminate the grades at St. Joseph’s in Athens and Sacred Heart in Griffin have been approved by the Archdiocesan Board of Education and Archbishop Hallinan.

The parish board of education at St. Joseph’s has announced that it will discontinue the two grades, reducing the parish school to kindergarten and six grades. The board will also request the mother provincial of the Missionary Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus to assign a nun as a full-time director of religious education for the parish.

The board said the seventh and eight grades are in a combined class and with the opening of two newer junior high schools many parents have transferred their children after they have completed the six grade. Sister Rosaire, principal of St. Joseph’s and a member of the Archdiocesan Board of Education, favored eliminating the two grades.

In Griffin, Father Raymond Govern, C.SS.R. said the seventh and eight grades are being dropped because of a lack of pupils. “A second reason is our children would not be eligible for the accelerated programs at the junior high school unless they enroll at the seventh and eight grade levels,” he said.

After the change, Sacred Heart will have kindergarten and six grades. “Next year we will have four nuns to teach six grades instead of eight grades,” Father Govern said.