Attorney General Bob McDonnell, a Catholic high school graduate, will tour and make a $1,000 donation today to Petersburg's St. Joseph School, which needs to raise $1 million to stay open.

The school has until a week from today to meet a deadline set by Bishop Francis X. DiLorenzo to cover the current deficit and projected expenditures for the next school year.

The school has accrued a half-million dollar deficit in the last four years. Enrollment is down and the 132-year-old building needs major repairs.

The bishop also has asked for improvements to the school's marketing and development plans and academic programs.

St. Joseph representatives were at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church in Glen Allen during Mass yesterday asking for donations. McDonnell is a church member there, said J. Tucker Martin, a spokesman for the attorney general.

"We're hoping that his visit . . . will bring forward some more people," said Ella Dickinson, who is among those heading fundraising for the school.

As of Friday, $164,000 had been raised, Dickinson said. With pledges for more donations, the amount is about $200,000, she said.

"The checks keep coming in," she said. "Obviously, we have a long way to go."

If a decision to close the school is made, the checks will be returned.

McDonnell graduated from Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria, and his spokesman called him a "product of the Catholic schools in Virginia."

Martin said McDonnell wants to show support for a school that has made a positive impact in a city that faces many challenges.

"It will be a tremendous shame to lose the school," Martin said.

After the tour at 10:15 a.m., McDonnell will send an e-mail to more than 10,000 people on his political mailing list, asking them to support the school, Martin said.
Contact Juan Antonio Lizama at (804) 649-6513 or jlizama@timesdispatch.com.