January 26, 2009
Dear Alumni/ae,
I am happy to announce that in September the administration of Cardinal Spellman High School will be joined by a new local Board of Directors to promote and enhance the Catholic mission of our school.
We are already in the process of recruiting alumni, business and community leaders to serve on our inaugural Board of Directors. This Board will guide and direct the future growth of Cardinal Spellman High School.
Knowing the tremendous support our alumni/ae have provided Spellman over the years, we embark on this process with great enthusiasm. Our alumni/ae have been generous to our school in so many ways, from providing scholarship and emergency financial aid to funds for technological advances and facility improvements including, most recently, the complete refurbishment of our athletic fields. We are confident that we will find both alumni/ae eager to serve their alma mater, and local business and community leaders who believe in and support Catholic secondary education.
This initiative will bring new resources to Cardinal Spellman High School, and has already been adopted by many Catholic high schools here in New York and in other dioceses. These high schools have identified and recruited alumni and other leaders who know their local communities, believe in Catholic secondary education, and are willing to work to secure the future of their school.
The Archdiocese of New York is committed to continuing its support for Cardinal Spellman High School as it moves toward independence. While the Archdiocese will maintain ownership of the buildings and grounds, Spellman will enter into its own contracts and will establish its own business relationships in the Bronx community.
This model will have no effect on daily school life. The traditions of religious formation and academic excellence that you helped establish, and that are the reasons families today choose Cardinal Spellman High School, will continue. Our goal is not simply to maintain, but to enhance Spellman’s educational program.
This change will foster local autonomy and control, placing the future growth and development of Cardinal Spellman High School in the hands of those who know the school best. We have identified a core group of Board members, and anticipate assembling a full slate by September.
I will share further information with you as it is available, including the names of Board members.
Please pray for us, and the alumni/ae and other members of the school community, as we begin this initiative.
Sincerely,
Fr. Trevor Nicholls
President
