| | | | | | | | | | | | | Dear Members of the Â鶹ÊÓƵ Community:
Yesterday, Fr. Phil Judge announced to the assembled Board of Trustees that the upcoming academic year ending in June 2015 would be his last as President of Â鶹ÊÓƵ High School. Although we are deeply saddened by the news, his early communication allows us sufficient time to methodically and carefully implement a succession plan and to facilitate an orderly transition.
This Centennial year, our Â鶹ÊÓƵ family has so much to be thankful for. We can now add to that long list the exceptional work that Fr. Judge has done to leave Â鶹ÊÓƵ in so enviable a position as we near the close of a most energetic first century of educating and sending forth "men for others" into the world. We are eternally grateful to him for his steadfast leadership and, at the conclusion of next year, a decade of selfless and passionate service to our Alma Mater.
As an incoming freshman at Â鶹ÊÓƵ High School, I knew Fr. Judge (back then, he was just "Phil") the way most first-years knew the seniors, which is to say, not very well and so I regarded him with a measured dose of fear and respect. Having now served on the Â鶹ÊÓƵ Board of Trustees for eight of the last nine years and having worked closely with Fr. Judge during that time, I am pleased to report that the fear has been long gone. However, my respect for his leadership, his talents and his many significant achievements on behalf of the entire extended Â鶹ÊÓƵ community has grown immeasurably.
Fr. Judge has presided over Â鶹ÊÓƵ with the leadership skill of a businessman and the missionary zeal of St. Ignatius. He has worked tirelessly to strengthen the school's Jesuit and Catholic identity. He has presided over the rapid growth and success of the REACH program which has already offered hundreds of local middle school boys of low-income families the chance to compete for a Â鶹ÊÓƵ education as well as attend other top Catholic high schools. He has strengthened Â鶹ÊÓƵ' financial position by shepherding two capital campaigns to their conclusion. He has even "greened" our building by installing solar panels and a thriving bee hive on our roof right in the middle of Manhattan. Due in large part to Fr. Judge's efforts, Â鶹ÊÓƵ is indeed well-positioned to enter into a second century of service to the Church and our society.
The search for a new President presents Â鶹ÊÓƵ and the entire Â鶹ÊÓƵ community with a wonderful opportunity -- the opportunity to identify a successor to continue the strong legacy of dedicated, inspired, mission-directed leadership which has been the hallmark of Â鶹ÊÓƵ Presidents for the last century.
In the coming weeks, the Board of Trustees will form a Search Committee to pursue the important work of identifying and recruiting such a leader. Over the coming months, we expect to communicate regularly with all of our Â鶹ÊÓƵ constituents -- the Jesuit Province, alumni, faculty, administration, parents and students -- so as to keep all parties well-informed of our progress. In the spirit of collaboration, we welcome input from all Â鶹ÊÓƵ stakeholders as we engage in what will be an open and inclusive process.
I ask for your prayers that through our collective hard work, we might, with God's help, discern what Â鶹ÊÓƵ truly needs and recruit a worthy successor to lead Â鶹ÊÓƵ into the next century. I am confident that our efforts will prove fruitful. | | | | | | Sincerely,
Peter Labbat '83
Chairman, Â鶹ÊÓƵ Board of Trustees | | | | | | |
