TheBostonPilot.com: Help Wanted section

11/30/2018

Superintendent of Catholic Schools
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston

OVERVIEW

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston (or gRCABh) is the fourth largest Archdiocese in the United States and the spiritual home for more than 1.8 million Catholics. Since July 2003, The Archbishop of Boston, Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley, OFM Cap., has led the Archdiocese with a focus on healing and rebuilding the local Church.

Centered in of one of the world's great cities and spread across 144 communities in eastern Massachusetts, the Archdiocese of Boston is an ethnically diverse and spiritually enriching faith community consisting of vibrant parishes, well-performing Catholic schools, and a social service outreach that assists more than 200,000 individuals each year. Mass is celebrated in more than twenty different languages each week. Archdiocesan Catholic schools serve almost 23,000 students from over 160 towns and countries in 80 schools (68 elementary and 12 high schools). In addition, the Archdiocese benefits from 32 private Catholic Schools including 16 high schools, 9 elementary schools, 5 early childhood schools and 2 special education schools that serve another 11,000 students.

The Archdiocesan Catholic Schools have a clear and focused goal:

Prepare each Catholic school student for college and lifelong success by delivering a high-quality academic experience in a nurturing, faith-filled environment.

The schools of the Archdiocese offer an education that combines academic excellence and Catholic faith formation to ensure lifelong learning and the development of responsible and compassionate leaders and citizens. Cardinal O'Malley supports the pursuit of new approaches to organize, fund and manage Catholic education across the Archdiocese. He has declared the revitalization and reinvigoration of Catholic education throughout the Archdiocese as a top priority, committing resources towards a creative and energetic approach to address the issues facing Catholic schools.

THE CHALLENGE

While Catholic Schools consistently outperform their public-school counterparts in academic achievement, shifting demographics, changing business models, and increased school choice options for families have led to decreased enrollments that threaten sustainability. At the same time, Catholic education governance structures across the country are undergoing change, and traditional lines of authority are shifting. The future success of Catholic schools in Boston and elsewhere will rely on continued evolution and innovation, the creative use and pooling of resources, a focus on ever-increasing academic excellence, adherence to metrics and accountability, and an unwavering commitment to character and faith-formation.

The Archbishop believes that a complete transformation will require a strong cabinet-level Superintendent of Catholic Schools, one who will benefit from open access to the Archbishop and will develop a close, deeply collaborative and synergistic relationship with her/his colleagues on the cabinet to leverage shared resources.

THE SEARCH

After serving a successful five-year term as Superintendent, Kathy Mears will step down from her role in June, 2019. Under her leadership, the Catholic schools collaborate with the Catholic Schools Office to utilize student performance data, teacher performance data, and instructional data. RCAB has a student information system that all elementary schools utilize. The schools have enjoyed professional development that is related to the needs of their teachers. The schools are also engaged in a school improvement process, and work with the Catholic Schools Office to implement their plans.

The new Superintendent will inherit an organization that has begun the revitalization and reinvigoration process, and introduced a number of initiatives and improvements to support that process. However, there remains much to do to fully realize the potential of our Catholic schools, and to more readily meet the human and financial needs of the schools going forward. With innovative academy models in Dorchester, Brockton, Lawrence and Quincy serving as reference points, the encouragement and commitment of the Archdiocesan leadership, and the vital support of the Catholic Schools Council, the Campaign for Catholic Schools, the Catholic Schools Foundation, private foundations, and generous individual donors, the schools are positioned to think creatively about change, and to continue further implementation of the Catholic Schools Office's strategic plan.

Therefore, the Archdiocese of Boston seeks a gifted Catholic leader with the gravitas and credibility to lead and represent its Catholic schools with integrity, a bold change agent with a track record of building success and driving change, and a commitment to Catholic education, evangelization, service, and social justice.

MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES

The Superintendent of Catholic Schools provides the strategic leadership for Catholic education, including religious education in all Archdiocesan Catholic schools in the RCAB. In this capacity, s/he will manage and motivate school leadership teams as they collaborate to guide the Archdiocesan schools to long-term sustainability, and to become the standard for high quality Catholic education in the United States. The immediate priority is to stabilize those Archdiocesan schools that are struggling to avoid closure, through creative and effective planning and intervention, with the long-term goal of creating a healthy, sustainable and effective school system as articulated in the National Standards and Benchmarks for effective Catholic Elementary and Secondary Schools (March 2012, The Catholic Schools Standards Project, www.catholicschoolstandards.org).

The specific areas of focus for the new Superintendent will be:

-- Catholic Identity and Mission: Strengthen the understanding of and commitment to what it means to be a Catholic school, and articulate a shared mission for Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Boston that is embraced and supported in all schools.
-- Sustainability: Achieve long-term sustainability and stability for all schools by implementing diocesan-based financial and enrollment policies requiring collaborative, transparent planning. Through the adoption of effective governance models, implement sound policies and engage all stakeholders.
-- Mission Commitment: Address the call to serve all who seek education in Catholic schools, with a specific focus on early education programs, student retention, collaboration with ecclesial and social entities, and the development of faith-based values that lead to faithful citizenship.
-- Governance: Develop and adopt alternative governance structures at both the school and Archdiocesan level, including parochial, diocesan and regional schools. Continue the development of collaborative regional administration models among the elementary schools.
-- Commitment to Cultural Diversity: Develop clear and comprehensive pathways to increase cultural, racial and ethnic diversity in all of Catholic schools of the Archdiocese, including the recruitment of students from underrepresented communities, particularly in the fast-growing Hispanic population, and the recruitment and mentoring of teachers and administrators from these communities to serve in our schools.
Policies: Collaboratively develop and codify diocesan policies addressing Catholic Identity and Mission, Sustainability, Mission Commitment, Governance, and Commitment to Cultural Diversity.

QUALIFICATIONS

-- A true practicing Catholic with demonstrated commitment to and understanding of Catholicism, Catholic identity, Catholic education and the mission for Catholic schools.
-- A minimum of 8 years of successful executive management and operational experience across a multi-site organization that includes development of a strong culture of collaboration and performance, and the sensibilities and perspective necessary to validate her/his leadership of a system of Catholic schools. Managerial experience, especially with governance structures in a Catholic (Arch)Diocese, is preferred.
-- A Master's degree in Educational Leadership or related field is required. Doctorate or doctoral work is preferred;
-- A commitment to, and demonstrated understanding of academic excellence, across the curriculum, in Catholic schools;
-- Demonstrated success with the creation and sustainment of inclusive school cultures based on Catholic social justice teachings;
-- Demonstrable collaboration and communication skills to establish an eco-system of partnerships with colleges and universities, existing and emerging education reform groups, educational organizations, nonprofit corporations, charitable foundations and benefactors;
-- Demonstrated experience in strategic and financial planning and in business management;
-- The background necessary to identify new sources of funding and the political skills to work with existing resources of funding while securing additional investment capital for Catholic schools;
-- A track record of leading and effecting substantive organizational change;
-- The personality, work ethic and integrity to persuade and inspire others to perform at higher levels, and to embrace changes with leadership.

REPORTING RELATIONSHIPS

The Superintendent of Catholic Schools, as a member of the Archbishop of Boston's cabinet, will have direct access to the Archbishop for consultation and advisement. The Superintendent will report to the Vicar General on day-to-day operations of the Catholic Schools Office. As an ex-officio member of the Catholic Schools Council and a Trustee of the Catholic Schools Foundation, the Superintendent will need the necessary political acumen and sensitivities to work in close relationship with not only these critically important organizations, but also with school presidents, principals, Pastors, priests, various types of school boards, and the Campaign for Catholic Schools, to strengthen our schools and fulfill the goal of achieving long-term sustainability. Direct reports to the Superintendent include the Deputy Superintendent, the Associate Superintendent of Mission Effectiveness and Leadership, the Director of School Enrollment and Marketing, and the Director of School Finance. The new Superintendent will have latitude to augment the Catholic Schools Office team to achieve desired goals.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS/APPLICATIONS

The compensation for the Superintendent is highly competitive and includes an executive benefits package comprising health insurance, a 401K plan, etc. Applications should consist of a narrative letter of interest and a current resume, and preferably should be submitted by December 31, 2018. The review of applicants will begin immediately and will continue until the position has been filled. All materials will remain confidential until finalists are identified. Applications or inquiries about the position should be directed to:
Mr. John Regan, Chair of RCAB Superintendent Search Committee, c/o WilmerHale
Attn: Deborah Maw
60 State Street, Boston, MA 02109
/>jack.regan18@outlook.com

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Superintendent of Catholic Schools
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston