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2011 Outstanding Boards' Descriptions
The achievements of these award recipients inspire us with new ideas and possibilities.
Charleston Catholic School Board
Charleston, South Carolina
The
Charleston
Catholic
School’s Advisory Board celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. It consists of 8 members appointed by the pastors of the five parishes, and the members represent a variety of professions: attorney, accountant, financial advisor, education consultant, speech pathologist, computer systems analyst, security management, and symphony orchestra musician.
In the past three years the board has done many things to help with the improvement of the schools they work with. They have approved fund-raising efforts to equip all classrooms with SMART Boards. They have improved the relations between the five downtown parishes and the school to re-connect the school with the parishes in meaningful ways. They have created new steering committees to draw from the diverse professional experience that the school’s parents and parishes have to offer. They have raised substantial funds to meet the needs of the school as identified by the Board, such as a new sound system and curtains for the stage. Furthermore, they have approved hiring consultants to perform a feasibility study and capital campaign to focus on a major facility improvement on campus. They have also developed and implemented a new “Baptism Program” which will further connect the school to all new families and children born within the parishes it serves.
Christ Our King-Stella Maris Catholic School Board
Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina
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Christ Our King-Stella Maris Catholic School
1183 Russell Drive
Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464
http://www.coksm.org/
Principal Ms. Jean Moschella
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This 60 year old advisory school board consists of 10 appointed, voting members, two non-voting members, three pastors, and the principal. The members represent a variety of professional backgrounds including attorney, engineer, business owners, a financial professional and volunteers but they find that they all share one common trait: strong Catholic faith.
This board recognized the need for a new committee structure process to promote more parental involvement and to be more productive. Their hard work has led to many accomplishments. They have increased parental volunteers on committees. They have also formed a new committee structure and hierarchy and as such the board chair now serves as a gatekeeper to the administration so that the chair may better channel issues, making this team more effective. They have expanded existing committees to include Catholic Identity and Communications. The Catholic Identity Committee successfully formed a weekly parent-prayer group that meets during carpool. The Communications Committee recommended an emergency contact system to alert parents of any situation during the school day and after hours, the formation of this ensures the highest safety standards for their students. They have also started the initiation of an annual board retreat/orientation session at the beginning of each school year to better formulate the goals and expectations of the board and committees.
DeSales Catholic School Board
Lockport, New York
This board of trustees has been in existence since 1970 when three parish schools merged to form the Diocese of Buffalo’s first regional Catholic school. The 18 members of DeSales Board of Trustees is comprised of alumni, community leaders, professionals, and parents who continue to embody the spirit of St. Francis DeSales. Board members include a parish priest, an attorney, health care professionals, educators, business owners and mangers, a sheriff investigator, a grants administrator, certified public accountants, and a military professional.
This board has committed to being visionary leaders whose overriding priority is to make decisions based on what is in the best interest of the students, the school, and the community. Through open dialog and addressing, head-on, areas to improve, the board has had many recent accomplishments. They had the implementation of an Ad-Hoc Committee to analyze the state of the school and to make recommendations on areas of improvement, which then became a blueprint for improvement. They have established the assembly of a diverse search committee representing all facets of the school community for selection of a new principal. They have started the stabilization of student enrollment and the maintenance of strong finances. They have also begun a thorough review of existing policies to begin the compilation of a new policy manual.
Our Lady of Grace Catholic School
Highland, Indiana
This a 7 year old advisory board for a K to 8th grade elementary school. It is comprised of 12 members including professionals of the business, IT and finance world, teachers, nurses, parents, alumni, and retirees.
In recent years this board has accomplished the establishment of an Annual Fund Committee to oversee the raising of dollars to reduce the burden of parish subsidy and meet the immediate needs of the school which include buying new desks, adding 5 SMART boards, and offering short term financial assistance for families. They have implemented a Strategic Planning and Goals Committee with which to monitor the progress of the school board. They have also developed an extensive communications and marketing campaign with professional publications that continue to garner support from the community and attract families to
OLG
School . To better help with this marketing campaign they conducted surveys of the school's families to better understand the success and areas of concern for all students. They have supported school programs for maintaining “Exemplary” status as identified by the State of
Indiana . They have also established effective committees to evaluate and work on specific items including Finance, Development and Communication, Building and Grounds, Mission Effectiveness, New Members, Policy and Planning, Enrollment, and Technology.
Santa Fe Catholic High School Board
Lakeland, Florida
The 45 year old Santa Fe Catholic High School Board of Trustees has 13 members with diverse qualifications such as community development, advertising and marketing, engineering, real estate, finance, higher education, and business.
In the last 3 years they have been in transition from an advisory board to a board of trustees (a board of limited jurisdiction). The outstanding achievements of the SFC Board of Trustees are not only the recognition of this transition, but also of the major accomplishments achieved during and since this evolution. Significant strides have been made in the areas of board recruitment, organizational strength, orientation, and training. A major strategic planning program was initiated by the board that resulted in the establishment of a Parish Task Force, a Technology Task Force, and a Focus Group. The Board had a major role in the selection of a school president, the recruitment and hiring of a principal, and a director of institutional advancement. The board finance committee is working closely with the administration and community experts to develop a thorough marketing strategy and a cohesive plan for implementation. The board is currently working with administration in the planning of a major capital campaign, which is to be kicked-off during the school’s 50th anniversary.
St. Irene Catholic School Board
Warrenville, Illinois
This 40 year old advisory school board has 9 members that support the staff and administrators of the school. The school serves students from preschool through eighth grade. Their members come from a wide variety of professional backgrounds including marketing, communications, engineering, and technical support management.
Their goal is to work cohesively together so they may make a better school whether it is through the avenues of fundraising, curriculum, spirituality, community service, or media relations. Recently they have brought together a Strategic Plan for the future in areas of enrollment, finances, curriculum, marketing, safety, facilities, personnel development, technology, and student life. They have maintained a balanced budget within the guidelines of the Diocese’s 255 parish subsidy. They are also working with a neighboring Catholic school to better serve social concern by running joint food drives and joining efforts to market Catholic education for their area. They are always making themselves available to student families and parish members in order to listen to concerns, problems, or praises when it comes to the operations of running a parish school.
Saint Mary's Academy School Board
Portland, Oregon
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Since its inception 22 years ago the, 23-member, St. Mary’s Board of Directors continually creates exceptional synergy with school leadership to perpetrate the mission of its founding order; the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary (SNJM). Comprised of constituents representing the best Catholic and business practices correlating to the school’s 152-year flourishing history, the board’s dedication and commitment to single-gender education in an urban environment has led to strategic gap identification and improvement proposals and actions.
With the mantra that excellence requires continuous improvement, the board’s success includes the creation and implementation of a feasibility study and policy development for an upcoming endowment campaign; strategic and advanced investment approaches for short and long-term financial viability; a city park renovation with strong community partnerships to secure home fields for soccer and lacrosse teams; comprehensive research and development of a 46,000 sq. ft. athletic complex; extensive brand research for positive marketing, admissions and development strategies and increased funding for vital professional development.
At the Convention a 12-foot-long outdoor banner announcing the 2011 Outstanding Board Award was presented to each awarded board so that prospective families and passersby will know that this is a high-quality school backed by an effective board.
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