Dear Friends,
Jambo! As many of you know our beloved principal, Bernadette O’Leary, will be retiring at the end of June. She has blessed the St. John community with many gifts during her 13 years here, and we will be celebrating her on May 19 so please mark your calendars.
To find her replacement, I appointed school parent, Matt Diefenbach, to lead a principal search committee in partnership with the Office for Catholic Schools. This is a very thorough and time-intensive process that ensures we find the best candidates for the school leadership role.
I wish to thank Matt and all those who served on the Principal Search Committee, including Pam Schwartz from the Office for Catholic Schools, for diligently carrying out this important work. They spent many hours over the last few months surveying parents and faculty, developing a job description, interviewing candidates and narrowing down the pool. In late February, they presented their two recommended candidates for my discernment.
After interviewing each of the final candidates, I entered my time for prayer and discernment. Today, I am very happy to announce your new principal will be Ms. Abby Mansfield! She will start in her role as principal of St. John School on July 1, 2024.
Many of you already know Ms. Mansfield, who has been an active member of our Parish and School community for 15 years. During her 12 years as an employee, she has taught multiple subjects and engaged students across all grade-level departments. She is currently teaching religion to all middle school students. She has also served in several leadership roles during her time at the school, including Department Chair, School Executive Team and teacher representative of the GRACE program. Outside of St. John, she is currently participating in the Leadership Academy offered through the Office for Catholic Schools and also the NYU Steinhardt’s Executive Women’s Leadership Summit.
The Principal Search Committee recommended Ms. Mansfield because of her clear passion for St. John and its students, her commitment to Catholic education, her ability to nurture a welcoming and inclusive community, her approach to servant leadership and her sincere desire to lead this school into its next chapter, while fostering a strong relationship between the School and the Parish. The committee also noted her fierce commitment to her Catholic faith, which is a vital element for the principal role.
Over the next few months, Ms. Mansfield will work closely with Principal O’Leary to ensure a smooth transition. Her familiarity with the school, the faculty and the students will help expedite her learning curve, and I am confident that she will bring both great joy and strong leadership to our school.
For those of you who have not had the pleasure of engaging with Ms. Mansfield, there will be several opportunities over the next few months to get to know her. Please stay tuned for more information.
Again, I wish to express my gratitude to all those who served on the Principal Search Committee. Their hard work and dedication resulted in an excellent candidate pool and, ultimately, the next leader of our school community. Thank you for serving St. John in this way.
Please pray for Ms. Mansfield as she begins to shadow Principal O’Leary to prepare for this transition. Also, let’s pray for Principal O’Leary. May she truly enjoy these last few months of the academic year.
Please know that I continue to pray for all of you, and I humbly ask you to continue to pray for me. God bless you!
Baraka ya Yesu,
Father Crispin Okoth
