Summer 2011 - Bishop O'Connell High School
Summer 2011 - Bishop O'Connell High School
Summer 2011 - Bishop O'Connell High School
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The knights’ pages<br />
<strong>Summer</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
BISHOP O’CONNELL<br />
HIGH SCHOOL<br />
6600 Little Falls Road<br />
Arlington, VA 22213<br />
703-237-1400<br />
www.bishopoconnell.org<br />
ADmINISTRATION<br />
Kathleen Ryan Prebble<br />
President<br />
Joseph E. Vorbach III, PhD ’83<br />
Principal<br />
Rev. Phillip M. Cozzi ’94<br />
Chaplain<br />
Sr. Catherine Hill, I.H.M. ’66<br />
Dean of Academics<br />
Meghan Lonergan<br />
Dean of Students<br />
ADVANCEMENT<br />
Gerry Vent<br />
Director of Advancement<br />
703-237-1445<br />
gvent@bishopoconnell.org<br />
Cindy Krech<br />
Associate Director of<br />
Advancement<br />
703-237-1446<br />
ckrech@bishopoconnell.org<br />
Michelle Kannan<br />
Alumni Relations<br />
703-237-1437<br />
mkannan@bishopoconnell.org<br />
Kim Aubry<br />
Advancement Services<br />
703-237-1447<br />
kaubry@bishopoconnell.org<br />
COMMUNICATIONS<br />
Mary Jane Spurlock<br />
Director of Communications<br />
703-237-1425<br />
mjspurlock@bishopoconnell.org<br />
Letter from the<br />
CHAIRMAN<br />
Board of<br />
Governors<br />
Dear Parents, Alumni and Friends,<br />
I recently had the privilege of participating in our commencement exercises for the class of<br />
<strong>2011</strong>, as faculty, family and friends came to provide enthusiastic support to our 344 graduating<br />
seniors. Congratulations to all of the class; we welcome you as the newest members of the<br />
<strong>Bishop</strong> O’Connell Alumni Association. It was an impressive day at the National Shrine<br />
of the Immaculate Conception. We heard the remarkable words from our valedictorian,<br />
salutatorian, and retired U.S. Marine Corps Gen. James Jones, former Commandant of the<br />
Marine Corps, National Security Advisor, and <strong>Bishop</strong> O’Connell parent (class of 1992). We<br />
also had the honor of welcoming members of the class of 1961, the first graduating class, who<br />
held their exciting reunion the following weekend.<br />
Among the announcement of honors achieved, and scholarships received (valued at $11<br />
million in this class alone), what struck me most was the consistent message of the desire and<br />
need to give to the community and to continue to spread our faith through our actions and<br />
deeds. And, as intoned by General Jones, strive to be the best and never give up.<br />
It was a little more than ten years ago that I received a call from Al Burch, principal at<br />
the time, and Monsignor James McMurtrie, asking if I would help DJO by organizing a<br />
capital campaign. Fearful of the time commitment involved, I cautiously said “yes.” I did so<br />
because I recalled that it was while I was a student at <strong>Bishop</strong> O’Connell <strong>High</strong> <strong>School</strong> that<br />
those values of giving to the community and living our faith ever day through our actions<br />
were ingrained in me.<br />
We set about to achieve our goal of creating a culture of giving, not only for our students and<br />
current parents, but for our alumni, parents and friends. And what a culture we have today.<br />
I am pleased to tell you that, in the period 2000-2010, our fundraising activities for DJO,<br />
through our capital campaign, the annual fund and our significant fundraisers—the golf outing,<br />
and the gala—raised nearly $12 million in revenue for the school. Even more remarkable,<br />
our internal fundraising activities from the PTO, athletic boosters, and student fundraisers<br />
such as the annual Superdance, raised nearly $8 million over that same ten year period.<br />
Our culture of giving is growing! In the year 2000, our Annual Fund took in less than $50,000.<br />
In the school year just ending, the Annual Fund will collect nearly $500,000.<br />
As the school year comes to a close we are preparing some of the most significant renovations<br />
to the school facility since its opening in 1957. And we are working pledges and donations this<br />
year to add to our ten year numbers above. But we cannot rest on our laurels. We must challenge<br />
ourselves to increase our efforts by another order of magnitude if we are to afford the<br />
costs of renovating our 50-year old facility, pay a living wage to our faculty, and provide appropriate<br />
financial aid as we continue to support the need and success of Catholic education.<br />
That means we need you, our alumni, to once again embrace our mission and rejoin the<br />
DJO culture of giving. As a tribute to our first graduating class (the class of 1961), our 51st<br />
graduating class (the class of <strong>2011</strong>), and to all of you in between, we hope you will say<br />
“Count me in!” You will soon hear more about our Time is Now initiative and we hope you<br />
will consider what you can do to allow us to continue to make big things happen on Little<br />
Falls Road every day!<br />
Sincerely,<br />
COVER PHOTO: Dia Barber ’11<br />
savors her graduation moment.<br />
Kevin J. Fay ’73<br />
2