January 26, 2011
I took Good Counsel on the road to New York City late last week. The goal was to connect with alumni working in the city and introduce myself as the new leader of their alma mater.
Accompanied by Advancement Director Jane DiGirolamo, over two days we were able to meet with 30 alumni. We visited Falcons at two of the "biggest of the big" banks. Another showed us the remarkable stadium infrastructure of one of New York's professional sports' franchises. And another told of completing production of her first feature film.
It's clear that our alumni are doing well. Their Good Counsel years may be distant, but it was gratifying to hear of how their attitudes to hard work, their drive to succeed, and their appreciation of the opportunities afforded them tie back to four years at the intersection of Georgia and Arcola.
The hustle and bustle of life in the Big Apple seem like a million miles away instead of just over 200 miles from the Wheaton campus these alumni knew. In searching for the right word to describe how Our Lady of Good Counsel High School continues to influence these former students, I was drawn to the core Xaverian value of "zeal." Whether in banking and the financial markets, professional sports, television and film, fashion, law, these alumni have been able to translate the knowledge and skills, attitudes and relationships cultivated at our school into passion, enthusiasm, and drive in their professional lives.
In my remarks at Friday night's reception at the Penn Club, I described a physical plant (and plans to add a Performing Arts Center to it) that is very different – it's not even in the same location – but which is and shall remain their school. About half the alums had never seen the Olney campus.
Yet, at the end of an intense work week and with the threat of snow and ice, these alumni needed little persuading to gather for Good Counsel. They shared their affection (and if you believe them, still some fear and trepidation) for the legends who still walk our halls; our teachers made such a difference. Clearly, we were talking about the same school.
Catholic schools exist to provide a robust academic preparation and to bond young people to their faith community. The zeal of our New York alumni, evidenced in financial support and their enthusiastic response to news of strong enrollment, an ever-expanding menu of service opportunities, impressive scores on AP and IB exams, a football season for the ages, and bold plans for construction of a Performing Arts Center is something we expect to find as we take the Good Counsel story on the road in the months and years ahead.
The kind of school we are today may be different, but at the core we are working every day to be true to the ideals of the same school we have been for 54 years.