August 15, 2014 | catholicnewsherald.com catholic news heraldI
Other new principals Meredith Canning is the new principal at Immaculata School in Hendersonville. Canning had been serving as interim principal after Carole Breerwood retired in December. A graduate of Canning St. Bonaventure University in New York, Canning taught first, second and fourth grades in New York and New Jersey before moving to North Carolina. She taught first grade at Immaculata for four years. She and her husband Brian have three children, who all attend Immaculata, and they live in Hendersonville. Katie Meseroll is the new principal at St. Michael School in Gastonia. For the past four years Meseroll served as assistant principal and athletic director at Sacred Heart School in Salisbury, where she Meseroll also taught math and physical education. A former Sacred Heart student herself, Meseroll graduated from Belmont Abbey College with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education. She earned a master’s degree in school administration from Gardner-Webb University in 2011. Greg Roberts is the new principal at Immaculate Heart of Mary School in High Point. New to North Carolina, Roberts earned an industrial engineering degree from the University of Oklahoma, where Roberts he also participated in wrestling and football. He worked for nine years as an engineer before entering the teaching profession in New Hampshire. He served seven years in public schools there as a middle school volunteer, substitute teacher and high school wrestling coach. For the past 17 years, he taught math and served as assistant principal, interim principal, and softball/football coach at a high school in the Diocese of Manchester. He and his wife have three children aged 29, 25 and 19.
Telford looks forward to new year at Charlotte Catholic SueAnn Howell Senior reporter
CHARLOTTE — Kurt Telford, the former principal of Our Lady of Grace School in Greensboro, has been hired as the interim principal of Charlotte Catholic High School for the 2014-’15 school year. “Having served at OLG for the past two years, he is very familiar with the Diocese of Charlotte and has established a fine working relationship with his fellow diocesan principals,” said Dr. Janice Ritter, diocesan Telford schools superintendent, in a recent letter to faculty, students and parents. Before coming to the diocesan schools system, Telford worked in public schools, including serving as principal at West Forsyth High School in Clemmons, which has about 2,000 students and 110 teachers. Telford was named the 2010-’11 Winston-SalemForsyth County Principal of the Year. “During his tenure,” Ritter’s letter noted, “the school posted impressive academic achievement.” Before serving as principal of West Forsyth High, Telford served as principal of East Forsyth High School, which has about 1,500 students and 105 teachers. He was also principal of Northwest Middle School, and he was an adjunct instructor in educational leadership and school finance at Western Carolina University. He has extensive experience in overseeing high school athletics programs, and he has coached football, swimming and track. A product of Catholic schools himself, Telford has a Bachelor of Science in education with a concentration in social studies from the University of Connecticut, a Master of Science in education with a concentration in social studies from the State University of New York at Geneseo, and a certificate in educational administration from North Carolina A&T in Greensboro. He and his wife Betty are members of Holy Family Parish in Clemmons. Charlotte Catholic, founded in 1955, is the largest of the three high schools in the diocesan system of 19 schools. “Statewide, the reputation of this school is tremendous so I am really humbled to have been selected to be the interim principal. I am excited for the opportunity to serve at Charlotte Catholic,” Telford said.
Celebrating over 70 years!
St. Michael Catholic School Now Enrolling PK-8th grade Come see what St. Michaels has to offer! Tours and information available upon drop in or by scheduling an appointment.
Financial Assistance available! 704 St Michael Lane, Gastonia, NC 28052 704-865-4382 Katie Meseroll, Principal kcmeseroll@www.stmichaelsgastonia.org
Last school year was difficult for the Charlotte Catholic community, which endured the death of a recent graduate, a controversial student assembly, and the resignation of the school’s long-time principal. Vocal criticism about the assembly and divided loyalties over the principal’s departure rocked the school community. Telford hopes the new school year will mark the start of the school community’s moving forward in a positive direction. He said his goal now is to put the focus back on the students and their academic and spiritual growth. “We need to focus on what our purpose is, not to focus on where there may have been a bump in the road or where we may disagree. It’s to try to pull people in and focus on what our purpose is. There are things that are sometimes beyond our control. So what we – our classroom teachers and me as principal – can control is that kids are engaged in their education and we are giving them the best education that we can.” Telford said he is looking forward to meeting students and their families, and he pledged to listen to them as the school begins a new year in August. “Sometimes people don’t want you to necessarily change things, but they want you to listen. Over my career, I have become a better listener. Sometimes people come in and have great suggestions. And it could be a student, a parent, an alumnus. Because I don’t have any history at Charlotte Catholic, it’s a great learning curve for me to listen and see how Charlotte Catholic does things,” he said. “I have been asked to come in and make sure we’re on track to help our kids be successful. That’s what my focus is. The challenge is to focus on what we’re here for, what we do well and what we have in common,” he said. “We’re a Catholic school, so we’re here for kids and that should be our focus. At the end of the day, it’s what we’re doing for young adults to prepare them for college within the teachings of the Catholic Church that matters.”
Search under way Kurt Telford will serve as principal for the 2014-’15 school year while Diocese of Charlotte Schools leaders conduct a nationwide search for a permanent principal for the diocese’s largest high school. A search committee is being developed that will help to look for and evaluate potential candidates, according to school officials.
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Keane named new principal at Christ the King High School HUNTERSVILLE — The Diocese of Charlotte has hired a new principal for Christ the King High School in Huntersville. Brendan Keane is taking over the diocese’s newest high school after the departure last spring of its founding principal, Dr. Dan Dolan, who accepted a position outside the diocese. Keane has worked as a history teacher at Charlotte Catholic High School for 10 years, and before that, he taught for three years at East Mecklenburg High School. A member of St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte, he is a graduate of the diocesan school Keane system. He has a Bachelor of Science in education with a concentration in history from Appalachian State University and a Master of Arts in educational administration from the Mary Ann Remick Leadership Program at the University of Notre Dame. “I am excited about the opportunity to join the growing community at Christ the King,” he said. “I am looking forward to meeting the students, parents and faculty of the school and evaluating the opportunities and challenges that exist for Christ the King as well as working with them to build a shared vision for the school going forward.” He said he is also thankful for the chance to put his education and experiences to work for the Diocese of Charlotte in a new way in a new place. “Although I am a proud graduate and longtime member of the community at Charlotte Catholic High School, I believe it will be invigorating to spread my wings a bit and can’t wait to go to work with the good people at Christ the King,” he said. Christ the King High School has more than 140 students, making it the smallest of the diocese’s three high schools. It opened in a temporary location in Mooresville in 2011 and moved to its current 100-acre location just outside Huntersville last August to serve the growing Catholic population north of Charlotte. The school will graduate its first senior class in 2015. — Catholic News Herald