Head of School Letter

Dear Mercy Community, Welcome Mercy’s

Catherine McAuley always believed that “a good beginning is of great importance,” and she couldn’t be more right. As we are starting our 2022-2023 school year, I can’t help but feel excited and hopeful for our own beginning. With two new administrators joining us and new faculty and staff, there is a contagious energy at Mercy that is bringing a renewed sense of joy to our professions and sparking tremendous opportunities through shared ideas.

This is an exciting time for Mercy. Mercy has been ready for new initiatives, new programs, and new ideas, yet the world put us on pause for a bit as priorities shifted these past three years.

The time has finally come for us to vision and develop the Mercy of today; a Mercy that honors the experience we all had, protects our treasured traditions, and imagines new possibilities to ensure a Mercy education remains relevant to the needs of our students and the challenges they face as young women of today.

I look forward to sharing these new programs and plans with you throughout the year. Until then, there is one project I am extremely excited to share with our Mercy community—the time has finally come for us to build the dream of having greater facilities on campus that Mercy students have shared for decades. For years we have explored how to bring a gym to Mercy’s campus, and after working nonstop with various stakeholders we are proud to share our Building the Dream Capital Campaign to fund an Athletic and Student Life Center with a pool expansion. I invite you to learn more about this on the next page.

Being in education I always celebrate two new years each year—one in January and one in August. Regardless of your line of work I hope you join me in celebrating this new year, and I hope you can feel the energy and excitement coming from Mercy. I hope you choose to join us in these very exciting and monumental times. Return to Mercy to walk the hallways. Come to Mercy to join an event. Reach out to support our new programs and goals. Get involved with your alma mater, because we want to know you, and something tells me you would get so much joy in getting to know Mercy again and in giving back to our students the way so many did for us over the years. As our student body officers reminded us every day last year, “The time is now, Mercy!” And what a time it is!

Sincerely,

Natalie Cirigliano Brosnan, ‘02 Ed.D. HEAD OF SCHOOL

New Assistant Heads of School!

Assistant Head of School for

Academics Art Walker has 22 years of experience as an administrator, high school English teacher, and head coach for both men’s and women’s varsity sports. He has a gift for school design, program development, and a passion for integrating DEI work across curriculum. Mr. Walker received his Bachelors of Arts in English & Secondary Education from Coastal Carolina University, Masters in Education, Administration & Supervision from Liberty University, and is currently enrolled at Harvard University’s School of Management and Leadership program.

Jennifer Clifford, Assistant Head

of School for Student Life, comes with over 20 years of experience in education as an administrator and science teacher. She has designed female empowerment activities and training to reduce interrelation aggression among young women. Ms. Clifford is committed to creating opportunities for students to bolster their sense of belonging, social and emotional well-being, leadership skills, and motivation. She received her Bachelors of Science in Environmental Science & Avian Ecology from the University of Maine - Machias, and two Masters degrees from Governors State University in Educational Administration and Education, Curriculum, and Instruction.

“I am super excited about joining the Mercy community and look forward to helping our students become the women that will continue to change our world for the better. In addition, I look forward to sharing my passion for educating the whole student by working closely with students, faculty, and staff to ensure a rigorous, student-centric academic experience is in place to prepare our students to be the ‘change agents’ that will help make our world a better place.” — ART WALKER

Assistant Head of School for Academics

“It's such a thrill to be joining this educational community because I know that I'll be able to see the impact of the Mercy Mission on our girls and the world around them. I want to impart my deep love of learning with the young women of Mercy as they develop their faith, compassion, and commitment to serving others as global citizens. I have no doubt that our scholars will challenge me to continue my own growth and learning along with them through our shared work.” — JENNIFER CLIFFORD

Assistant Head of School for Student LIfe