Welcome
Dear members of the Fordham prep Community,
i am deeply honored to be named the next principal of Fordham preparatory School. As a community dedicated to faith, scholarship and service, Fordham prep provided me with a transformative experience of Jesuit education that has been the foundation of my life ever since. i am very excited to return home to the prep community in the service of our young men called to“ go forth and set the world on fire” in the spirit of St. ignatius Loyola.
i would like to sincerely thank the Search Committee and the many students, faculty, staff, parents, and trustees and especially Fr. Devron, for their support and trust. i look forward to our collaboration as partners in our mission to lead Fordham prep at this important moment in history as we prepare for our 175th anniversary and beyond.
Vital to sustaining our mission is the community of women and men responsible for the daily successes and life lessons that take place in the classroom, on athletic fields, in prayer and retreats, in artistic performances, and in compassionate service. Fordham prep’ s dedicated teachers truly care for our students in the best sense of cura personalis. i am energized by the opportunity to work closely with an outstanding faculty and staff, a highly engaged student body, and a mission-driven community supported by parents, trustees, alumni, and benefactors. it is my sincere desire as Fordham prep’ s next principal that i can continue to inspire our community to guide one another in finding opportunities to respond to Christ’ s call to transform the world for god’ s greater glory.
i am truly privileged to follow Brian Carney and Bob gomprecht, both of whom i deeply respect and admire for their long-standing commitment to Fordham prep. my early work on ministry and service programs at Xavier was very much supported by Brian, who shared his wisdom and experience as a true colleague, mentor, and friend. i am also immensely grateful for Bob’ s extraordinary leadership for over two decades. As a student during his first years as principal, i directly benefitted from being formed under the guidance of his lifelong dedication to Fordham prep. i look forward to the challenge of ensuring that the Fordham prep community continues to flourish in the pursuit of human excellence, as it has during Bob’ s long tenure and Brian’ s current leadership.
Today, we are faced with challenges and opportunities similar to those of St. ignatius Loyola and his first companions in the 16th century: How do we live in the tension between tradition and change? How do we continue being faithful to the mission and values of Fordham prep as a Jesuit apostolate animated by the spirituality and charism of St. ignatius and the Society of Jesus? How do we maintain the fundamental roots of our centuries old ignatian vision while opening ourselves to the new horizons and frontiers of change that lie before us?
As i reflect on these questions and the path that led me back to Fordham prep, i very much look forward to forming new relationships and deepening existing ones within the Fordham prep community, as we move forward together.
in the first months of his pontificate, pope Francis spoke passionately to Jesuit school students about the call to be magnanimous:“ doing the little everyday things with a great heart open to god and to others.” i truly believe that this magnanimity is alive and well in the prep community as we educate young men in ways that invite them to the fullness of life in Christ. may god continue to bless the work of the Fordham prep community and all who serve the young men in our care, Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam.
Sincerely, Joseph A. Petriello, PhD’ 98
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