by Kristen Blacksher
The Rev. Thomas Schrader, O. Carm., has been hired as the new president of Bishop Ward High School in Kansas City, Kan.
The announcement was made by Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann and the Bishop Ward board.
“Father Schrader is a Carmelite priest and has nine years of experience as the president of Crespi Carmelite High School in Encino, Calif.,” Archbishop Naumann said. “ Father Schrader has spent this past year as the parochial vicar of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Tenafly, New Jersey.
“We prayed that the Lord would raise up a wonderful president to succeed Fr. Michael Hermes, and He certainly has done that,” stated Archbishop Naumann. “I thank the Lord for providing Father Schrader, who will continue the strong spiritual and temporal leadership of the school,” commented Archbishop Naumann.
Marty Baughman, Bishop Ward board chairman, said, “We are very pleased that Father Schrader will become the new president of Bishop Ward High School. We conducted a national search for our next president. Father. Schrader brings with him a lot of experience in all aspects of Catholic education: academics, formation, development, athletics and planning. We look forward to his leadership.”
“It will be an honor to serve as president of Bishop Ward,” Father Schrader said. “The school community is at an exciting point in its rich history of educating a diverse college-bound student body. I am enthusiastic about the contributions from our students who are being trained to be future moral leaders for the church and our society.”
Father Schrader added, “This year the Carmelite Order celebrates 150 years of ministering in this archdiocese; as an educator I welcome the opportunity to carry on this long tradition.”
Father Schrader will begin working at Bishop Ward on July 1, 2014. As previously announced, Father Hermes will be assigned to full-time pastoral ministry in the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas after serving as president of Bishop Ward for the past nine years.