Xaverian Brothers High School Completes Largest Fundraising Effort in School History; $25,000,000 Raised for Facilities and Financial Aid????
Xaverian High School, Needham, MA??Josephine-M.-Noble-Chapel
Westwood, MA – Called to Lead: The Campaign for Xaverian, the largest fundraising effort in the history of Xaverian Brothers High School, successfully reached the $25 million expanded goal. The campaign???s conclusion was celebrated at the Francis Xavier Society Reception with parents, alumni, grandparents, parents of alumni, faculty and staff, and friends, as well as many board members and loyal donors. The campaign, originally slated with a $20 million goal, concluded at $25 million with five $1 million gifts and one $3 million gift. Additionally, the Fund for Xaverian, the school???s fund for unrestricted giving, grew from $1 million to $1.35 million.
Xaverian Capital Campaign Leadership:??(left to right)??David Capobianco ???76, P ???06, Co-Chair of??Called to Lead??and member of the Board of Trustees; John Murphy ???70, P ???03, Chair of the Board of Trustees; Brother Daniel Skala, C.F.X., Headmaster; Rick Spillane ???68, former Chair of the Board of Trustees and Co-Chair of??Called to Lead; and Larry Furey, P ???21, Assistant Headmaster for Advancement
Xaverian???s first capital campaign, The Campaign for Xaverian: A Legacy of Values, which concluded in 2004, raised $12.1 million.
???The tremendous support of so many has enabled Xaverian to address the ambitious initiatives of its strategic plan, Growing in Harmony, which articulated a bold vision to strengthen every dimension of the school. The transformation of our campus represents the Board???s commitment to providing the best facilities for the young men we educate,??? said Headmaster Brother Daniel Skala, C.F.X. (Westwood). He continued, ???All of us can readily see the impact of the capital campaign. A substantial share of the campaign helped ensure that all talented boys can attend Xaverian, no matter their family???s financial means.
Counseling Wing
Providing access and affordability continues to be more essential than ever. We???ve also further strengthened teaching and learning to meet the growing needs of our students and to prepare them for college and beyond. To do all this, we most recently developed more space for the collaborative nature of 21st century education, strengthened our counseling program, and renovated an area of the school which has been untouched for more than 50 years. Finally, as part of our commitment to educate the whole person, we renovated the Josephine M. Noble Chapel, which is the heart and soul of the school. With the completion of these improvements, among so many others over these past five years, we hope to inspire all to lead lives of learning, faith, and service.???
Library and Collaborative Spaces
???The success of the campaign is a tremendous cause for celebration and another example of the highly effective leadership of the trustees, who help make the school better in all aspects,??? said Larry Furey, (Westwood) and Assistant Headmaster for Advancement at Xaverian. ???The efforts of our current parents, alumni, parents of alumni, grandparents, and friends of Xaverian further enhance Xaverian???s reputation and add to the school???s proud legacy,??? he said.
???Called to Lead is so fitting a description for what the Xaverian community has done since this campaign began,??? said former Chairman of the Board, Rick Spillane ???68. ???So many in the Xaverian community heard the call and stood up as leaders with their support. In doing so, they have enhanced the lives of our students and faculty, who themselves strive to be the best leaders they can be every day,??? Spillane concluded.
Trustees, alumni, parents, and faculty and staff showed themselves to be terrific supporters of the campaign, understanding the tremendous impact it had by enhancing the learning environment for students. ???Xaverian is in a very strong position, 55 years into our story. We are enjoying an increase in enrollment, while still being able to provide one-on-one, personalized attention,??? said Brother Daniel. ???Our campus is modern and impressive, with all of the state-of-the-art amenities to meet the needs of our students.???
The Called to Lead capital campaign was spearheaded by an outstanding volunteer campaign cabinet led by Campaign Executive Chairman, Jack Egan, Xaverian Class of 1975 (Hopkinton), Campaign Co-Chairs, John Murphy, Xaverian Class of 1970 and a parent of a 2003 Xaverian graduate (Wellesley), Rick Roche, a Xaverian parent of a 2011 graduate (Westwood), John Brennan, Xaverian parent of a 2006 graduate (Westwood), and Advancement Committee Chair, David Capobianco, Xaverian Class of 1976 and a parent of a 2006 graduate (Boston).
Called to Lead: The Campaign for Xaverian, was publicly launched at the 50th Anniversary Gala in March of 2014. This timeline shows the many changes to the Xaverian campus made possible by the Called to Lead campaign:
- May 2013: Xaverian???s Board of Trustees approves the addition of grades 7 and 8 (Francis Xavier Division) and new campus improvements
- June 2013: Construction begins on Xaverian???s new varsity stadium
- July 2013: Jay McGilvray, chair of Xaverian???s English Department, becomes Xaverian???s first assistant principal for the Francis Xavier Division
- September 2013: Construction completed on Xaverian???s new varsity stadium with enhancements, including new turf, an eight-lane track, a new drainage system, and lights
- October 2013: Groundbreaking on Xaverian???s new Wellness Center and athletic fields
- March 2014: Called to Lead: The Campaign for Xaverian is publicly launched at the 50th Anniversary Gala at the Boston Marriott Copley Hote
- April 2014: Topping-off ceremony commemorates final beam laid on construction of new Wellness Center
- September 2014: Xaverian welcomes its first seventh grade class of boys to the Francis Xavier Division
- October 2014: Xaverian???s new 32,500-square-foot Wellness Center officially opens to students, faculty, and staff
- September 2015: 10,000-square-foot academic classroom addition opens, including five modern classrooms and two collegiate-inspired, state-of-the-art science lab
- October 2016: The Board of Trustees approves the extension of the Called to Lead campaign from $20 million to $25 million and approves renovations to the school???s library, chapel, admissions office, counseling office, language lab, and advancement and business offices
- April 2017: Renovations begin to the Ryken Wing (the former Brothers??? residence), which had remained very much untouched since the 1960s
- September 2017: Students, faculty, and staff are welcomed back to a newly renovated library (complete with new collaborative learning spaces), chapel, admissions office suite, counseling office suite, language lab, and advancement and business office suites
- October 2017: Called to Lead capital campaign officially concludes at the Francis Xavier Society Reception, held in the Sarah M. Bisson Foyer, outside the newly renovated Josephine M. Noble Chapel
Xaverian Brothers High School is a Catholic, college-prep day school for boys in Grades 7-12. For more than 50 years, Xaverian has been at the forefront of Catholic education, challenging young men to become their best; not just as students but as leaders of strong faith and character. For more information visit www.xbhs.com