Dear Members of the Holy Cross Community,
On behalf of the Board of Directors, I am excited to announce the appointment of Mr. Mark Mongelluzzo as Holy Cross High School’s fifth President, effective July 1, 2022.
Mark is a 1992 graduate of Holy Cross and a life-long resident of Bayside, (Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish) so we are happy to welcome Mark home. Mark is joining us from Xavier High School in Manhattan where he has worked since 2008 including the past 10 years as Xavier’s Director of Development and most recently Vice President for Advancement. During Mark’s tenure at Xavier, he has been instrumental in increasing annual and planned giving, helping to increase the size of the endowment, sourcing major gifts for capital improvements and actively contributing to its master planning process.
“Mark Mongelluzzo has done great work at Xavier,” notes Jack Raslowsky, president of Xavier High School. “We are a better and stronger institution because of his commitment to excellence in Catholic education and his tireless efforts to advance our mission. Holy Cross is getting an outstanding president who has been a great partner in the work and has the deep respect of all his colleagues. He is ready, willing and able to bring his formidable talents and commitment back to Queens in the service of the young men and women of Holy Cross. I am confident that working with the Board, alumni, faculty, staff and parents, Mark will bring Holy Cross to new heights.”
Prior to joining Xavier, Mark spent four years practicing law at Peter Birzon & Associates in Long Island. He also worked for two years in marketing and communications at Merrill Lynch. Mark is a 2001 graduate of Boston University School of Law where he was Administrative Editor of the Public Interest Law Journal, and a 1996 graduate of Yale University where he was a member of the Lightweight Crew team and a Freshman Counselor in Timothy Dwight College.
“I am the product of Holy Cross and I am deeply grateful for the education I received there,” notes Mongelluzzo. “Holy Cross helped me believe in myself, find my passion and ignite my faith. When I graduated Cross thirty years ago, I was well prepared intellectually, morally and spiritually for college and for life. I want every Holy Cross student to graduate well prepared—no matter where they go to college or what they pursue in life. I am as excited as I am humbled for the opportunity to work with the faculty, administration, staff, Board of Directors, alumni, parents and students to secure a bright future for Cross.”
This ideal appointment is the culmination of an intensive and inclusive national search process supported by Carney, Sandoe & Associates which involved representation from the entire school community during the past 6 months. Through focus group meetings and survey responses, you expressed your hopes for the next president: someone who will be a visible presence in the community; demonstrate visionary, entrepreneurial leadership, have a focus on academic excellence and can both inspire and lead a high performing team and create demand for the extraordinary gifts of a Cross education. In Mark, I believe that we have found a President with every one of these qualities. Mark’s talents, drive, passion and his knowledge of both the school and the community will enable him to have an immediate beneficial impact on Holy Cross.
Mark will assume leadership of Holy Cross following the successful tenure of Mike Truesdell who will retire on June 30, 2022 after 6 years of extraordinary service. Mike led Holy Cross through its phenomenally successful transition to a co-educational institution as well as the planning for its new Athletic and Convocation Center which should begin construction later this year.
This June’s graduating class, the first to include both young women and young men, is a fitting testament to Mike’s leadership and the indelible memory that he will leave at Holy Cross.
Mark is perfectly suited to take Holy Cross to its next level of excellence.
On behalf of the Board of Directors, I would like to thank the entire Holy Cross community for your engagement, support and guidance in this search process. I also want to express our gratitude to the Search Committee, Mr. Frank Orzo ’64 (Chair), Rob Botero ’00, Vince Breitenbach ’77, Jennifer Chase P’12, Joe Giannuzzi ’65, Dennis Golden ’59, Terry Lee and Cathy Vodopivec for their dedicated efforts to find the best next leader for our school.
Please join me in welcoming Mark and his wife, Jill and their two children Danielle and Christopher to the Holy Cross Community.
Ave Crux, Spes Unica.
Sincerely,
John Gerspach ’71
Board Chair