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Reflection from Marist School Principal Mr. Kevin Mullally on Academics at Marist

Dear Friends of Marist,

I started reading Pope Francis’ book Let Us Dream recently and was struck by the message of hope and promise that it offers. Those are two things that are, unfortunately, in short supply these days.
The Pope calls our attention not just to the challenges we face today but also to the potential for transformation and growth that are forged in the crucible of crisis. The Pope reminds us that “this is a moment to dream big, to rethink our priorities—what we value, what we want, what we seek—and to commit to act in our daily life on what we have dreamed of.”

Over the course of the pandemic, we at Marist School have remained focused on and have recommitted ourselves to the big dreaming we did that produced our Strategic Plan 2025. The urgency and relevance of the work we outline there has never been more clear. Its five strategic priorities have stood the test of the current crisis and have emerged more important than ever as we seek to prepare Marist students to lead and serve with compassion, integrity, and a sense of purpose.

Even amidst the challenges the past year has presented, we continue to make good progress on achieving this vision. We had our inaugural edition of the Marist Conversation Series in January that provided an update on the first strategic priority that calls us to Be Unwaveringly Marist. If you were not able to view it on opening night, it is available via streaming here. We look forward to sharing with you the headway we have made on the other strategic priorities throughout the spring and hope you can join us for the upcoming episodes of the Conversation Series, the next of which focuses on strategic priority number two, which ensures that Marist will continue to Excel in Academics. You can watch that newest installment here.

With more challenges facing us than ever before, our teachers’ commitment to their students’ learning remains steadfast, and excellence in the Marist classroom, whether on campus or online, remains consistent. We have certainly been able to make good on two elements of the strategic plan, practicing “innovative teaching techniques” and “maximizing the potential of educational technology” each to our students’ benefit, who are more prepared than ever to learn and work in the 21st century, equipped with the necessary skills to succeed and thrive.

A key means to advance our progress on the strategic plan will be through the new Goizueta Center for Immersive Experience and Design, which was made possible through the generous support of The Goizueta Foundation. The Center has as its aim to increase students’ capacity for empathy, an abiding understanding of others, through a host of 21st century tools and experiences, including virtual and augmented reality; a media suite that has our students create content through broadcasts, podcasts, and music technology; an Intelligent Machines Lab where students design and manufacture robots; and a Material Design Lab, where students think critically and act creatively to solve problems collaboratively. The Center is the main means for the school to provide students with a technology-rich, experiential, and interdisciplinary academic program that prepares students to be Christian leaders who serve compassionately.

In clear and objective ways throughout the last school year and this one, Marist students have met with success on benchmark assessments such as Advanced Placement exams and on the SAT. On the former, our students outperformed their peers nationally and had their highest percentage of scores in the passing range in about five years, which is an indication of overall mastery of the material with the potential for students to earn college credit. On the latter, we had six students earn the distinction of being named National Merit Finalists, the largest number the school has had in over a decade.

Of course, what has made the work we have done all the more impactful is the deep care and concern our faculty has for the young people in our care. This hasn’t been an easy year, but our teachers’ sincere interest in their students’ well-being has driven them to maintain that level of academic excellence for which Marist is known locally and beyond. We have truly been, as the strategic plan calls us to be, a model of excellence for secondary Catholic schools in the United States.

Over the course of the Conversation Series, I trust you will find encouragement about the world-class education Marist has and will continue to offer which is grounded in our six pillars: faith, knowledge, service, leadership, inclusiveness, and engagement. Marist graduates, formed in the image of Christ and strengthened by these pillars, should give us all hope and promise for the future. So, with Strategic Plan 2025 as our guide, let us dream big, as we prepare our graduates to bring goodness and light to the world in a future yet unknown.

Yours in Christ,

Mr. Kevin Mullally

Marist School

3790 Ashford Dunwoody Road, NE
Atlanta, GA 30319-1899
(770) 457-7201
An Independent Catholic School of the Marist Fathers and Brothers