ACAAP of New England Announces New President

The Board is excited to share that Kevin Altieri has been selected to serve as ACAAP's eighth volunteer President. Many thanks to outgoing President Christopher Merrill for his many years of service and dedication. Chris continues to assist ACAAP in his role as Board Member as well as co-chair of the upcoming workshop on October 13th. We couldn't have done it without you all these years Chris and thank you for your continued help!

Let's get to know the new ACAAP President with a brief interview.

Q. (Anthony Tata)
Kevin, for those who don't know who you are or how you got here, please share what brought you to a career working in Catholic school and as ACAAP's volunteer President.
A.  (Kevin Altieri)
My career working in Catholic Schools has a few “starting points.” Way back in the summer of 1959 my father met one of his uncle’s best friends who had gone to Fairfield University and strongly encouraged my Dad and his parents to consider Fairfield Prep for high school. He did and the Jesuits “ruined him for life” as the saying goes! From there, Jesuit education has been a hallmark of my family so, when I got the opportunity to join the faculty at my alma mater 19 years ago I had to take it and it has only gotten better since then. 

When I first took my role as Director of Admissions at Fairfield Prep in 2017 I was introduced to ACAAP by my predecessor, Greg Marshall, as an organization that I had to join for its many benefits. His wisdom was quickly realized at my first conference and I knew that I had to continue learning from the brilliant people working in Catholic School Admissions throughout New England. Accepting the role as President is an opportunity for me to learn more from my colleagues and a chance to give back in support of such a worthy cause. After all, the enrollment and advancement engines keep our Catholic Schools running and I’d argue that there is no more important cause today than keeping our Catholic Schools an integral part of society.

Q. 
What do you have in the works for ACAAP?
A.
Well, please save your seat for the upcoming half-day workshop at College of the Holy Cross on Thursday, October 13th. With the help of the ACAAP Board and workshop co-chairs Chris Merrill and Jim Scholl we have put together what will be a valuable workshop. I am really looking forward to bringing back the in-person events in 2022!

The events have been such an integral part of ACAAP’s benefit for members. We’ve had the opportunity to continue learning by doing the webinar series through the terrible pandemic. I am excited to work with the Board to couple the great things ACAAP has done in the past with the many things we’ve learned to do even better through the crisis and bring Catholic School Admissions and Advancement professionals together for the best conference yet!

I am also excited to work towards a revamped membership program bringing new options and benefits to all our schools. Stay tuned for more on this.

Q.
ACAAP brings together those who work in Catholic school admissions, advancement and marketing to share and learn from each other. What are the benefits of participating in ACAAP?
A.
You said it right there, Anthony! One of the greatest benefits of ACAAP is the ability to bring great minds together with a focus on our Mission as Catholic Schools. There are so many people throughout our region doing tremendous work and ACAAP gives us the opportunity to connect with each other to learn how other schools are succeeding. They say “A rising tide floats all boats.” Well, a rising tide really only floats the boats in that body of water. We’ve got to keep bringing our people together so that we can all benefit from each other’s successes. One school might have figured out Open House but is really struggling with the Shadow program while another has mastered the Shadow program but hasn’t quite figured out how to do Open House well. Bring those two schools together and they both benefit. When they benefit, the tide rises and the virtuous cycle begins. 

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Well said Kevin, let's get more boats in the water!

You're invited to ACAAP's Fall Workshop at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA on Thursday October 13th from 8a.m. to 1p.m.