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Moving Forward Together
Reflecting on Our Growth
In 2018, Holy Cross Preparatory Academy embarked on a new beginning as an independent private school, supported by the generosity and strength of our extensive alumni network. Since that time, we have fostered consistent year-over-year growth of our school and student population. We are proud to share that our enrollment for the upcoming 2022-23 school year will reflect an increase of at least 15% over where we were when we began this journey in 2018, which is a remarkable achievement for our community. We are blessed with a faculty and staff who have worked tirelessly to ensure that HCPA has provided the highest level education for our students and a true family environment for everyone involved. As such, we have been able to enhance our academic offerings by expanding our Program of Studies, growing our Dual College Credit program, and committing to support new and exciting extracurricular activities for our students. The next stage of organizational evolution that we will be undertaking was initially planned to occur at the conclusion of year five but has been accelerated in response to the overwhelming success of the past four years.
The Path Ahead
Looking to the future, we are committed to building on our past successes and reaching new heights in every aspect of what we do. To that end, the HCPA Board of Trustees spent the past year conducting extensive research of the private school environment across the country and engaged in dialogue with school leaders from many high-profile institutions both locally and nationally. Now, we are excited by the opportunity to enhance our organizational structure as we move to a President-Principal model. This model is a form of governance that allows for more precise sharing of responsibilities within the HCPA administrative team. It is the most widely-used system among successful Catholic secondary schools throughout the country.
School Leadership
Mr. Alex Pracher will assume the role of President and will continue to guide the strategic planning of HCPA in partnership with the Board of Trustees. His success navigating unprecedented financial circumstances during the pandemic as Chief Operating Officer helped HCPA emerge stronger. Mr. Pracher has shown a continued commitment to growing HCPA's academic excellence during this time. As President, Mr. Pracher will continue to chart the course for the organization through strategic investments in its future.
Mr. David Moffa will be stepping into the Principal role at the start of the 2022-23 school year. Having served HCPA as the Director of Admissions through its entire four year existence, Mr. Moffa has helped to precipitate our steady growth. As Assistant Principal since 2020, he is been part of the team that has pushed our school to the leading edge of academic programming. Mr. Moffa will lead the day-to-day operations of HCPA, with academic innovation as a key pillar of our strategic plan.
After spending over 25 years of her career in a Dean of Students role, Mrs. Alice Penza stepped up to serve HCPA as Principal during the past two-and-a-half years, while continuing to maintain many of her Dean of Students responsibilities. We are incredibly grateful for her guidance of our school community during a time of significant adversity. Now, Mrs. Penza is looking forward to returning to her roots as the Dean of Students for HCPA, in which she will oversee all aspects of student life, from student conduct to extracurricular activities.
Expanding Our Faculty
As our school community continues to grow, it is imperative that our faculty also expands to support the needs of all students at HCPA. With that in mind, the 2022-23 school year will see an increase in our teaching faculty, as well as the expansion of our Guidance Office. HCPA is committed to growing our Program of Studies to continue to provide new and innovative academic offerings. Our students are blessed to have the opportunity to learn from our highly-qualified, caring faculty, and we are excited to welcome new members into our incredible community.
University Partnerships
Through our partnerships with Seton Hall University and Rowan College at Burlington County, we have been able to offer more than 60 college credits to students via classes they can complete right here at HCPA. Our newest partnership with Mount St. Mary's University offers students guaranteed admissions and a minimum $25,000 per year scholarship so long as they meet certain GPA requirements upon graduation. This partnership with MSMU is set to grow further, as our students will soon have the opportunity to enroll in online classes over the summer to receive additional college credits from the Mount. The Board of Trustees and Administration are in communication with several other local colleges and universities, with the goal of continuing to expand upon our collegiate partnerships for future generations of Lancers.
The road ahead is exciting and ambitious. We are eager to welcome many new families into our school community as HCPA continues to grow, and we are grateful for the ongoing support from our alumni as we move forward together as one LANCER NATION.
