Carolyn A. and Peter S. Lynch (Photo by Gary Wayne Gilbert)
$20M Gift Launches Lynch Leadership Academy at BC
Program will be the nation’s first to link agendas of public, Catholic and charter schools
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A new educational leadership academy -- the first in the nation to jointly train and support new principals from Catholic, public and charter schools -- will be funded at the Lynch School of Education by a $20 million gift from Carolyn A. and Peter S. Lynch, long-time supporters of educational initiatives and benefactors to Boston College and Boston's inner-city Catholic schools.Peter Lynch, a 1965 BC graduate who is vice chairman of Fidelity Management and Research Co., and his wife Carolyn, a noted philanthropist and the president and CEO of the Lynch Foundation, made the gift that will create the Lynch Leadership Academy to further their commitment to improving the educational experience at schools throughout the Boston area.
"Education in the early grades is the most important issue in America," said Peter Lynch. "The principal is the key individual who can affect everyone in the school. Carolyn and I have always looked for ways in which we can help provide opportunities for young people to have meaningful lives. For us the essential ingredient is education, and this academy will help to improve educational leadership at public, charter and urban-centered parochial schools."
Added Carolyn Lynch, "Principals have one of the most demanding and important jobs in America. My father was a lifelong educator and principal, so I know how critical it is that they receive the best training and support available. Lynch Leadership Academy will use the resources of the Lynch School and Boston College to prepare the next generation of leaders for our Catholic, public and charter schools."
In announcing the gift, University President William P. Leahy, SJ, praised the Lynches for their commitment to improving education for all children.
"Carolyn and Peter Lynch have done so much on behalf of public and parochial education in the Greater Boston area," said Fr. Leahy. "The establishment of the Lynch Leadership Academy demonstrates their commitment to providing the training to prepare effective leaders for Catholic, public and charter schools."
In addition to the faculty and staff of the Lynch School, the Lynch Leadership Academy will draw on expertise from the Carroll School of Management, Winston Center for Leadership and Ethics, Connell School of Nursing, Graduate School of Social Work and Law School, as well as successful school leaders from Boston-area Catholic, public and charter schools.
"Carolyn and Peter are among the first to recognize that the leaders of our Catholic, public and charter schools all now face a similar agenda to improve instruction, raise student achievement, develop faculty and revitalize facilities," said Lynch School Dean Joseph M. O'Keefe, SJ. "The Lynch Leadership Academy will bring together a diverse group of faculty experts from the BC campus, as well as education leaders from around the country, to build a new framework of leadership for the betterment of all children in our cities."
The Lynch Leadership Academy will award 25 fellowships annually, accepting nominations from superintendents and leaders in the Catholic, public and charter school sectors. The fellows will attend a leadership retreat, a two-week summer institute, monthly workshops, and weekly sessions with leadership coaches, as well as participate in an online community to foster ongoing communication and networking among the fellows. Upon completion of the program, the fellows will receive three graduate school credits and a Certificate in School Leadership.
The fellows will be drawn from the leadership of Boston's 135 public schools, 16 charter schools and the 135 schools of the Archdiocese of Boston. Fr. OÕKeefe estimates that within the first five years approximately 45 percent of these school leaders will have graduated from the Lynch Academy.