Crespi Carmelite Chooses a Crespi Man as New Principal

For years, Crespi Carmelite High School had the distinction of being the only Catholic School in Los Angeles with two priests still serving as President and Principal.  But as times have been changing at Catholic schools, there are fewer priests available to fill these traditional leadership positions. 

Recently, Crespi Carmelite was put in the position of having to find a new principal, and the school had to face the prospect that it would likely be filled by a lay person. However, today, the school is proud to announce the hiring of Dr. Jonathan Schild as the new principal.

In the past, a Carmelite priest would have been the typical one to fill this role. Not only has Dr. Schild been at the school for more than a decade, but he also graduated from Crespi Carmelite in 1994. There is nothing better for the institution than to have home-grown talent to lead the organization.  “I want to express how honored I am to be selected as the next Principal at Crespi Carmelite High School.  It certainly was a thorough process and now that it is completed I am excited to get started in my new role,” said Dr. Schild.

Dr. Schild joined the staff at Crespi Carmelite in 1999 as a math and psychology teacher. He was also the head water polo coach.  During this time, Dr. Schild’s expertise in curriculum development started to flourish. In 2005, he ended a successful coaching stint to be part of the counseling staff, but continued to teach classes. In the fall of 2006, he was promoted to the position of Vice Principal of Academics.

For the students, Dr. Schild epitomizes the ideals of the school’s Crespi Man motto.  The Crespi Man is a life-long learner; a moral and spiritual person; and a productive and mature person.  While he is a great example of all three ideals, for Crespi students he may be one of the best role models as a life-long learner. 

Dr. Schild graduated from Claremont McKenna in 1998 with a Bachelor of Arts in Government and Psychology. He was also a four-year letterman in both swimming and water polo and was selected as an All-American swimmer for four years. In 2009, he received a Master of Arts in Counseling from Loyal Marymount University.  Recently, he completed his Doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of Southern California.

Dr. Schild’s time at LMU helped him to build an important relationship with Crespi’s current president, Fr. Tom Batsis.  Fr. Batsis worked at LMU for thirty-years and has always been impressed by Dr. Schild. I am thrilled that Dr. Schild has agreed to become Crespi's next principal. “I first became acquainted with Dr. Schild when he was a student in my graduate education course at Loyola Marymount University,” said Fr. Batsis.  

For Dr. Schild, he now has a great mentor to help him grow into his role as principal. “My initial impressions of his considerable array of talents and skills were confirmed in the intervening years. Teaming with Jonathan, and building on Crespi's tremendous legacy, I am confident that we will forge a new and exciting direction for The Crespi Man of the 21st century,” Fr. Batsis added.

While Dr. Schild’s hiring might be a break from tradition at Crespi, lay leadership is not going away from Catholic schools anytime soon. With Dr. Schild at the academic helm, Crespi is ensured that it will remain as one the most innovative and prestigious college preparatory schools in Los Angeles, while still keeping to the school’s long-standing tradition of producing moral and ethical leaders.