To the members of our Church & School of Saint Mary,
I am very pleased to announce that we have hired a new principal for the School of Saint Mary, Mr. Raymond Lewis, who will begin his tenure July 1 of this year. While he is a Chicago native, his wife Jessica is Tulsa born-and-raised, so they have many family connections here. They married at St. Catherine Church here in Tulsa in 2020. They are parents to two young boys, and very actively engaged in their parish of Christ Our Hope in Highland Park, IL. Mr. Lewis completed his undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering at Vanderbilt, and subsequently earned his Master’s in Education while teaching in the ACE (Alliance for Catholic Education) program at Notre Dame. In 2024, he completed a second Master’s in Educational Leadership through the Remick Leadership Program at Notre Dame. Since 2019 he has been teaching science at St. Ignatius College Prep in Chicago.
I want to thank our Principal Search Committee: faculty members Laura Duffy and Brian Balaskovits and Preschool Director Eileen Ames, parents Julie Uriarte, Raegan Oliver, and A.J. Hofland, parishioner Randall Snapp, Fr. Vince Fernandez, and our Catholic Schools Superintendent Dr. David Dean. Above all, I want to thank our chairwoman Lauren Craft, who kept us organized, on task, and brought clarity (spiritually and practically) to the whole process.
Our search committee began by examining what makes our school the special place that it is, and we thank the members of the community who shared their thoughts and answered surveys. Our search utilized both national and local Catholic networks in seeking applicants. Committee members conducted online interviews with candidates in preparation for narrowing down finalists, who were then brought in for an extended formal interview which included meeting our teachers to receive their feedback. As we focused on the qualities needed in a candidate, I think I can sum it up by saying that we were looking for a person who will love our school and care about its mission the way we do. We are blessed with a great tradition of Catholic education, excellent teachers with wisdom and experience, and a school community second to none. A candidate for principal who feels a genuine call to leadership in Catholic education, putting his own gifts and talents in the service of our mission, a listener who knows how to collaborate and to build consensus, is the kind of person we need. I am very confident that Raymond Lewis is the right person to guide the School of Saint Mary into its next chapter. Our own positive impression of his qualities and character was confirmed by glowing recommendations from his professional references.
We will share more information in the coming weeks as it becomes available, and there will be opportunities for the rest of our community to get to know Mr. Lewis before he and his family move to Tulsa this summer. In the meantime, please keep Mr. Lewis and our school in your prayers as we look with hope and expectation to the future.
Fr. Stuart Crevcoure
