Bishop Kearney High School announced today a major academic-program expansion that is the first of its kind for area private schools, along with the hiring of three Nazareth Schools faculty members and athletics coaches.

 Beginning in September 2010, Bishop Kearney will become the first private school in the Rochester region to offer students a Major Area of Interest curriculum. Similar to a college's concentration in a subject of interest, Kearney's MAI program gives students greater control over their own education based on their specific interest area. It will consist of elective courses in the arts, business, communications, engineering, humanities and science.

 According to Kearney officials, the MAI program is the next step in the school's innovative College Prep. Plus curriculum, which was launched in 2007 through a partnership with B. Thomas Golisano. The goal is to continue focusing on 21^st century skills and on better preparing students for future professions.

 "Three years ago, Bishop Kearney set a new standard for 21^st century learning when we introduced our College Prep. Plus program," said Donna Dedee, president of Bishop Kearney High School. "We have long provided an education that goes beyond Regents requirements. But now, with the launch of our MAI program, we are once again extending our academic leadership and giving students courses that are even more meaningful to their educations, to their future careers and to their lives."

 MAI: Unique to Private School Education

Kearney's new MAI program augments College Prep. Plus, which employs state-of-the-art technology in every classroom and enhances Regents-required core courses. The MAI program allows students to pursue in-depth study in one of six areas, in addition to exceeding Regents requirements:

• Arts (visual and musical) – including courses in ceramics, drawing/painting, digital photography, music theory, band, vocal music and choir, and graphic design.
• Business – including accounting, leadership and ethics, marketing, sports marketing, health careers, and business finance and investing.
• Communications – including TV production, TV news, journalism, mass media, public speaking and creative writing.
• Engineering – this new program, which strengthens Kearney's solid science, math and technology curriculum, includes courses in engineering principles and engineering design, development and digital electronics.
• Humanities – including women's studies, genocide studies, African American history, psychology and sociology.
• Science – including courses in astronomy, environmental science, human anatomy, forensics and microbiology.

 Dedee noted that the rigorous MAI curriculum – including engineering and science – will not only will not only meet the needs of Kearney students, but it will also likely appeal to Nazareth students in transition due to the school's pending closure.

 Kearney's MAI program will launch in the fall of 2010, beginning full-scale with the incoming ninth-grade class. Rollout to the full high school will happen over the next four years. Some electives will be available to interested returning Kearney students over the next few years.

 Staff Additions to Bolster Academics and Athletics

Kearney also announced the addition of three key Nazareth staff to the Kearney team:

• Christopher Belmont, Nazareth's athletic director, long-time coach and teacher

• William McKee, Nazareth administrator, teacher and coach

• Bret Miller, Nazareth's music department coordinator and vocal music teacher

 Belmont will serve in a newly created position as Kearney's student affairs director, focusing on enrollment alongside the school's director of admissions. Nazareth's varsity basketball coach for 17 years, Belmont recently achieved his 300th victory and his teams have won nine Section V titles. Under his guidance as athletic director, Nazareth's bowling, soccer, softball and volleyball teams won sectional titles. Belmont will start in his new role in July.

McKee will teach full-time in Kearney's Social Studies and Religion departments and he will serve as a liaison to former Nazareth students who've transferred to Kearney. McKee has 30 years of classroom experience, including serving as a teacher and vice principal at Nazareth Academy since 2003. He has won numerous coaching and teaching awards. McKee will begin his new role at Kearney in September.

 Miller will enhance Kearney's vocal music and arts program. Miller has served as Nazareth's music department coordinator since 2005. He also is a former vocal music teacher in the West Irondequoit, Gates-Chili and Palmyra-Macedon school districts. Miller's appointment is provisional based on student enrollment.

 The additions of Belmont and McKee will create a unique and innovative coaching collaboration for Kearney girls' basketball and soccer. Belmont and McKee will become program assistants in their respective sports. Each will play an important role in athletes' development, working alongside Kearney's dedicated and respected head coaches (Kevan B. Sheppard Jr. for basketball and Paul Forte for soccer). Throughout his soccer coaching career, Paul Forte has amassed 320 wins. As Kearney's varsity girls soccer head coach, he had led the Kings to two sectional titles and two other trips to the state Final Four. Kevan Sheppard has served as Kearney's varsity girls basketball head coach since 2009, serving as the girls JV coach prior to that.

About Bishop Kearney High School

Bishop Kearney High School, a Golisano Education Partner  is a private, Roman Catholic, co-educational high school located in suburban Irondequoit. The school of 550 students (grades 7-12) is nationally recognized for providing a quality college preparatory program in a values-based family environment. The school is sponsored in the tradition of Edmund Rice Christian Brothers North America. In 2009, 100 percent of Kearney students graduated and 100 percent of those students went on to college.