Q&A with President Chris McCarville (R97)

What is your favorite memory growing up in our Catholic school community?

I have very fond memories of Sister Pat Siepker as principal at St. Pius X all nine years I attended school there. I can also remember when the Sisters of Mercy still had a strong presence and taught at Regis (Sister Carmelita was a cherished family friend of ours!). I remember having a powerful TEC retreat experience when I was a senior at Regis. Being surrounded in a community of faith, every single day (K-12), absolutely had an impact on who I am today. The greatest gift my parents ever gave me was that of a Catholic education. My wife and I want that same experience for our children. We believe the sacrifices made by families to send their children to Catholic schools are worth every penny.

What is your favorite memory as a teacher/coach at Xavier in the 2000’s?

Watching the school grow and find it’s identity was a lot of fun to be part of and a unique experience. As a theology teacher, one of my favorite memories was when Benedict XVI was elected pope. I remember putting on pause my usual lesson plans for about two weeks and instead we dissected the process of how someone becomes pope. But most of all, I remember how excited my students genuinely were when we watched the white smoke come out of Rome on TV. It was really cool to observe. As a coach, being part of the coaching staff that won the 4A football championship as a 3A-size school was something I’ll never forget. It was something that had never been done before and (because of the playoff structure today) will never be done again. It was a magical season. I swear I ran with David Drahazol the entire way to the endzone on the sidelines of the UNI Dome when the Immaculate Recovery occurred in the semifinals!    

Now that you have been in the role of president for several months, what are your initial impressions?

I’ve said many times recently, “In some ways, nothing has changed. In some ways, a lot has changed.” For me, I’ve really enjoyed re-engaging with our students. We have the opportunity and freedom every day to help lead 636 students closer to Heaven. Being a rather new father myself, that thought especially hits home today probably more than it did when I taught here. That’s a powerful thought. I think I appreciate what Xavier gives our students more today in terms of developing faith.

What is the most important thing you would like the Xavier community to know about your role as president?

I want the community to know what I do! This being a relatively new position, I feel like there are still a lot of questions out there. My position focuses on three main areas: enrollment management, developing support for our school and Catholicity. Catholic schools across the country I feel are really at a “tipping point.” Unless schools choose to have strategized approaches to how those areas will grow over time, they won’t be successful. Catholic schools in the year 2019 are very different than what they were even back in 1998 when Xavier opened. This position is necessary and I’m glad the Board of Education and Xavier Foundation created it two years ago.       

What was your primary reason for deciding to “come home” to serve in this role?

Two reasons. Selfishly, I desired to have our family grow together with Xavier in the middle of everything we do. With my dad serving as principal of Regis for 10 years, I got to “grow up” with Regis at the center of everything we did. I want that same experience for our family. Secondly, because of the experience I had growing up and also my previous professional experience, I felt I had unique gifts I could bring to Xavier. Those two things mixed together led to an unmistakable calling I felt to be here. And coming here definitely wasn’t on our radar screen. My wife Erica deserves a lot of credit for taking a leap of faith for us to move here and me take on this role. There is no doubt in my mind God led us to Cedar Rapids and the Xavier community.  

What excites you the most about leading Xavier?

The thought of having Xavier be the absolute best high school in Iowa. I look forward to developing the metrics by which that will be judged. At the end of my time at Xavier, I want us to be known statewide unequivocally the absolute best in everything we do.