Concerned Friends of St. Dominic

Recent events have brought to light problems that have lingered at St. Dominic High School for several years. Students, faculty, staff, alumni, parents and friends of St. Dominic are concerned about the current environment at and future direction of the school. We hope those in positions of influence will quickly address the following areas of concern:

11 out of 40 teachers (28\%) will not return for the 2008-09 school year. This is more than double the normal rate of staff turnover.

Faculty morale is poor. Among faculty concerns are:
i. A lack of respect of the professional capabilities of the faculty on the part of the administration;
ii. Teachers have no input regarding the classes they teach;
iii. A lack of sufficient career development for faculty members;
iv. Teachers contracts not being renewed despite having received satisfactory performance evaluations.

Students are disheartened by the departure of several outstanding faculty members.

The perception exists that administrative decision-making at SDHS is frequently driven by the personalities involved rather than based on a rational evaluation of the merits of the proposals, especially the impact of the decisions on the students of SDHS.

The perception exists that the administration is micro-managing all aspects of school life, including athletics and extra-curricular activities, to the detriment of the broader Christian mission and direction of SDHS.

Some dedicated school volunteers have been poorly treated by the administration.

Parents of current and future students are considering alternative high schools for the upcoming year(s).

Friends of the school are increasingly worried that financial support for SDHS may dissipate due to the aforementioned concerns.

We, the undersigned, by making our concerns public, hope to spur changes that will reverse the current negative trend and restore the reputation of St. Dominic as one of the finest high schools in the St. Louis metropolitan area.