Kardish Named Fifth President

The Salesianum School Board of Trustees is pleased to announce Thomas A. Kardish as the fifth president of Salesianum.  Tom’s appointment is effective July 1, 2021.

The announcement is the result of an extensive six-month search spearheaded by the Salesianum Board of Trustees’ Presidential Search Committee and the executive search firm, Carney Sandoe & Associates. The process commenced upon current President, Brendan Kennealey, ’94, announcing that he will be stepping down on June 30, 2021, after serving an historic ten-year term.

Kardish brings to Salesianum a diverse skill set that combines entrepreneurial management and executive leadership in both the corporate and educational realms. For the past six years, Tom has served as the President of Villa Joseph Marie High School in Holland, PA, an all-girls Catholic college-preparatory school founded by the Sisters of St. Casimir.  Prior to his career transition to secondary education, Tom had a 30-year career in business that has extended from global sales and marketing with multinational pharmaceutical companies to entrepreneurship in running his own building products company for over 17 years.

Tom graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University and earned his MBA from The University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.  He is currently pursuing an Ed.D. in Leadership and Innovation from New York University’s Steinhardt School.  

Tom remarked “From the moment I stepped onto campus, I instantly felt at home. The sense of unanimity of mission and purpose was palpable, and the total buy-in, from students all the way up to the board, was very appealing for me.  I want to thank the Oblates, Trustees, and the entire Salesianum family for their enthusiastic welcome.”

As the chairman, I hope you’ll enthusiastically join me in welcoming Tom to Salesianum.  We began this process seeking a visionary leader with the experience, creativity, and business acumen to build upon the momentum that Brendan has established.  I believe we got everything we wanted - and more - in Tom.

I want to thank everyone in the school community who offered input and assistance during the search. While the realities of COVID will make traditional meet-and-greet opportunities a challenge, we are pleased to share a recent interview with Tom and Student Council President, Declan Landis '21. To watch the interview, please visit the navy blue tab "Meet Tom Kardish" situated on the right hand side of this page. V+J
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