Official Communications
November 20, 2025
Dear Cub Community,
We are pleased to update you on our search for the next U of D Jesuit President. Guided by our Jesuit mission and grounded in the belief that our students remain at the center of everything we do throughout this comprehensive and inclusive process, the committee has spent the past several weeks gathering broad input and preparing for the next phase of this important work.
As part of that effort, we invited faculty, staff, parents, students, alumni, donors, friends, neighbors and board members to participate in a survey. We also hosted several in-person and virtual focus groups to ensure we heard from a wide range of voices and experiences. Thank you to the many members of our community who offered thoughtful, candid feedback. Your perspective is essential in shaping the leadership profile for our next president.
Across all groups, respondents expressed deep commitment to U of D Jesuit’s mission and a clear sense of what the school seeks in its next leader. Here are some highlights from the survey:
What Our Community Values Most - Many respondents emphasized:
- A strong Jesuit and Catholic identity
- The school’s sense of brotherhood, mission, and service
- High academic expectations and the formation of “Men for Others”
- U of D Jesuit’s historic presence in Detroit and its leadership role in the city
- A culture where students feel supported, held to a high standard, and proud to be Cubs
Top Leadership Attributes for Our Next President - The most frequently identified priorities included:
- The ability to strengthen and articulate Jesuit and Catholic identity
- A visible and engaged presence in Metro Detroit and the Jesuit school network
- Strong relationships with donors, alumni, and community partners
- Strategic planning capacity and excellent communication skills
- The ability to work effectively with, lead, and support a high-performing faculty, staff, and administrative team
Professional Experiences the Community Values - Respondents expressed interest in candidates who bring:
- Experience in Jesuit or Catholic education
- Demonstrated fundraising and advancement success
- Leadership within diverse, inclusive communities
- Strategic planning and institutional leadership experience
- Familiarity with Ignatian spirituality and retreat formation
This input has been extraordinarily helpful in clarifying the qualities and experience needed to lead U of D Jesuit in today’s competitive education market. Your feedback will directly influence the interview process and the questions we will pose to the candidates. It will also be fully available to the next President as a comprehensive summary of the priorities and opportunities identified by the broad U of D Jesuit community.
The search committee has begun its formal review of the applicant pool and is carefully evaluating each candidate against the leadership profile shaped by feedback and the needs of the school.
Over the coming weeks, the committee will move into the interview phase, identifying the candidates whose experience, mission commitment, and leadership qualities best align with U of D Jesuit’s aspirations. Our hope remains to identify a finalist who can participate in a spring transition alongside Brother Jim Boynton, S.J., while also taking the necessary time to ensure we select the strongest possible leader.
Thank you again for your prayers, participation, and support. The strength of this school rests in its mission and its people, and your engagement ensures we remain faithful and forward-looking as we select the next president of U of D Jesuit.
We will continue to share updates as the search progresses. In the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact the committee at presidentialsearch@uofdjesuit.org with any questions or additional input.
With gratitude,
Jonathan Jorissen ’98, Adam Kronk ’98, and Rich Wong (Board Member)
Co-Chairs, Presidential Search Committee
October 13, 2025
Dear Cub Community,
As Detroit’s oldest continually operating high school, U of D Jesuit will soon celebrate 150 years of forming Men for Others, young men grounded in faith, character, and service who go on to make an impact around the world. As Brother Jim Boynton, S.J., answers the call to his next Jesuit mission next summer, we’d like to update you on the process for selecting our next president and ensuring a strong transition for our community.
The Board of Directors has assembled a Search Committee representing a range of the school’s constituents, and the three of us have been selected to co-chair the group. We are working closely at every step with the Midwest Province, as ultimately the next president will officially be assigned the role of “Director of Work” by the Provincial. We are fortunate that the Very Reverand Father Karl Kiser, S.J., is intimately familiar with our school and the role, having successfully served in that capacity for 14 years.
A critical component of our work is to gather input from as many of you as possible on two dimensions: 1) attributes you deem essential in our next president and 2) the strategic priorities you believe our next president should address. In this short survey, we ask that you identify the attributes and priorities that you believe are most important. If you take nothing else away from this message, please carve out a few minutes to submit your responses by 10/31/2025 to give our committee a holistic sense of our community’s preferences.
We will also hold focus groups at the school and virtually to provide another venue for input and conversation. Invitations will be forthcoming.
The position has been posted in multiple locations, and we encourage you to share the posting widely or directly invite well qualified candidates to apply.
If we have the strong candidates we anticipate attracting in the coming weeks, our interview phase will be thorough and deliberate, with the ambitious goal of identifying and making an offer to the strongest finalist before year-end, which would enable the next president to overlap with Brother Boynton gradually during the spring semester and ensure a seamless transition. But we are committed to finding the right candidate, and if that requires us to continue the search into 2026, we will surely do so.
This is an exciting and crucial time in U of D Jesuit’s rich history, and we thank you in advance for playing an active role in continuing to add momentum to the sacred mission at 8400 South Cambridge. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to the committee with any questions or input at presidentialsearch@uofdjesuit.org.
Gratefully,
Jonathan Jorissen ‘98, Adam Kronk ‘98, and Rich Wong
Co-Chairs, Search Committee
July 9, 2025
Dear Cub Community,
U of D Jesuit is an incredible institution where students are offered the opportunity to become men of competence, where our families become further connected to Jesuit ideals and our school community grows with compassion and shared purpose. I am proud to be a part of this great mission. So, it is with sadness and true excitement for the future that I share news regarding the next stages of our institutional trajectory. Recently, we received news from the Very Reverend Karl Kiser, S.J., Provincial of the Midwest Province of the Society of Jesus, that Br. Jim Boynton, S.J., President of U of D Jesuit, will be called to a new mission at the conclusion of the ’25-26 school year. In August 2026, he will transition to a new assignment and community in the former Wisconsin Province, as part of the broader apostolic work of the Jesuit Midwest Province.
Fr. Kiser shared, “I want to thank Br. Boynton for his many years of generous service to the U of D Jesuit community, one that both of us love dearly. As a deeply faithful and committed Jesuit brother, few understand better than Br. Boynton that the Jesuit vow of obedience requires us to take on new missions for the Society in service to the Church whenever and wherever the greatest need exists. And while I know the U of D Jesuit community will miss Br. Boynton as much as he will miss it, the Midwest Province needs him to take on a new mission. I know that during the upcoming school year the U of D Jesuit community will find opportunities to celebrate his leadership, his service, and most important, his love for U of D Jesuit. Go Cubs!”
This month, the U of D Jesuit Board of Directors will begin the process of forming a Search Committee to work firmly in alignment with the Midwest Province of the Society of Jesus to begin the effort of identifying potential candidates for this important role. It is our hope that an individual will be hired well before the transition if possible. We look forward to bringing in a new leader with fresh ideas and new energy to lead our school community through the next phases of its critical mission.
Please know that our Board and the school’s leadership team remain fully committed to the duties of the institution. We will continue to be especially focused on the ongoing development efforts and the strategic initiatives that advance the U of D Jesuit mission. The work of transforming hearts, minds, and souls will continue without interruption.
Thank you in advance for your continued commitment to U of D Jesuit and I hope that you too look forward to the next phase of our school’s history as we approach the school’s 150th anniversary.
Sincerely,
Christopher S. Polk ’93
Chair, Board of Directors