St. Mary’s head stepping down

LYNN – After 14 years as principal of St. Mary’s High School, Carl DiMaiti is calling it a day but not a career.As of July 1 DiMaiti will shift into a new position: special assistant to the head of school.”I’m transitioning,” he said Wednesday from his office. “I think being principal is a job that has a certain shelf life, particularly if you want to do it right.”DiMaiti turned 60 in September, and said he felt he reached his limit and would like to try something new. He said he was looking forward to working with Grace Cotter Regan, who joined the staff as head of school last spring. In his new role he’ll focus on three areas: enrollment, advancement and the school’s new scholar program for high-achieving incoming freshmen.”In terms of institutional advancement, I really think I can tell the history of the school,” DiMaiti said. “And I’m really excited about the new initiative, the St. Mary’s Scholar Program.”The scholar program will be launched in September with 12 ninth graders. DiMaiti said it will be a concentrated effort to provide enrichment for students who have been deemed high performers. It will include bringing in a wide range of speakers, offering a variety of electives through a virtual classroom and making sure they are college- or work-ready.Cotter Regan said she is thrilled DiMaiti will be staying at the school.”Carl’s vision and leadership have been inspirational,” she said. “He is committed to our future, and I’m delighted he will continue to be a strategic partner with me as we work to advance the mission of St. Mary’s.”DiMaiti said when he stops and thinks about the last 14 years two things stop him in his tracks: how fast it’s gone by and the people who have come and gone during that time.”That would be Monsignor Paul Garrity, (former Head of School) Ray Bastarache, Tony DiCroce, our first chairman of the trustees, and our current chairman of the trustees, Jack King,” he said. “They all had a vision for the school and I think one of the most tangible outcomes is this building that I’m sitting in, the Connell Center.”The Connell Center was built in 2005 and DiMaiti said overseeing the project was a highlight. Through the years he has also overseen the upgrade of the curriculum, including the addition of several honors and advanced placement courses, the transition from a parish school to an independent Catholic school run by a board of trustees, and the addition of a middle school – the Marian Division – for grades 6-8.When he switches roles, DiMaiti said he would miss the day-to-day interaction with a variety of students. He said his philosophy has always been that students shouldn’t just visit his office when they’ve done something wrong. He liked to call students out for praise as well.What he won’t miss, he said, is the hours being principal requires, and he’s looking forward to taking time off this summer.”I have twins who are juniors, so I think we’ll be looking at a lot of colleges,” he said.But before he goes, he has at least one project he hopes to wrap. He has been working on the Digital Citizen program for nearly two years, which includes swapping out textbooks for iPads.”It will begin in September, and I’m concerned that we have everything we need to do it,” he said.Chris Stevens can be reached at [email protected].