By Mark Hallum
In a major change from its tradition as an all-boys’ school, Holy Cross High School will be opening admissions to female students, the Flushing Catholic institution announced.
The Board of Corporate Members accepted a recommendation from the board of directors to make the change, taking into consideration the contributions women are making in science, theology, robotics, engineering, the arts and mathematics fields.
“This is a momentous step,” Principal Ed Burns said. “As an alumnus of the school, I am proud of the thorough evaluation of this opportunity undertaken by our senior leadership team, our board of directors, and our Board of Corporate Members. As a school sponsored by the Congregation of Holy Cross, we are not alone. We have many resources across the country to guide us in each step we will be taking as we make this important transition.”
The school received an anonymous donation of $1 million from one of its alumni in early May to go toward the STREAM programs. The press release stated that more than half the engineering degrees at MIT and Dartmouth College went to women, and the majority of computer science students at California’s Harvey Mudd College as well as Carnegie Mellon University were female.
Enrollment will open to female students starting in September 2018, making the graduating class of 2022 the first co-ed class in the school’s history since its foundation in the 1940s.
Reach reporter Mark Hallum by e-mail at mhall
