Father Hathaway Appoints New Basilica School of Saint Mary Principal

The following is a statement by Father Edward Hathaway, the Rector of the Basilica: 

I am delighted to share some good news regarding The Basilica School of Saint Mary.  Mr. Robert Loia will be joining our school community as principal, with a start date of Monday, July 18, 2022.  This is a wonderful blessing, and I am very grateful for the nationwide search conducted by the members of the Principal Search Committee – including our chair, Father David Dufresne; Mary Costello; Aimee Viana; Paul Scolese; Trish Weiler; Breigh Finnerty; Diane Elliott; and Hilary Munger – who reviewed applications and conducted interviews via Zoom and in-person.

The committee was unanimous in recommending Mr. Loia to me.  After interviewing him, I am confident that he is highly qualified by his deep Catholic faith, education and experience to advance our parish school on all levels for the benefit of our students, school families, faculty, staff, and the greater parish community.

I wanted to share with you excerpts from Mr. Loia’s introductory note so that you can take heart in his leadership intentions and better understand the exemplary and diverse professional experience, skills, and personal spiritual formation he will share with us, as well as have a glimpse into his family life:

It is a tremendous honor for me to assume the role of principal of The Basilica School of Saint Mary…  As principal I tend to be mission driven, and to draw on my many years in Catholic education as a student, a teacher, and an administrator.  I want all of our students to receive the strongest formation of intellect and character, of mind and spirit, whether in the classroom, on the stage, on the field, or in our co-curricular activities.  I look forward to being present and getting to know this community well, as I lead us in the common work of forming our children.  

I am a native of New Jersey.  My parents both immigrated from Italy and made sure to send us to Catholic elementary school.  I attended a Catholic, all-boy school in Northern New Jersey run by a community of Benedictine monks and then continued to attend Catholic school for my undergraduate and graduate studies (Catholic University, Loyola University of Maryland, and the University of Notre Dame). 

My wife, Betty (Mary Elizabeth), and I lived the first ten years of our marriage in Baltimore, where I taught at Loyola Blakefield (grades 6-12) with a brief time as Head of the Middle School at Saint Anselm’s Abbey School (grades 6-12) in Northeast D.C.  We then returned to my hometown in New Jersey for ten years, where I was a guidance counselor, teacher, and coach at Delbarton School, the all-boy high school I attended.  Following that, I was Headmaster at Subiaco Academy (grades 7-12) in Arkansas, returned to New Jersey to be principal of Morris Catholic High School and then moved to Cardinal Newman School in Columbia, S.C. (grades 7-12). 

We have six children.  The oldest is 29 and youngest is 17 (4 boys and 2 girls). Betty is also a Catholic school teacher.  She has taught reading, social studies, and religion for students from grades 4-7.  In addition to elementary school teaching, she worked for the Archdiocese of New York in their Family Life Office, where she conducted marriage preparation programs. 

Again, I believe Mr. Loia has the exceptional skills as a Catholic educator and leader to collaborate with me and our parents in educating the whole child – body, mind and soul – and forming them to be saints, stewards and scholars who seek to evangelize the culture through the truth, beauty and Gospel of Jesus Christ.  

Please join me in welcoming Mr. Loia, his wife, Betty, and their children to The Basilica School of Saint Mary and our Basilica family and please keep them in your prayers.