November 1, 2010 - Cardinal Appoints Kathleen F. Driscoll Secretary for Institutional Advancement

New Development Strategy Established to Meet the Needs of the Catholic Community

Braintree, MA -- Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley today announced the appointment of Kathleen F. Driscoll as Secretary for Institutional Advancement/Chief Development Officer.   In this role, Ms. Driscoll will be responsible for leading a new effort that will broaden the development strategy of the Archdiocese and form a new independent shared services organization. Ms. Driscoll undertakes her new role immediately and will serve on the Cardinal’s cabinet. 

Cardinal Seán said, “I am pleased that Kathleen Driscoll has accepted our invitation to be the new Secretary for Institutional Advancement.  Kathleen is a talented professional who is deeply committed to the Catholic faith.  She is distinguished by her breadth of experience, ability to develop and implement strategic planning and success in raising needed funds for our Catholic schools.  Further testimony of her commitment to the Catholic Church was her recent work as co-chair of the Priest Appreciation Dinner.”

Ms. Driscoll said, “I am honored to have the confidence and support of Cardinal Seán, Fr. Erikson and others on the Archdiocesan management team as I undertake this new and exciting position within the Archdiocese.  I look forward to serving the priests, religious, deacons and lay members of the local Church. We share the same goal in implementing a new and effective development strategy that supports our parishes, schools, and ministries of the Archdiocese.”

Very Reverend Richard M. Erikson, Vicar General & Moderator of the Curia, said, “I join Cardinal Seán in welcoming Kathleen to this important ministry.  I have had the privilege to work with Kathleen in my nearly five years as Vicar General. She has demonstrated exceptional insight in her work and a strong commitment to Christ and His Church.  These and many other wonderful traits and experiences make Kathleen ideally suited to lead our new development effort. We count on the generosity of the faithful to continue the saving ministry of Jesus Christ.  I am certain, under Kathleen’s leadership and with the generosity of our benefactors, we will continue to provide pastoral and spiritual guidance and care for our Catholic community today and for future generations of Catholics.”  

Cardinal Seán added, “I want to thank Kevin Kiley for serving as Interim Secretary for Institutional Advancement.  He has done an extraordinary job balancing his many responsibilities and we are very grateful for his commitment to the Archdiocese.” 

Kathleen F. Driscoll

A highly respected and successful marketing, communications and development professional with thirty years of experience, Ms. Driscoll has served as the President of the Campaign for Catholic Schools (CCS) since 2008.  The CCS is a nonprofit organization established in 2007 as an outgrowth of the 2010 Initiative, a major strategic planning effort aimed at rebuilding and revitalizing the Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Boston. CCS operates as a donor-advised fund of the Archdiocese and has raised more than $58 million to date for four significant reform models in education – Trinity Catholic Academy in Brockton and Pope John Paul II Catholic Academy in Dorchester/Mattapan, St. Ann School in Gloucester and South Boston Catholic Academy.

In addition to her professional experience, Ms. Driscoll is a member of Women Affirming Life, serves on the board of Catholic Charities, Pope John Paul II Catholic Academy, and co-chaired the recent Priest Appreciation Dinner which raised $1 million for the clergy funds.
    
Prior to her position at CCS she worked at John Hancock Financial Services, first as Vice President of Corporate Communications and later as Senior Vice President, Brokerage Sales. Previously Ms. Driscoll was employed at Hill, Holiday, Connors, Cosmopoulos, Inc., the nationally acclaimed advertising and communications firm. She left there as a  Senior Vice President/Group Director.  Earlier she worked in New York City at McCaffrey & McCall and Benton & Bowles advertising companies.  A graduate of Boston College, she began her career as an elementary school teacher.

New Development Strategy Established

In order to strengthen and enhance the resources needed to fulfill the mission we received from Jesus Christ and His Church the Archdiocese is establishing a more effective, coordinated and strategic development approach.  The new entity, Boston Catholic Development Services (BCDS) will streamline the fundraising strategies of the Archdiocese. It will initially serve as the development office for the Archdiocese, the Clergy Funds and the Campaign for Catholic Schools. BCDS will provide dedicated development professionals and strategies for the Appeal, the ministries and programs of the Archdioceses, the initiatives of Campaign for Catholic Schools and the Clergy Fund.

The newly established 501(c) (3) organization will ensure donors of independence and accountability. A newly established Board of Trustees will provide oversight and some of its members will include member(s) of, the Archdiocese, the Campaign for Catholic Schools and Catholic Charities (if they choose to join). BCDS will also be accountable to the respective boards representing the entities they serve such as the Archdiocese, the Clergy Fund and Campaign for Catholic Schools. 

About the Archdiocese of Boston: The Diocese of Boston was founded on April 8, 1808 and was elevated to Archdiocese in 1875. Currently serving the needs of nearly 2 million Catholics, the Archdiocese of Boston is an ethnically diverse and spiritually enriching faith community consisting of 291 parishes, across 144 communities, educating approximately 46,000 students in its Catholic schools and 156,000 in religious education classes each year, ministering to the needs of 200,000 individuals through its pastoral and social service outreach and in support of a health care ministry that meets the needs of some 1 million patients each year.   Mass is celebrated in nearly twenty different languages each week. For more information, please visit  www.BostonCatholic.org.