Chaminade High School will be welcoming its first layperson principal, Robert Paul, after Brother Joseph Bellizzi steps down from the position on June 30.

Bellizzi has been named provincial of the Province of Meribah in the Diocese of Rockville Center. The diocese said he is leaving his post to devote himself to his new responsibilities after serving as Chaminade’s principal for 25 years.

The change in leadership comes just six years shy of the school’s centennial anniversary in 2030.

“I give credit to the school and the Marianist community and the province for having the confidence to say that there’s a layperson and laypeople that can take bigger roles in the school,” Paul said. “There’s always been that partnership [between the Marianist community and laypeople] and I guess I just look at this as the next level of partnership.”

Chaminade High School is owned by the Marianists, a Roman Catholic religious order of brothers and priests. Around 1,700 students attend Chaminade.

Paul’s appointment comes at a time when an increasing number of religious universities and high schools are being led by laypeople for the first time.

This takes place at a time when not enough young men are entering the priesthood in the United States to replace older priests who retire or die, narrowing the field for priests who are eligible to head universities and private schools.

The number of Catholic priests in the United States has dropped sharply in recent decades, from 59,192 in 1970 to 35,513 in 2020, according to the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, a Georgetown University research initiative.

As Bellizzi prepares to pass the baton to Paul, it is clear that this shift is focused on a continuation of Chaminade’s traditions and religious ties, not a moment of radical change.

“The tradition that exists here and everything that makes this place what it is, I don’t plan on changing…any of that,” Paul said.

An alum, Bellizzi entered the Marianist Community at Chaminade in 1978. He then earned degrees from St. John’s University, a Catholic and Vincentian school, and New York University before joining the Chaminade faculty in 1982.

He became principal in 1999 but continued to teach freshman religion classes.

Bellizzi said he has seen significant changes in the student body over his 25-year tenure.

He said students are drawn to Chaminade for the same reasons – good academics and a faith-based atmosphere – but their skill sets, like their reading, writing and math skills, have changed “radically.”

And just over the past four years, Bellizzi said he has noticed a somewhat negative shift in students’ ability to communicate with fellow students and staff post-COVID.

Paul, like Bellizzi, is a Chaminade alum, having graduated in 1992.

When he started at Chaminade, he said he was on the quiet side and mostly focused on his academics. But he soon realized that he was not getting the “full package” Chaminade offered by staying reserved, and opened himself up to the Chaminade experience.

He completed his undergraduate studies at Boston College, a private Jesuit university, and his graduate studies at LIU Post.

Paul joined the Chaminade staff as a member of the Science Department faculty in 2000.

He has served as assistant principal of academics since 2017 and is an assistant coach of the varsity basketball team.

Paul said he has also noticed a change in students: They are more willing to question instructions from the school.

Paul and Bellizzi agreed that this question of “the why” forces them to look at Chaminade policies and practices with a fresh eye.

With these changes in student behavior come new challenges.

Gregory Kay, the assistant principal of curriculum who has been named chief academic officer at Chaminade, said his main concern for the school moving forward is absenteeism – students who are checked out of the holistic Chaminade experience.

Kay said absenteeism has not “crept into the day” at Chaminade yet, but he has noticed a reluctance to fully bounce back to normal after-school activity programs post-COVID.

“Student engagement has always been one of our highlights. Sports, athletics, activities,” said Bellizzi. “How do we keep the kids engaged whether it’s in a classroom or after school?”

To prepare for his tenure as principal, Paul said the school is creating a strategic plan for the next few years that has not yet been released, based on input from focus groups, parents and faculty.

Kay said it is important for goals mentioned in this strategic plan to be understood with context. As an example, he spoke about plans to renovate the cafeteria.

While he acknowledged that yes, the cafeteria renovations would look nice, he went a step further to explain that having a nice place for kids to sit and eat after school might encourage them to stay on-campus for extracurriculars.

Kay said Chaminade still has a “vibrant” after-school program, but the school is always looking to improve and prepare for future challenges.

Now, moving forward, Paul is determined to keep the Marianist mission of the school top of mind, just as Bellizzi did every day.

“My job as principal has been to always make sure that we’re still faithful to the mission of the school,” said Bellizzi. “We’re educating the whole person, the Chaminade man, that does the right thing at the right time, does the right thing to do regardless of who’s watching. That we’re creating and forming, more importantly, young men who will be good fathers, good husbands, good men of faith.”