CLEVELAND: 081408: Mary Ann Corrigan-Davis J’71, President of Saint Joseph Academy, and Jim Folk, Chair of the Board of Directors at Saint Joseph Academy and Vice President of Ballpark Operations for the Cleveland Indians, are pleased to announce that Rebecca Dessoffy Bennett, a labor attorney for Frantz Ward, Janice Murphy, President of Fairview Hospital, a Cleveland Clinic Hospital, Tom Laird, Vice President/District Manager of Gilbane Construction and Douglas Rommel, Vice President of Information Services at American Greetings, have agreed to serve on the Academy’s Board of Directors. “When leaders in a variety of fields come together on a team like this board, to work on behalf of these young women, anything is possible. With these four great additions to our board, we’ve hit one out of the ballpark,” said Board Chair Jim Folk.

 

Rebecca Dessoffy Bennett, an attorney with Frantz Ward LLP. Ms. Bennett is a member of the Saint Joseph Academy Class of 1991. Ms. Bennett earned her BA from The Ohio State University and a JD from Cleveland Marshall College of Law. Currently she is an Employment and Labor attorney with Frantz Ward LLP in Cleveland. In addition to her work with the Academy board,Ms. Bennett is also active with Playhouse Partners, Cleveland Orchestra Developing Audiences, Habitat for Humanity, a tutor for the Ohio Proficiency Exam and a volunteer for the Cleveland Bar Association Justice for All project. She and her husband Mark reside in Rocky River.

 

Janice Murphy, President of Fairview Hospital. Ms. Murphy was named President of Fairview Hospital in 2007. Fairview Hospital, a Cleveland Clinic, is a 486-bed teaching hospital staffed by 2,500 employees and 950 physicians with an annual operating budget of $337 million. Jan attended Saint Joseph Academy for one year. After high school she received her LPN degree from Marymount School of Practical Nursing, her RN from Fairview Hospital School of Nursing, a BSN from Bowling Green State University and her MSN from Akron University-Mary Gladwyn Hall.

 

Tom Laird, Vice President/District Manager, Gilbane Construction. Mr. Laird has a BS in Construction Management from the University of Cincinnati and a MS in Real Estate from Johns Hopkins University. He has been project manager on a number of different projects throughout the region including: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Case Western Reserve University, Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, PA, and University Hospitals of Cleveland. Tom and his wife Carmel Lapa live in Avon and have a son and a daughter Katelyn, who will be a freshman this year at Saint Joseph Academy.

 

Doug Rommel, Vice President, Information Services Division, American Greetings Corporation. Mr. Rommel has 29 years with American Greetings starting in the computer operations group. He has served as Vice President of Information Services since 2001. He has been involved in every major system implementation over the last 25 years. Mr. Rommel attended Baldwin-Wallace College and currently lives in Strongsville with his wife Brenda and two daughters Laura and Katherine, a sophomore at Saint Joseph Academy.

 

Founded in 1890, Saint Joseph Academy is the only Catholic high school for girls in the city of Cleveland. A Saint Joseph Academy educational experience offers young women an awakening to faith, mind and the world while reflecting and celebrating God, community and oneself. Ninety-five percent of the Class of 2008 are attending college and have received $7.9 million in merit-based scholarships.