2010 Catholic Schools Week Supplement

Back home again: Former student returns to lead two Catholic schools

As the president of the two Prince of Peace Schools in Madison, Philip Kahn has tried to be a visible presence to students at Pope John XXIII School and Father Michael Shawe Memorial Jr./Sr. High School. Near Thanksgiving, he joined staff members and teachers at the high school to serve a traditional feast to students. (Submitted photo)

By John Shaughnessy

The phone call that changed Philip Kahn’s life and led him to return home after 22 years came from a friend he has known since the first grade.

The caller wanted to know if Kahn (pronounced Kane) would be interested in returning home to help ensure the future of the Catholic schools that had shaped his life and the lives of so many other people.

As Kahn listened to the caller, the then-40-year-old executive for Eli Lilly & Co. in Indianapolis became increasingly intrigued about applying to become the president of the two Prince of Peace Schools in Madison—Pope John XXIII School and Father Michael Shawe Memorial Jr./Sr. High School.

“She knew I loved the schools,” Kahn recalls. “The more I went through the interview process, the more I got excited about the opportunity. I always felt they were my schools even though I was gone for a number of years. Coming back to help try to make them bigger and better was a motivating factor for me.”

Kahn got the job, and since August he’s been enjoying the responsibility of taking the two schools to an even higher level.

“It’s really been pretty neat,” says Kahn, a 1987 graduate of Shawe. “My wife and I are back home, and I’m helping the schools I grew up in. It’s neat knowing that every day at work can lead to something new and exciting for the community. It’s a close-knit community down here. There are 400 students pre-K through seniors. It’s a family atmosphere. We are the Catholic schools here. A lot of dedicated people have helped Pope John and Shawe be the great places they are.”

Kahn’s main focus is to increase the enrollment and the fundraising success of the schools.

“My goal is to ensure the legacy and future of these schools in this community for a long time to come,” Kahn says. “In traveling around a lot, I truly believe we have a diamond in the rough down here. As great as our product has been, we’ve just scratched the surface. If we can raise more money and improve the product, it would be better for everybody. I’m excited.”

Part of that excitement comes from returning home to Madison with his wife of 12 years, Tania, and their two sons, Philip, 4, and Connor, 1. After graduating from Shawe in 1987, Kahn attended a college in Alabama and later served as an assistant basketball coach at colleges in Georgia and South Carolina before taking a job with Lilly in 2003.

Six years later came the life-changing phone call from a friend he has known since the first grade—Jill Mires, the principal of Pope John XXIII School.

“He’s always had leadership skills since high school,” Mires says. “I thought of him and how he had been in the education field and the business field. I thought that mixture would be a good combination for us. He’s very friendly, very outgoing, a people person. And he has a true love for the schools. They’re very dear to him.”

Kahn’s difference-making ability has already been noticed by Jerry Bomholt, the longtime principal of Shawe High School.

“He’s worked extremely hard,” Bomholt says. “We see a lot of positive things headed in the right direction. He’s made himself available to every family and every person on staff. He’s the right fit for what we needed. It appears he has all the qualities to get the job done.”

Coming home is Kahn’s way of paying some debts from his past.

“I’ve always felt like whatever successes I’ve had, and the person I’ve become religiously, were molded by the education and the environment I’ve experienced at these two schools,” he says. “My mom sent us here as a single mom. It meant a lot to me when I was here, but it meant even more when I was away from the situation. This is my opportunity to give back.” †