Notre Dame College Prep in Niles is once again a Holy Cross school. The boys’ high school that opened in 1955 under the sponsorship of the Priests of Holy Cross has operated independently for the last nine years. This fall, it is under the aegis of the Brothers of the Holy Cross. Peter Newell, chairman of the school’s executive board, said the brothers recognized that the school had remained true to the Holy Cross charism and values during the time it was operated by an association of the Christian faithful. By reaffiliating with the congregation, those values will be expressed even more clearly by the school community. “We will be doing more to make people familiar with the Holy Cross,” Newell said. “Now we have more opportunities to inculcate that throughout the school. Our parents will see that we are part of a larger identity now.” Eileen Wendel, president of the Notre Dame College Prep Parent’s Association, said the parents’ group also welcomed the new sponsorship of the school. “I think it shows support and approval for what the school has been doing,” said Wendel, whose son, David, is a senior. The affiliation means Notre Dame College Prep will join a network of 17 Holy Cross secondary schools around the country. That network serves as a resource for members, which share information and best practices, Newell said. “The brothers have been sponsoring schools and running secondary schools for a long, long time,” said Holy Cross Brother Ken Haders. “Our founder, Blessed Basil Moreau, talked about what a school should be. They come out of that same tradition. It was very easy for us to look at it and say, ‘This is one of our schools.’ It was basically welcoming them back to the Holy Cross fold.” “Having a clear Holy Cross identity will only help prospective families understand what the school is all about,” Newell said. “You go to St. Ignatius or Loyola, and you know what the Jesuits are about, or the Dominicans at Fenwick,” he said. “They would ask, ‘What’s their identity at Notre Dame College Prep?’ This makes it very identifiable.” The school will operate under the jurisdiction of its school board for day-to-day matters, but the board will be made up of four Holy Cross brothers and three laypeople. In addition, its annual budget and large capital expenditures must be approved by the congregation. Newell, who has been involved in the association of Christian faithful that ran the school since the Priests of Holy Cross pulled out in 2006, said that it would have been easier to have some guidance at times. “Our experience told us this might be a better option,” he said. But Newell doesn’t sell the accomplishments of the lay board short. “In 2006, we saved the school,” he said. The board also raised money to make significant capital improvements to the building and to its athletic facilities, including a new turf field that is used by area elementary schools as well the high school teams. A new stone grotto that faces Dempster Street recalls the famous grotto at the University of Notre Dame. Meanwhile, enrollment and test scores are both up, Newell said. Visitors, including representatives from the Brothers of Holy Cross, have been impressed with the school’s Catholic identity, Newell said. “That’s a affirmation of the professionalism of our faculty and staff,” he said. He also praised the efforts of Archbishop Cupich, and before him Cardinal George, in facilitating the partnership.