After a two month search, school principal, Karen Meskill, announced the hiring of Justin Busche as the new athletic director succeeding Michael Chiarito who retired after twenty-five years of being the face of the school's athletic program.  Busche, along with his wife Kristin (Lesters '90) have three children enrolled in our school.

The search committee which assisted Meskill, consisted of current Athletic Association president, Shawn Lapean, incoming Athletic Association president, Mark McAndrew, and assistant principal, Jane Moylan.  All felt that our sports program will not miss a beat under Busche.  "He has been a member of the Athletic Association for five years and a school parent for eight years" pointed out the third year principal, "so he is well versed in both our school culture and the role athletics plays in the lives of our students."

A native of Texas, Justin played soccer, football, and baseball in high school in Ada, OK and later played soccer at the University of Illinois from where he received both his B.A. (Sports Marketing and Management) and M.A. (Education) and where he met his wife.

While serving on the Athletic Association, Mr. Busche had the responsibility for scheduling gym and concession duties. "Knowing everyone on the Athletic Association, and the way our programs, tournaments, and fundraising operate will definitely shorten my learning curve," Busche stated.  "I also had the opportunity to sit down with Mike Chiarito to pick his brain before he left.  I would have been foolish not to take advantage of his knowledge, experience, and insights."  Asked to assess the current status of our program, Busche was quick to reply.  "The high number of our student that participate in at least one of our sports programs is a testimony to our coaches and the quality of our programs. In addition, while we take pride in our success in league and tournament competitions, seeing the large number of Jr. High student-athletes who make the Honor Roll each trimester makes it clear that our coaches, students, and parents have all put sports in its proper perspective."

When asked what he foresaw as some of the challenges he would face at Saints Peter and Paul School, the new A.D. responded "The landscape of sports is rapidly changing," and he cited the new diocesan mandated concussion protocol rules as an example.  "Many of the teams in the Suburban Parochial League, for example, are seeing a precipitous drop in both enrollment as well as in the number of boys seeking to play football," he added, "while sports such as lacrosse are also gaining in popularity in many parts of the country."

Next month Mr. Busche will be starting his third year as the Physical Education instructor at our neighbor, All Saints Catholic Academy.  Prior to that he served as Athletic Director at St. Scholastica High School, an all-girls school in Chicago, for two years.