Fenwick’s newest addition is our new Co-Dean Mrs. Van Treese. She shares this leadership position with Mr. O’Keefe and handles tasks within the student body. The Fenwick community is thrilled with her addition to the school and cannot wait for what is to come.
Before coming to Fenwick she studied Catholic Educational Leadership at DePaul which gave her the perfect background to begin working as a Dean in Catholic education. Which she was led to next where she coincidentally became a Dean for another Regina Dominican High School. She says these pillars and past relatives who are Fenwick alum are what drew her to becoming a dean at Fenwick specifically. The appeal to Mrs. Van Treese’s desire to be a dean stems from, in her words, “the idea of being a Dean and bringing a lot of structure and consistency to schools for students and families.” This quality is best exemplified by her new consistent effort to be inside the atrium before classes start. She said that these simple reminders and greetings are exactly what students need to flourish. Sometimes all students need is to be pushed in the right direction before starting their day at Fenwick. She likes the consistency and one-on-one interactions she gets to have with students every morning. She strongly emphasizes consistency in both her work and her relationships with students. This is well demonstrated and goes to show how much our new dean cares for the students, how they do, and what they are headed towards.
Ms. Kelley pointed out the same characteristics in her co-worker. She stressed the ability of Mrs. Van Treese to stay organized and well prepared for the day. When describing Mrs. Van Treese the words used by Ms. Kelley were diligent, empathetic, and hardworking. She expressed that Mrs. Van Treese is a great addition to the Fenwick community because of these traits and her ability to work well with others. Mrs. Van Treese is clearly a great role model and addition to the Fenwick community and Fenwick is lucky to have her this year at Fenwick as our new Dean of Students.
