BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Nardin Academy is going into its last few weeks of classes without a President or Board of Trustees.
Monday night, the Daughters of the Heart of Mary, who run Nardin Academy, sent a letter to Nardin families informing them the current board will be replaced.
The letter says a new board will be elected immediately "that will be committed to partnering with the community to bring about healing."
This comes weeks after Nardin president Doctor Sandra Betters along with nine board members announced they would be stepping down following weeks of protests from students and community members. Some supporters said they would pull their donations. They claim Doctor Betters created a toxic environment when she started two years ago, causing some faculty to leave.
The "Nardin Together" group that organized these rallies posted a statement on their Facebook page early Tuesday morning. This is a portion of the statement:
We are extremely grateful for the support, input, action, encouragement, prayer and plain hard work from so many people over the past 8 weeks. At every obstacle, and there were quite a few, so many worked tirelessly and enthusiastically to overcome them; we were humbled how there was never an instance when we asked for help and someone always stepped up. The support we received was immense from here in Buffalo and across the country.
Donors of Nardin Dan and Leslie Keane also released a statement in response to the removal of the 15 board members:
We are heartened by Monday’s announcement that a newly constituted board will soon help to chart the course for Nardin Academy. It is very clear the Daughters of the Heart of Mary spent a good deal of time discerning before making a difficult yet necessary decision.
We are committed to working collaboratively with others for the renewal of a school we deeply love and support. We are confident in the resilience of the Nardin Community and look forward to a new day as the academy recommits to its mission to inspire hearts and minds to do amazing things for the world through faith, character, academic excellence, and service.
No timeline has been given as to when a new board will be appointed.
