Meet Our President

“The Hawthorn School is a unique opportunity for your children to grow into the fullness of their humanity.”

—Dr. Joseph R. McCleary

  • Dr. McCleary’s leadership experience in both public and private schools includes positions ranging from headmaster to president. At the beginning of his career, he spent 21 years at The Heights School in Potomac MD, where he left as Head of the Lower School to co-found The Avalon School in Maryland. Dr. McCleary went on to become the Superintendent of the Mystic Valley Regional Charter School in Massachusetts, managing three campuses with ten buildings and 1,450 K-12 students across six cities and towns. During his tenure, he led the school to national rankings in Newsweek, U.S. News & World Report, and The Washington Post for six consecutive years, and the enrollment waitlist grew to over 2,500 students.

    Later, he was the founding Executive Director of the first international K-12 college preparatory charter school in Lowell, MA. After only one year, the school realized a 30 percent enrollment increase and is flourishing today with over 1,000 students. He then transitioned to the Advanced Math and Science Academy (AMSA) Charter School in Marlborough, MA, where he served as Executive Director overseeing faculty, staff, and 970 students in grades 6 through 12. He led the school to a number one ranking in Boston Magazine in 2016. Following AMSA, Dr. McCleary was tapped to serve as the President of The Schools of St. Mary in Manhasset, New York, which educates over 600 students in nursery through grade 12. He successfully implemented a comprehensive revitalization of the institution and its Catholic liberal arts program.

    He is a published author and invited presenter in northeastern academia, and has received multiple awards and fellowships spanning his career, including Educator of the Year in the Boston suburbs and a Commendation for Educator Excellence from the Massachusetts House of Representatives. He served for multiple years as a statewide judge for the U.S. Congressional “We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution” High School Civics Contest. He was selected by the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to serve on the Review Panel for Common Core National Standards. Early in his career, he served as an adjunct professor of English literature at the University of Maryland and the Catholic University of America.

    Dr. McCleary is a licensed Superintendent for the State of Massachusetts. He earned his Ph.D. in English from The Catholic University of America and holds an M.A. in English from Georgetown University and a B.A. in English from Towson University. He and his wife Mary are the proud parents of three grown children.

As your child’s parent, you naturally want the very best for the persons entrusted to you, and Hawthorn is positioned to help. Staffed with a first-rate faculty, Hawthorn provides the invaluable human capital without which even the most prestigious of schools are merely bricks and mortar. Our role is essential to your success in life’s most important job: forming each young person destined for eternal horizons. This formation encompasses the moral and intellectual habits that will set the course of your child’s successful journey through life.

Our teachers combine a wide knowledge and enthusiasm for academics with well-rounded personalities that are capable of mentoring and inspiring your child. Put simply, schools are the seedbeds of your child’s budding humanity. Increasingly, parents want the richest, most fertile soil available, and a vibrant life of culture and cultivation. Hawthorn exists to be just that.

Some schools offer partial nutrients, but relatively few provide the rich balance of intellectual, physical, moral, and spiritual formation necessary for full human flourishing. Hawthorn offers this balance, something widely desired if increasingly uncommon. Our network of brother and sister institutions include The Heights School in Maryland, The Oakcrest School in Virginia, and The Montrose School in Massachusetts. Drawing from these proven models, we aim to provide a similar educational offering tailored to the unique needs of families in the tri-state area.

Hawthorn, as its name implies, is a living entity poised to impart more life. Like the Hawthorn tree, we aspire to grow from deep roots, roots that find their nourishment in years of experience and wisdom gained through successful schools. Our roots draw from the rich heritage of Western Civilization, the Catholic intellectual tradition, and the vibrant optimism of the American experiment in ordered liberty. In that spirit, we are open to all that is true and good and beautiful. Already, many have generously come forward to cultivate this effort. With these key benefits in place, we invite you to join us in the vital adventure of education. Years from now, your children’s gratitude and happiness will be the measure of your choice.

If you find our school intriguing, please contact us for more information or to schedule a visit. We look forward to speaking with you!

- Joseph R. McCleary, Ph.D.

Listen to our podcast:

Join us on the third Thursday of each month in the living room after drop-off for coffee and light refreshments. Our President, Dr. McCleary, sits down with parents to discuss what is happening at the school. While the discussion is often mission specific, questions from parents are always welcome and make for wonderful conversation.