MILWAUKEE — Messmer High School, a Catholic high school serving students in Milwaukee for over 80 years, has named Mark Ketterhagen Vice Principal. In this position, Ketterhagen will serve as the school’s chief instructional leader.

Br. Bob Smith, OFM Cap, will continue to provide leadership to Messmer Catholic Schools as President and CEO, and will additionally act as Principal of Messmer High School.

Ketterhagen began at Messmer High School in 2007 as an English teacher. At the end of his first year of service, students and colleagues recognized Ketterhagen’s educational leadership by honoring him with the Messmer High School Teacher of the Year Award.

In 2009, Ketterhagen’s leadership was recognized formally when he was promoted as Director of Standards and Assessment. In this role, Ketterhagen developed a strategy and school-wide initiative to ensure continued student growth and achievement. He was instrumental in monitoring student performance through a study of data, and guiding teachers to understand and apply data to drive performance.

In addition to his work at Messmer, Ketterhagen has lived and worked as an educator in Japan, and has traveled extensively in Asia, South America and Europe. Ketterhagen’s travels have informed a multicultural approach to education; he has experienced firsthand the many different ways individuals and cultures learn and understand. He brings this experience to the urban classroom where differentiated learning is paramount to student success.

Br. Bob has been a guiding force in the success story of Messmer Catholic Schools. Under Br. Bob’s 24 years of leadership, Messmer has grown from near closure in the mid 1980’s to serving over 1,500 students in kindergarten through grade 12. Today, Messmer Catholic Schools are a nationally recognized role model for providing a high quality education in an urban setting.

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