November 26, 2014 — Jesuit Father Thomas W. Neitzke has been named the 33rd president of Creighton Preparatory School in Omaha, Nebraska. Fr. Neitzke will succeed interim president John Naatz in April 2015.

"We are thankful to have a spiritual leader like Fr. Neitzke at the helm of this great institution," said Naatz, who will continue to serve as principal at Creighton Prep. "Fr. Neitzke has a strong relationship with faculty, staff and administrators at Prep, and the transition of leadership will be smooth and fast."

Since 2011, Fr. Neitzke has been serving as principal and president of Jesuit Academy in Omaha, a school for boys from fourth to eighth grades. Fr. Neitzke also previously served as Creighton Prep’s assistant principal for student affairs and assistant dean of students, and he taught theology courses at Prep. In 2006, he was named Prep’s Outstanding Faculty Member of the Year. He joined Creighton Prep’s Board of Directors in 2011 and was elected chairman in 2013.

Originally from Wisconsin, Fr. Neitzke received his doctorate of educational leadership from Creighton University. His other degrees include a Master of Divinity degree and a master’s degree in Catholic school administration. He is an adjunct faculty member at Creighton University and is on the board of trustees of Seattle University and Georgetown Preparatory School.

The search for Creighton Prep’s president was led by Fr. Neitzke until the committee requested he step down because it wanted to consider him for the position instead. “While we had many excellent candidates as part of the selection process, we recently approached the Jesuit provincial to request that Fr. Neitzke be made available because it became clear to the search committee that he possessed all of the essential characteristics necessary to serve as our president,” said Patrick Duffy, chairman of the board.

Upon being named president of Creighton Prep, Fr. Neitzke said, "I look forward to working with the entire Creighton Prep community and the greater Omaha community to further our mission, strengthen relationships and explore new opportunities in learning, while honoring our rich Jesuit history and strong Catholic tradition." [Sources: Creighton Preparatory School, ABC Omaha, NBC Omaha, Omaha World-Herald: Creighton Prep board chairman to be school's new president, Jesuit Academy chief will lead Prep]