The Most Rev. John O. Barres, D.D., Bishop of Allentown, has established the Bishop's Commission on Catholic Schools, a 13-member body charged with helping to strengthen parochial schools in the diocese that educates about 12,500 students.

In establishing the commission, the Bishop said, "Our schools are a critical part of the teaching mission of the church. This diocese is blessed to have a great school system with an outstanding record of academic success, which has led to dramatically better results in high school and college graduation rates."The Bishop appointed Msgr. John B. McCann, pastor of Immaculate Conception Church, Douglasville, and a Nesquehoning native, and Mark Lieberman, an Allentown businessman, as co-chairmen of the commission.In accepting the appointment, Msgr. McCann said, "Our goal is to ensure a strong, healthy diocesan school system for the next 10 years." Lieberman added, "The commission's aim is to help schools make a dramatic improvement in enrollment management, advancement, finance, infrastructure and governance."Also appointed to the commission are Msgr. Edward Sacks, pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, Bethlehem, and a former principal of Marian High School, Hometown; Mary Birkhead, dean of enrollment at DeSales University, Center Valley; Rosemarie Bukics, a CPA and professor of accounting and finance at Lafayette College; Iris Citron, recently retired supervisor of Minority Affairs, Governmental Programs and Grants for the Bethlehem Area School District; Frank Godino, Business Development Officer for First Star Bank; Gary Iacocca, owner of Yocco's, Inc., a regional fast food chain; William Kirwan, principal of St. Clair and Associates, a CPA firm; Patrick Reilly, president and CEO of the Mauch Chunk Trust Company, Jim Thorpe; Greg Shemanski, president and CEO of Custom Processing Services, Reading; Joseph Topper, CEO of the Lehigh Gas Corporation; and Jeffrey Young, owner and president of Buy-Rite Liquidators, Blandon, and managing partner of Young Properties.Bishop Barres said, "I believe in the effectiveness of our great Catholic school system and our responsibility to properly educate our children, religiously and academically. Our schools will benefit from the strategies and insight the commission members will provide."