Centennial Hall Dedicated to Holtberg

On Tuesday, January 9, 2017, St. Mark’s Board of Trustees unanimously passed a resolution honoring the School’s longest-serving Headmaster. A plaque and inscription were added to Centennial Hall, rededicating it as the “Arnold E. Holtberg Academic Center.”

 

“We all know the incredible contributions that Arnie made to our School over his 21-year tenure,” said Eugene McDermott Headmaster David W. Dini during a ceremony following Tuesday’s Board meeting. “The legacy Arnie has left here is incredible, so it’s only fitting that his name should be atop this building.”

 

More than a decade ago, under the leadership of then Eugene McDermott Headmaster Arnie Holtberg, St. Mark’s broke ground on a new building to replace the aging Davis Hall. Thanks to a generous $10 million gift by Harlan and Kathy Crow, the School opened Centennial Hall for the 2008–2009 school year. The Crows only request was that the building bear Arnie’s name. Arnie agreed but requested the rededication take place after his retirement. 

 

“Saluting one’s achievements, efforts, and vision through the naming of a building is done so with humility and a servant’s heart, to create a guidepost for the next generation,” said Kathy Crow. “This all creates an inheritance of a great example to be repeated again and again.” 

 

Kathy’s sentiments were echoed by her husband Harlan: “This campus has a soul made up of the thousands of boys, faculty, and staff who have come through here, as well as the leadership. When we think about this building, we want to thank Arnie and Jan for giving their great souls to this great place.”

 

In addition to the name inscribed near the top of the building, the School unveiled a plaque near the entrance, noting Centennial Hall’s rededication to honor Arnie’s enduring legacy. 

 

“The only appropriate response to today is to say thank you,” Arnie said. “I hope that everyone who comes in contact with this splendid edifice considers for centuries to come: mission first, mission last, mission always. It’s all about the boys.”

 

Arnie also fondly noted that the Jan L. Holtberg Reading Room resides at the heart of the building. 

 

The official Board resolution noted that “Mr. Holtberg brought great creativity, vision, leadership, and commitment to St. Mark’s School of Texas during his many years of service, always setting the highest standards for himself and for the School.”