In a special ceremony on October 7, 2016, St. Stephen’s Episcopal School in Austin installed St. Mark’s own Chris Gunnin ’90 as its 12th Head of School. Earlier in his career, Chris served on the faculty at St. Mark’s in a variety of roles, including English teacher and Head of Upper School. Immediately prior to joining St. Stephen’s, Chris served as Head of Upper School at Trinity Valley in Ft. Worth.
Chris’s appointment makes him the second Marksman to lead a private school in the Southwest Preparatory Conference in recent years. In the fall of 2015, Eric Lombardi ’81 stepped in as Head of School at Ft. Worth Country Day after a long tenure as Head of Middle School at St. John’s in Houston.
Congratulations and best wishes to both of these Marksmen as they lead important independent schools in the region. Chris and Eric join the ranks of other St. Mark’s alumni who have led prominent independent schools around the country, including the Rev. William Clarkson ’66 who served as President of the Westminster Schools in Atlanta for more than two decades.
A number of former St. Mark’s faculty and administrators have also gone on to lead prominent independent schools around the country, including John Allman, Head of Trinity School in New York City; Charlie Britton, Head of McDonogh School in Baltimore; and Byron Lawson, Head of Trinity Prep in Winter Park, Florida.
St. Mark’s School of Texas is a private, nonsectarian college-preparatory boys’ day school for students in grades 1 through 12, located in Dallas, Texas. St. Mark’s aims to prepare young men to assume leadership and responsibility in a competitive and changing world.
St. Mark’s does not discriminate in the administration of its admission and education policies on the basis of race, color, religion, sexual orientation, or national or ethnic origin.