An Interview with Chip Carter
President & CEO of Cristo Rey Oklahoma City Catholic High School
Meet Chip Carter, President & CEO of Cristo Rey Oklahoma City Catholic High School. He has a strong commitment and mission to change the lives of his students. While Cristo Rey OKC is only in its third year in Oklahoma City, it is part of a much larger, proven network with a staggering 100% college acceptance rate for its graduates nationwide.
Within the walls of Cristo Rey OKC, you can hear students making plans for college and dreaming of becoming community leaders, doctors, teachers, and more because of the opportunities they have been given at Cristo Rey. I can’t wait for you to learn more about a school that brings businesses and students together for a life-changing mission.
Tell me about Cristo Rey OKC and how it is different than other private schools in our state.
Cristo Rey Oklahoma City Catholic High School, or “Cristo Rey OKC,” is a private Catholic high school that focuses on providing college preparatory academics with professional work experience. It is exclusively for families of limited resources. Most of our students will be the first college graduate in their family.
We are distinguished by our unique Corporate Work Study Program, which partners students with local corporate employers one day per week and pays a majority of their education costs. Students learn professional skills and graduate with the confidence to succeed not only in college but also in the real world.
Cristo Rey OKC is now in our third year with 250 freshmen, sophomores, and juniors. Next year we expect to add another 110 students when we have all four grades. 85% of our students are minorities and 64% of them report English being a second language in the home. We are a member of a national Cristo Rey Network that has 37 schools in the country. This proven education model boasts a 100% college acceptance rate for its graduates network wide. We love to say that Cristo Rey is “Oklahoma City’s Future at Work!”
What do you love most about what you do?
The students! We know without a doubt that what we are doing is changing lives. Our students want to learn and be the first in their family to go to college. They want the opportunity to have a life that their parents and grandparents haven’t been able to have.
Only about 10% of our students have a college-educated adult in their home and most of our students have never been to a professional office environment until they come to Cristo Rey. When they go to and graduate from college (and they will!), we have not only changed that individual’s life, but we are affecting that whole family and its next generation. And when you are able to help change hundreds of families, you are changing a community. Who wouldn’t wake up every day excited about being a part of that?
How has COVID 19 impacted your organization and what have you learned during the pandemic?
Like every school in our community, Cristo Rey OKC has been hit hard by this virus. Because our Corporate Work Study Program is at the center of our financial and educational model, our school and mission are at risk. Our students work five days a month at our Corporate Work Study Partners, which covers the majority of their tuition and gives them valuable skills and confidence. With businesses closing, cutting back on their workforce, and taking extra care to limit their risk of exposure, our ability to secure partnerships for our students has drastically declined. We are hopeful that as more businesses become aware of our mission, we will continue to secure new Corporate Work Study Partners.
How can the community support Cristo Rey OKC?
There are three ways the community can support our school. Share our mission to help the community learn more about our school, make a donation, or consider becoming a Corporate Work Study Partner.
We are actively seeking local businesses that are willing to join us and provide a professional work experience for our students. Some of our current Corporate Work Study Partners include Loves, BancFirst, Lopez Foods, MidFirst Bank, McBride Orthopedic Hospital, and Manhattan Construction, just to name a few. If your business is interested in learning more about our program, please call me at 405-945-9100.
What is the best piece of advice you have received in your career?
Strive daily. We should never stop learning or trying to improve. For me, one’s attitude is very important, and it should be based on striving for continuous improvement.
Who or what has shaped you in your life to become the person you are today?
My faith and my parents. One of the greatest gifts I’ve ever received from my parents was being allowed to find faith for myself. Early in my adulthood I chose to become Roman Catholic. My faith and my relationship with Christ mean everything to me.
My father never earned his college degree, a fact which most people who knew him will be shocked to learn, because he had to support his mother and younger siblings. Yet he was as intelligent and as professionally successful as anyone I have ever known. My mother has a Letters degree from OU and served on the Chickasha School Board for 10 years as well as the USAO Board of Regents for five years. My brother is also a life-long teacher and head of school, so education has always played a major role in my life.
What is the biggest lesson you have learned in your career so far?
Things rarely happen on our schedule or when we want, they happen in the Lord’s time. Be patient, work hard, always do the right thing, and understand that wherever you are, it’s exactly where you are supposed to be.
Where do you hope to see Cristo Rey in 10 years?
I hope to be able to stop someone in the community and ask if they have heard of Cristo Rey OKC, and their response to be, “Absolutely, we have a team of students in our company!”
I also want to have an established reputation for sending not only all of our students to college every year but sending a good number of them to top tier schools. I want to be known for being as academically rigorous as any school in OKC.
Lastly, we are looking for a new building for our school. We have been blessed to have a great relationship with OSU-OKC and are honored to be located on their campus, but we have outgrown our space. One of our main goals right now is to start a capital campaign and find a way to build or acquire a new permanent school home.
What is one thing you enjoy doing when you are not at work?
Spending as much time as possible with my family. My wife, Lori, is an attorney for the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office, and my two daughters, Cate and Lizzie, both attend Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School. Our son, David, is a sophomore at the Colorado School of Mines, studying civil engineering. When my family is all in one room together, life is good.
What is your favorite “luxiere”?
I love traveling, particularly to the mountains. Crested Butte is one of my happy places. I also consider a nice dinner with friends or family to be another one of my favorite “luxieres.” There is nothing better than a nice, leisurely meal with a bottle of wine, good discussion, and lots of laughter!
photos by VGM Visual Storytelling