HCHC Approves Major Land Sale to Bolster Endowment
The institution will add $25 million to HCHC's endowment as questions are raised about the school's identity and financial situation.
BROOKLINE — Hellenic College Holy Cross has made a significant decision in what it describes as having taken a major step toward financial stability, after its Board of Trustees voted on December 9 to advance the sale of 19–25 acres of campus land for permanent conservation.
Chaired by Abp. Elpidophoros of America, the Board met via Zoom to review the proposal, expected to generate roughly $25 million for the institution’s endowment. Officials say the parcel—undeveloped, steep, and environmentally sensitive—will be placed in trust with The Trustees of Reservations, ensuring its preservation as public greenspace adjoining Boston’s Emerald Necklace.
Finance Committee Chairman Bill Spell called the sale essential for HCHC’s long-term viability, noting decades-old questions about the land’s best use. The Board also discussed President Demetrios Katos’s five-year strategic plan to strengthen enrollment, expand programs, and modernize Holy Cross Seminary.
Trustees highlighted a recent $7.4 million Lilly Endowment grant as further momentum for revitalizing academic and pastoral formation at the nation’s only Greek Orthodox institution of higher learning.
Reporting from the National Herald paints a different picture. Responding to President Katos's five-year plan, Abp. Elpidophoros stated in a "firm tone" that while Katos's program is good, he does not believe it will help. The archbishop further stated that whereas Katos has been in the presidency for over 12 months, “we have not seen improvements or changes.” Katos countered that HCHC had received the Lilly Endowment. Met. Gerasimos of San Francisco intervened by asking, “If you are saying that everything is going well, that we received this money from the Lilly Foundation, then why must this land be sold?” Katos replied simply, “Thank you for your comment.”
To further justify the land sale, Spell allegedly criticized the lack of support from wealthy Greek donors, stating, “I was in New York the other day at the event of the Hellenic Initiative. There were many wealthy Greeks there, but none of them gives to the School.”
Also responding to Katos's five-year plan, Met. Gerasimos questioned whether it retained the school's identity as a Theological School and an Orthodox ecclesiastical institution.
Previously, UOJ reported that HCHC won a $7.5 million Lilly Endowment grant to revamp its Master of Divinity program.
