St. Augustine High School taps Craddock as president

The St. Augustine High School Board of Directors announced last week that Oyd J. Craddock, a 1978 St. Aug grad and former IBM executive, has been tapped to serve as the 7th Ward school’s new president and chief executive officer.

Craddock spent 31 years at the IBM Corporation where he held executive roles in sales, marketing and operations with multiple roles being global in scope. He is a graduate of After earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Southern Illinois University, in Carbondale, Illinois, Craddock went on to earn a MBA from the A.B. Freeman Graduate School at Tulane University.

“My plan for St. Aug is threefold,” a very excited Mr. Craddock said last week. “First, we will continue to pursue excellence in every area, which is the St. Aug culture established by school founders. Second, we will ensure that curriculum standards and instruction reflect industry-best practices, and prepare students for college, careers and life success in a global, highly technological world. Third, we will unify all St. Aug stakeholders to focus on what is best for the Purple Knight students. We must assess everything we do against how it positively impacts student achievement.”

During the course of his IBM career, Mr. Craddock spent 13 years consulting school administrators and teachers on technology solutions. These solutions helped to improve student learning outcomes improve student learning outcomes and staff productivity.

Daniel Davillier, chairman of the Board of Directors for St. Augustine High School, said that the Board and the Josephites are all excited to welcome Mr. Craddock back to St. Aug.

“As a product of St. Augustine High School, Mr. Craddock understands the high standards that we want for all Purple Knights. Mr. Craddock’s strong leadership and organizational skills will be a tremendous asset to our school,” Davillier stated.

Mr. Craddock is the husband of Annette Fortuné Craddock, a 25-year educator with experience in teaching, administration and leadership. Mr. and Mrs. Craddock have two children, Koya and Oyd II.

This article originally published in the August 12, 2013 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.