Detroit — Canon Thomas C. Machalski Jr. will become the new rector of SS. Cyril & Methodius Seminary, Orchard Lake, effective July 1.

Archbishop Allen Vigneron named Fr. Machalski to replace Msgr. Charles G. Kosanke, who has been called back to pastoral duties in the Archdiocese of Detroit.

Following Archbishop Vigneron’s appointment, the Board of Regents of Orchard Lake Schools acted to appoint Fr. Machalski as chancellor-elect of Orchard Lake Schools as well.

Fr. Machalski will become chancellor on Jan. 1, following the expected departure at that time of Fr.. Timothy F. Whalen, who has been called back to his home Diocese of Pittsburgh by his bishop for further assignment.

The Orchard Lake Schools is the name of the overarching structure that includes SS. Cyril & Methodius Seminary, St. Mary’s Preparatory and the Orchard Lake Polish Mission, all of which occupy a campus on the shores of Orchard Lake in Oakland County.

In its announcement of the appointment, the Board of Regents said its selection of Fr. Machalski, which was then accepted and endorsed by Archbishop Vigneron, was based on his many qualifications and personal qualities which they determined to be essential to the continued success of the schools.

Besides being an alumnus of both St. Mary’s Preparatory (1976) and St. Mary’s College (1980), Fr. Machalski holds a Master of Divinity degree from New York’s Seminary of the Immaculate Conception, a Master of Science in Education degree from Fordham University, and a licentiate in Canon Law from the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

Fr. Machalski, who has lived in Poland, has served for many years as an officer of the Polish American Priests Association, including two terms as president.

“His strong interests in Polish culture and connections to the Polish community in America will be important in carrying out the Mission of the Orchard Lake Schools,” Fr. Whalen said. “The fact that he spent his formative years here at Orchard Lake attending the Prep and St. Mary’s College, gives Fr. Machalski a personal knowledge of the OLS mission and a sense of our history.” 

Lud Koci, chairman of the Board of Regents, said, “The Orchard Lake Schools has been blessed with good leadership during a difficult economic period in the United States. Both the prep and the seminary have recently received renewals from their respective accreditation agencies and are anticipating strong enrollments for the upcoming academic year. Fr. Machalski’s qualifications assure that the progress made in the schools and the development of our Orchard Lake Polish Mission as a recognized resource and center of Polish culture, will continue.”