The 11th Annual Catholic School Administrators Association presents the 2011 Lighting the Fire for Catholic Education Award to St. Paul School’s principal.
Sister Stephen Gerard, O.P., who has served as principal at St. Paul School in Valley Cottage for 38 years, was named the 2011 winner of the Lighting the Fire for Catholic Education Award.
Sr. Gerard was presented the award November 13 at the 11th Annual Catholic School Administrators Association (CSAANYS) gathering in Albany. This award is made annually by the CSAANYS to a school administrator who has set an example and been an inspiration to other Catholic educators.
Clockwise from left: Patricia O’Connor, principal of Most Precious Blood in Walden; Margaret Hamilton, principal of St. Peter’s School in Haverstraw; Sister Helen, retired district superintendent; Philip Gorrasi, district superintendent; Katharine Murphy, principal of St. Augustine School in New City; Sr. Stephen Gerard, O.P., principal of St. Paul School in Valley Cottage
Though Sr. Gerard has served as principal at St. Paul School since the early 1970s, she was chosen as recipient of this year’s award because she is a forward thinker, always on the lookout for the path that will lead to excellence for her school, her faculty, and her students. She has also remained current on the educational front and continues to push her teachers to improve their professional skills. But overall, it is Sr. Gerard’s faith that guides all that she does. She wants her students to be “saints and scholars,” she says, and she strives to guide them, through humor and wisdom, on their life paths.
