LATROBE, PA – Sister Mary Grace Walsh, ASCJ, PhD, superintendent of schools and secretary for education and faith formation for the Archdiocese of New York, will deliver the annual Saint Vincent College Founders’ Day reflection as part of the Fall Honors Convocation. She’ll also be awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters.
The Convocation will be held at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 19, in the Saint Vincent Archabbey Basilica.
A member of the Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, an international Catholic congregation of religious women, Sr. Mary Grace was appointed to her current position in March 2023 and oversees the administration and operation of more than 140 PreK-12 schools within the Archdiocese of New York. Expanding her service to Catholic formation of young people, in November 2024 she assumed the role of secretary for education and faith formation for the Archdiocese of New York, overseeing the archdiocesan pastoral offices and the Catholic Youth Organization of the Archdiocese of New York, which helps Catholics deepen and grow in their faith.
Sr. Mary Grace previously served for three years as president of Cor Jesu Academy in Affton, Missouri, in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. In the role, she provided leadership and vision for the integration of faith and learning at the school. Sr. Mary Grace also was responsible for the design and oversight of various projects aimed at reimagining spaces to enhance learning and student life.
Prior to her time in Missouri, Sr. Mary Grace served as president of Saint Thomas Seminary in Bloomfield, Connecticut, and provost for education, evangelization and catechesis in the Archdiocese of Hartford, Connecticut.
From 2006 through 2015, Sr. Mary Grace filled a variety of roles for the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut, including superintendent of Catholic schools, and later, secretary of Catholic education and faith formation. She has extensive experience in classrooms as an elementary and secondary school teacher throughout the country in parochial, diocesan and congregation-sponsored schools.
Sr. Mary Grace holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Albertus Magnus College in New Haven, Connecticut; a Master of Arts in educational administration and supervision from Saint Louis University in Missouri; and a PhD in educational administration and supervision (church and non-public school leadership) from Fordham University in New York City.
