What is Sister Ann up to Now?

In the 2015-16 school year, Sister Ann Regan was given the position as Interim Principal of AHN. This year, she returns to her previous post of Mission Effectiveness Coordinator. She went from an eight hour, hectic day of spending time with students and overseeing the entire high school to a more tranquil, three hour day of teaching a few middle school classes and spending time in her office.

Achona: What is your official job title this year and what does it entail?

Regan: “My official title is Mission Effectiveness Coordinator. This school is sponsored by the Sisters of the Holy Names so my job entails making sure that the mission and charism of the sisters is evident in this school and is always a Holy Names institution and not just like any other school.”

A: Do you enjoy your job?

R: “I enjoy it very, very much because I know what Blessed Marie Rose thought of when she realized the need for education. It is so important that we keep that because we can lose that very easily. I think the greatest thing about this school is how it is a progressive school, but the foundation doesn’t change. If you look in the iLab, which is certainly the progressive way of education, on the floor you can see part of the original parquet floor from the foundation.”

A: How has a regular school day changed for you?

R: “Tremendously. I no longer live by bells. I don’t have to worry about odd and even days. Also, I don’t have to be here from dawn till dusk. The things that I am doing now are being available to anyone who wants to talk to me about different things. I have been teaching some classes in the middle school on the history of the school.”

A: Do you still have a lot of interaction with students?

R: “Yes, but the interaction with students is not what it was like before. The best way to have interaction with students is by being a teacher. Last year, I didn’t have as much interaction with students as I did when I was a teacher, so that year was a good for me to get used to the fact that I’m not going to be having that interaction with students.”

A: Do you miss teaching?

R: “When I was a religion teacher, I taught Median Values to sophomores and Social Justice to seniors. In class, we were talking about really important things and I could get a fresh viewpoint from students. That was a gift to be able to teach those courses. I miss it a lot.”

A: Did you ever envision yourself doing this job?

R: “We didn’t have Mission Coordinators until a few years ago. The need for this job is a result in the fact that there are not as many sisters anymore. Years ago, when I was deciding what I wanted to do, I certainly always wanted to be a teacher. I thought it would be nice to be a principal because you always want to improve yourself, but this job didn’t exist because there used to be the sisters. And now, we don’t have as many sisters and that’s where we have to be sure that the Holy Names mission will still be here. Did I think about doing this before? No. Is it essential? Yes.”

Sr. Ann will continue on making sure Academy progresses in the right direction while still keeping the mission and values that Blessed Marie Rose Durocher and the Sisters of the Holy Names set for the school over a hundred years ago.