St. Matthias Transfiguration School
School Board
In order to maintain Catholic, excellent, and vital schools the Office of Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese of Chicago has recommended that schools adopt Boards of Specified Jurisdiction. We are among the first cohort of schools to begin this process. We believe that this Board will increase collaboration among parents, parishioners, alumni, and leaders within the neighborhood, business, and professional communities. Our goal is to ensure that St. Matthias Transfiguration School provides the best possible education and spiritual formation for our students.
The Board of Specified Jurisdiction focuses on the following areas: Institutional Advancement, Mission Effectiveness, Finance, Policy/Planning and Facilities.
Following are the board members:
Michael McGovern – Chairperson
Michael McGovern is a Vice President in Commercial Real Estate for Associated Bank. Prior to joining Associated Bank in August 2007, he served as a Vice President of Community Development Lending at LaSalle Bank. Michael holds a Master’s Degree in Urban Planning from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Evansville. He and his wife, Karyn, have two daughters at St. Matthias Transfiguration School: Elisabeth in First Grade, and Kathryn in the 3-year-old Pre-School class.
Brad Pausha – Secretary
Brad Pausha is an architect with the architectural firm Valerio Dewalt Train Associates. He is a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Accredited Professional and has been practicing architecture for 19 years. Brad has a Master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee. He and his wife, Ann, have one son, Joshua, at St. Matthias Transfiguration School.
John Moran, Jr.
John Moran, Jr., is a proud 1980 alumni of St.Matthias School. He is the youngest of six children who attended St. Matthias, as did his parents, John and Carolyn (Casazza). He attended St. Benedict High School and married his high school sweetheart, Marie (Osilich). He earned a BA in Business Administration/Marketing from MacMurray College in Jacksonville, IL, and was a member of the Men’s Basketball Team. Marie and John have three children, Ryan (11), Erin (7) and Kailyn (6). Marie taught at St. Alphonsus Academy for 15 years and in her last year served as principal. She has been a stay at home mother since Kailyn has been born. The Morans live in Park Ridge and belong to St. Paul of the Cross Parish. John is employed as a Major Account Leader at Integrys, formerly Peoples Energy. The Morans also have a business out of their house, Amish Custom Kitchens. Amish Custom Kitchens distributes cabinetry from four Amish families in Central Illinois. John is very active in coaching all three children in sports. He belongs to the Ancient Order of Hibernians and Bellpark Servicemen’s Club.
Thomas (Tom) Krebs
Tom Krebs is the father of a kindergartner at St. Matthias Transfiguration School and a parishioner of St. Matthias Church. Tom's wife, Dolores, is the secretary of the school's Parent Teacher Together Organization and an active member of numerous school committees. Dolores, Tom and their two children, Isabel and Mia, live in the Lincoln Square neighborhood. Tom is a partner in the Chicago office of the law firm Foley & Lardner LLP, where he specializes in securities litigation. Tom graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1990 and from The Ohio State University College of Law in 1995.
Carolyn Sweeney
Carrie Sweeney is a supervisor at Starcom Worldwide, a media agency that offers media planning and buying services, and consultation on the optimization of clients' advertising spends and marketing campaigns. She has worked on several brands during her tenure at the company, including Hallmark, Crayola, Morgan Stanley and Kellogg's.
She graduated magna cum laude from the University of Notre Dame in 2003 with a B.A. and anticipates receiving a Masters of Liberal Arts from the University of Chicago in May, 2008. In addition to attending a Catholic university, Carrie also attended a Catholic grade school in Western Springs, IL, (St. John of the Cross) and is a life-long believer in Catholic education.
Larry McNabb
Larry McNabb is an owner of a small business and a member of St. John of the Cross in Western Springs, IL. He has a B.S. in Engineering from Syracuse University. He and his wife, Cherry, have two adult children, Erin and James (Ted). Larry says he is very interested in education.
Fr. Joe Tito
Fr. Joe Tito is pastor of Our Lady of Mercy Church. He says of St. Matthias Transfiguration School, “This school has a heart! I want to help keep it growing in the ways of Jesus Christ whose heart is love. Our children know the secret of the heart.” Fr. Tito attended Loyola Academy, Wilmette and earned a BS from St. Joseph’s College, Rensselaer, IN. He received an MPS from Loyola University and attended the University of St. Mary of the Lake. He is also an active member of the Albany Park Neighborhood Council.
Fr. John Sanaghan
Fr. John Sanaghan was born and raised on the South Side of Chicago. He studied at the Niles College, St. Mary of the Lake University, Yale, Northwestern and the University of Chicago. John was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese in 1972 and served as an associate pastor at St. Nicholas of Tolentine Parish for five years followed by nine years as director of pastoral care at Columbus/Cuneo/Cabrini Medical Center. During this time he also taught clinical/pastoral education at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and courses in nursing ethics.
From 1986-1990, John was chaplain and director of the Calvert House, the Catholic center at the University of Chicago. Taking a break from ministry, John was a floor broker at the Chicago Board of Trade, an administrator at Purdue University and then, for 14 years, lived in Washington D.C. designing and conducting ethics and professional conduct programs for registered professionals in the financial industry.
He now serves at St. Matthias Parish and at the Integritas Institute of Ethics at the University of Illinois/Chicago and UIC’s Medical Campus.
Maria Elena Rodriguez
María Elena Rodríguez is an educator and active member of Our Lady of Mercy Parish for 25 years. Originally from Costa Rica, Central America, she and her husband, Emmanuel, have four children: Federico José (33), Joanne (27), Moisés Eduardo (25), and Daniel Alejandro (22). They have two grandchildren.
Maria Elena has a degree in Secondary Education: Sciences from the Universidad Nacional de Heredia, Costa Rica, and also a degree in Secondary Education, Major in Spanish Language and Literature, from Northeastern University.
She has served Our Lady of Mercy Parish as a volunteer minister in areas including: Pre-Cana Ministry, Baptism Program, Confirmation Program, Liturgy (Lector and Minister of Communion). She also attended the Pastoral Leadership Training (four year courses) that prepares lay ministers to serve the community. She was the Coordinator for Spanish Masses; serving on this committee for more than ten years, and served Archdiocese of Chicago’s Instituto de Liturgia as an instructor for various courses in Liturgy. During the past year, she has been the Co-Coordinator of the Legal Clinic at Our Lady of Mercy.
She was a teacher at José Daniel Crespo High School, Panama. For the last seven years, she taught Spanish Language and Literature and was in charge of the Hispanic Club at Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary. She is now employed by WLP, a division of J.S. Paluch Company, as Editor for the Spanish Resources.
Sandria Morten
Sandria Morten is principal of St. Matthias Transfiguration School. She was assistant principal last year and taught fifth grade for two years. Prior to coming to St. Matthias Transfiguration School, Morten taught third grade for two years at St. Clotilde Catholic School, Chicago. She is part of the University of Notre Dame Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE) leadership program. She has a Masters Degree of Education from Loyola University of Chicago and a Bachelor’s of Arts from the University of Notre Dame.
Please contact Sandria Morten, mrs.morten@values4life.com, to communicate further about the Board of Specified Jurisdiction.