The Little Flower community – students, teachers, administrators and alumnae – last Friday celebrated a Mass that included the installation of school president Kristie Dugan.
Dugan was appointed in June to replace Jeane McNamara, who quit in February. She is a 1992 LF graduate and holds a degree in psychology from Immaculata University and a master’s in education from Holy Family.
Prior to returning to her alma mater, she spent 17 years at Northwood Academy Charter School as chief operating officer and served as interim CEO for the 2021-2022 academic year.
Dugan and her husband, Chris, live in Fox Chase and are the parents of four girls. Three of their daughters graduated from LF and one, Meaghan, is a junior.
Meaghan carried the 1992 LF flag into the auditorium for the Mass, ahead of several former classmates of her mom.
Kristie Dugan walked in holding hands with LF’s first president, Sister Joan Rychalsky, IHM, and its second president, Sister Donna Shallo, IHM.
The Rev. Joseph McCaffrey, the outgoing school minister, celebrated the Mass, assisted by the Rev. Andrew Lane, a parochial vicar at St. Timothy and LF’s incoming chaplain.
Dugan’s daughters Lindsay, Maura and Sarah presented the gifts.
After McCaffrey installed Dugan, the new president installed principal Kathleen Radebaugh and assistant principal for academic affairs Leonard Herman.
In her address, Dugan recalled when she was deciding whether to apply for the president’s job. She was convinced to apply after hearing the song God is in This Story, which contains the words, “Your song of healing’s written in His scars.”
Dugan thanked her family, administration, faculty, staff, students and alumnae for helping her in the early going of her new job, adding that God is saying to her, “Dugan, did you seriously think I wouldn’t show up.”
Dugan said she sees each of the LF students as her daughter, and that she chooses “joy” every day. The gathering gave her a standing ovation after her remarks, and that was before she told them there would be an ice cream truck outside the school on Monday. ••
