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Mrs. McGrady is presented the Lifetime Achievement award
Diane Gerchario McGrady, a thirty year member of the faculty of Cathedral School in Raleigh, was presented The Monsignor Gerald Lawrence Lewis Award for Lifetime Achievement in Catholic Education at the Raleigh Diocesan Teachers Conference on October 14, 2011. The presentation took place at St. Francis of Assisi Church in Raleigh after an opening Mass, celebrated by the Most Reverend Michael F. Burbidge, Bishop of Raleigh.
Mrs. McGrady, a transplanted New Yorker, began her teaching career at the Berkeley Manor Elementary School at the Camp LeJeune Dependent Schools in Jacksonville, North Carolina. In the fall of 1981, she joined the faculty of Cathedral School, teaching Kindergarten for the next ten years. In 1991, she developed the Pre-K four-year-old program and served as its first teacher for the next two years. For the next sixteen years, Mrs. McGrady taught First Grade. In 2009, Diane left the classroom and became the first Director of Curriculum and Instruction at Cathedral School.
Mrs. Donna Moss introduces Diane McGrady to the Conference attendees
"Diane has touched the lives of over a thousand students during the past thirty years. She has been with us long enough to teach the children of former students", said Mrs. Donna Moss, Principal of Cathedral School. "When Alumni visit, one of the first questions they ask is, 'Is Mrs. McGrady still here?'" Among her duties as Director of Curriculum and Instruction, Diane mentors teachers and students and puts to full use the wealth of experience she has gained over the years.
On the personal side of her career, Mrs. McGrady is married to Bill McGrady. They are the parents of a daughter and a son, and the grandparents of a granddaughter.
Mrs. McGrady is no stranger to the Lewis Award. In 1992, the first year the Lewis Award for Excellence in Teaching was presented, she was one of the three Finalists. Again in 2009, Mrs. McGrady was chosen as a Finalist for the Excellence in Teaching Award.
Mrs. McGrady receives congratulations from Bishop Burbidge
The Monsignor Gerald Lawrence Lewis Award for Lifetime Achievement in Catholic Education honors individuals within the Catholic education system of the Diocese of Raleigh who have made significant contributions to Catholic education, and who also demonstrate an outstanding and ongoing commitment to their students, their colleagues, their schools and to their family, church and civic communities. The Recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award may be in administration, faculty or staff. The Lifetime Achievement Award is an honor bestowed by the Lewis Award Committee at its initiative and only when it deems circumstances warrant. Mrs. McGrady is the fifth Recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award in the twenty years of the Lewis Award's history.
In closing her introduction of Diane McGrady at the Award presentation, Donna Moss summed up all that Mrs. McGrady is to Cathedral School with, "Diane is a wife, mother, grandmother, sister, leader, teacher, colleague, mentor, avid reader, conscientious exerciser and friend. And I am blessed to call her mine."
2011-2012 Lewis Award Nomination Period
The nomination period is now open! Nominations for the 2011-2012 Excellence in Teaching Award may be submitted from September 1-30, 2011. Mailed nomination forms must be postmarked by September 30, 2011. Online nominations must be sent no later than Midnight, September 30, 2011. Please visit the nominations page for nomination forms and additional information.
Lewis Award Announces New Committee Members
As the Lewis Award begins its 20th Anniversary year on July 1, 2011, it announces the appointment of two new members to the Lewis Award Committee, and the reappointment of one member for a second term. The Most Reverend Michael F. Burbidge, Bishop of Raleigh, sent Letters of Appointment to Mr. J. Keith Brown, of Cary, and to Mr. Rene M. Centeno, of Raleigh. Mrs. Caralyn M. House, also of Raleigh, was reappointed to a second four-year term on the Committee.
Keith Brown, newly appointed to Lewis Award Committee
Keith Brown's professional background in secondary and college education will bring wide ranging experience to the Lewis Award Committee. Keith began his career teaching in Junior and Senior High Schools before moving to administrative positions at the NC School of Math, NC Community College system. He is now a consultant in the field of post-secondary education. Keith and his wife, Rose Anne, are the parents of two grown sons and four grandchildren. Living in Cary, NC, and members of St. Michael the Archangel parish in Cary, Keith has been active in parish ministries as Parish Council Member, Lector, Usher and CCD Instructor. Currently, Keith is a Eucharistic Minister, and a member of the Knights of Columbus.
Rene Centeno, newly appointed to Lewis Award Committee
Rene Centeno also brings an educational background to the Lewis Award Committee. Rene works with the Wake County Public Schools as an interpreter for special needs children and parents in the Wake County School System. He is also an interpreter for UNC Hospital in Chapel Hill. Rene and his wife, Martha, a survivor of breast cancer, are both active in cancer- related fundraising, Rene's focus being in biking events. His latest ride took him on a 100 mile trek through the mountains of NC. The Centenos live in Raleigh and are parents of three daughters. Long term members of Cathedral Parish in Raleigh, all three girls graduated from Cathedral School. Rene was quite active in the Cathedral School HSA while his daughters were students, including serving as president.
Caralyn House, reappointed to Lewis Award Committee
Caralyn House, of Raleigh, has been reappointed to the Lewis Award Committee to serve a second four-year term. Caralyn is on the faculty of Wake Technical Community College Culinary School, and was honored as the Instructor of the Year for the NC Community College System in 2007. Caralyn and her husband, Bob, are parents of a daughter, a graduate of Appalachian State University in Boone, NC, and a son, a second year Midshipman at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. The House family was among the founding members of St. Raphael the Archangel parish in Raleigh, where they continue to be active in the parish.