Interim Catholic schools leader promoted
Debra Haney, who was named interim superintendent of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston Catholic Schools last August, has been appointed to the position permanently by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo.
The archdiocese’s district serves about 18,700 students in 59 schools spread across 10 counties, making it the largest private school district in Texas.
Haney has served in the archdiocese for about 25 years. Prior to taking an assistant superintendent role in mid-2016, she served as principal of St. Laurence Catholic School in Sugar Land for 10 years and as principal of St. John Paul II Catholic School for six years.
In an interview Wednesday, Haney said she believes her experience in the archdiocese and knowledge of its systems helped her earn the position.
“I think I have relationships built with all the different constituencies that support our schools, whether it’s donors or different church organizations that work within schools,” she said.
Haney said her top priorities include recovery after Hurricane Harvey, attracting more students, promoting the district’s accomplishments and raising money for programming and technology. The district’s enrollment has hovered around
18,000 for the past decade, as public school enrollment has increased by about 15 percent during that time. Haney said she’s aiming to top 20,000 students in the district.
“Increasing enrollment and opportunities is my No. 1 challenge,” Haney said. “We don’t necessarily market ourselves all that well in Catholic education, but we have phenomenal schools that do amazing things for kids every day.”
Haney was appointed interim superintendent three weeks before Harvey made landfall in Texas. Her predecessor, Julie Vogel, resigned for “personal reasons,” Haney said.
Two of the district’s schools, Shrine of the True Cross in Dickinson and St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School in northeast Houston, sustained major flood damage. Both campuses remain closed, with plans to reopen for the 2018-19 academic year, Haney said.
“We were very, very fortunate in that many of our schools suffered no damage, so they were able to carry on pretty much as normal, with the exception of the loss to families and homes,” Haney said.