By Jessica Easthope
Jeanne Shannon feels at home in the classroom, as long as there are children, it’s colorful, and faith is at the center, she knows exactly what to do.
“I believe in my heart this is really where I’m meant to be,” Shannon said.
Jeanne is the new principal at St. Bernadette Catholic Academy in Dyker Heights. These old halls are anything but familiar, yet she walks them, hoping to settle in deeper with every step. Before her, the school was run by the Filippini Sisters, whose ministry is devoted to education.
“I know I have big shoes to fill,” Shannon said. “I think that I bring a strong Catholic identity with me here to St. Bernadette’s. And I think Sister Joan has left me a great foundation to build upon.”
Within hours of the start of the school year, Jeanne sent out a survey to faculty, families, and students, asking their opinions about the school.
“I wanted to give people the opportunity to let me know how they felt about the school,” Shannon said. “And I wanted to learn for myself, like what I could do to continue to help this community grow and thrive.”
Jeanne is committed to celebrating learning diversity, even offering special education coaches to her teachers over the summer.
“That’s one thing I hope to bring to St. Bernadette—the opportunity to learn and teach in different ways, and to recognize that we all have different talents,” Shannon said. “Those talents make us special, unique, and important members of the community.”
After nearly 40 years as a teacher and principal at St. Elizabeth Catholic Academy, Jeanne says this change was meant to be.
“I used to read the story of St. Bernadette to my students. But also, my mom grew up in Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, and it was Our Lady of Lourdes who appeared to St. Bernadette,” Shannon said. “So I really believe my mom was nudging God, saying, ‘Send her there, send her there.'”
Now that Jeanne is at St. Bernadette, she’s hoping to stay rooted in what brought her here.