About the Secondary Schools Department 

The NCEA Secondary Schools Department is called to provide leadership, advocacy, and service to Catholic secondary schools as communities with a Catholic identity rooted in faith, committed to justice, living out Gospel values, and promoting excellence in all programs.

Department Membership Regions	Department Executive Committee
Department Bylaws	Department Awards

NCEA Secondary Schools Department Staff
Department Email Address: nceasec@ncea.org

Sr. Mary Frances Taymans, SND
Executive Director
Sr. Mary Frances Taymans, SND, serves as executive director of the Secondary School Department of the National Catholic Educational Association in Washington, D.C. Prior to her tenure at NCEA, she was assistant superintendent of secondary schools for the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. She also has served in the Education Department at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C., as well as working as a principal for nine years in Florida and North Carolina. Sr. Mary Frances received her Doctor of Education degree in curriculum and instruction from The George Washington University.

Sr. Mary E. Tracy, SNJM
Associate Executive Director
Sr. Mary Tracy, SNJM, serves as associate executive director of the Department of Secondary Schools at the National Catholic Educational Association in Washington, DC. Her responsibilities focus mainly on development services.

Prior to joining NCEA, Sr. Mary was principal for 15 years of Holy Names Academy in Seattle, Washington, a nationally recognized School of Excellence. She also has written NCEA development articles and publications, made several convention presentations, and provided development consultation to many of her colleagues in Catholic schools throughout the country. Sr. Mary holds an M.A. in Literature from the University of Washington and received her undergraduate degree from Fort Wright College in Spokane, Washington.

Mr. Gary Meyerl
Assistant Executive Director
Mr. Gary Meyerl serves as assistant executive director of the Secondary Schools Department of the National Catholic Educational Association in Washington, DC. His work consists of major responsibility for a number of Department initiatives in the areas of leadership and faculty faith development. He brings to NCEA a rich and varied experience in teaching and administration in Catholic education. For the past twenty years, Gary has dedicated his professional life to serving youth and young adults in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. He has served in a variety of roles including Youth Minister at Sacred Heart Parish in Glyndon; Campus Minister, Religion teacher and coach at Calvert Hall College High School and Mt. St. Joseph High School; Principal at The Cardinal Gibbons School and Associate Director at the Msgr. O’ Dwyer Retreat House. Previously, Gary served on the Pastoral Team at St. Pius X Catholic Church and will continue to serve as an Advisory Board member and presenter for the National Center for Catholic Youth Sports 

 

Established in 1904, the NCEA is the largest private professional education organization in the world, representing 200,000 Catholic educators serving 7.6 million students in Catholic elementary and secondary schools, in religious education programs, in seminaries and in colleges and universities.

With 200,000 members serving Catholic educators at all levels, NCEA is the largest private professional education association in the world.