About Us:
Our Leadership

The four-member Congregational Leadership Team is composed of the President, Sister Mary Malone, and three Councilors: Sister Catherine Howard, Sister Patricia Howell, and Sister Dorothy Maxwell. Together, these Sisters share the administrative, pastoral and planning responsibilities for the entire Congregation. They work collaboratively, with each member of the Team assuming responsibility for a specific area of the Congregation's life and mission.

Sister Mary Malone, O.P.
As President, Sister Mary Malone's role is to serve as the spiritual leader and unifier of the Congregation. It is her responsibility to lead and challenge the members in their efforts to live the gospel message and facilitate their response to the Church's mandate of mission and service. Sister Mary serves on the Board of the Collaborative Dominican Novitiate and other boards associated with the ministries of the Congregation.

Sister Mary has been a Blauvelt Dominican for forty-eight years and previously served the Congregation on the Leadership Team from 1999-2005. Sister Mary also served as Formation Director from 1977-1981 and as Regional Coordinator from 1970 -1974.

In addition, Sister Mary has served the people of God in many other capacities. She has been a Social Worker and a Social Work Supervisor at St. Dominic's Home. She served as a school principal at both St. Nicholas of Tolentine and St. Benedict's in the Bronx, and was a Pastoral Associate at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in Manhattan. Sister Mary was a teacher at St. Luke's in the Bronx, New York, St. Paul's in Daytona Beach, Florida and St. Anthony's in Oceanside, New York. Sister also served the Archdiocese of New York as Director of Adult Basic Education.

Sister Catherine Howard
As a member of the Leadership Team, Sister Catherine Howard facilitates the Strategic Planning Process; assists in providing spiritual and professional enrichment opportunities for Sisters; and helps to facilitate Theological Reflection and Integrative Circles, which are small groups of sisters and associates. Sister Cathy also serves on the Board of Directors of Saint Dominic Home and Marian Woods.

Sister Cathy served in the Peace Corps in the West Indies where she met the Blauvelt Sisters and has been a Dominican of Blauvelt for the last thirty-two years. She holds a Ph.D in Social Work from Fordham University where she received the Nicholas J. Langsfeld Award for distinguished doctoral scholarship and the Social Work Department's Award for most outstanding Doctoral dissertation.

As a social worker, Sister Cathy spent many years working in different capacities with homeless and HIV infected adults in New York City. She has been on the faculty of the College for Human Services for fifteen years and is an adjunct faculty member at Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service. Sister Cathy also taught at Dominican College and served as the Director of Development for the Sisters of Saint Dominic in Blauvelt.

Sister Dorothy Maxwell
As a member of the Leadership Team, Sister Dorothy Maxwell coordinates the retreat and spiritual direction programs sponsored by the Congregation. As Director of Later Life, she serves as liaison to our Martin de Porres Infirmary and Marian Woods Residence in Hartsdale. Sister Dorothy also serves as leadership liaison to the On-going Formation Committee and the Blauvelt Preaching Team.

When Dorothy Maxwell came to Rockland County to teach in Tappan Zee High School, she planned on having a good life. Little did she know that the Convent across the street would be the place where this became realized. A summer job of working with the children and experiencing the joyful Sisters resulted in her entering the Blauvelt Congregation.

Sister Dorothy has been a Sister of St. Dominic of Blauvelt for forty-two years. Ministries in teaching, principal of an elementary school, pastoral care to the dying and their families, and nursing have prepared her for the varied roles she performs on the leadership team.

Sister Patricia Howell
Sister Patricia Howell serves as the Director of Ministry which is intricately related to the mission of the Congregation. Sister Pat also oversees the Congregation's property including the sites located in Blauvelt and Goshen, New York as well as the site in Ventnor, New Jersey. Sister is a member of the Steering Committee for the Dominican Sisters of the Northeast and serves as leadership liaison to several Congregational committees.

Sister Pat has been a Sister of St. Dominic of Blauvelt for thirty-three years. She received a B.A. in Psychology from Dominican College and an M.A. in Religious Studies from Providence College. She holds New York State Permanent Certification in Teaching and Administration.

Sister Pat has ministered in St. Dominic's Home and has been a teacher at St. Luke's and Visitation Elementary Schools in the Bronx as well as at St. Pius High School, also in the Bronx. Sister was Principal at St. Luke's School for nineteen years.