Sister Mary Berchmans Hannan, VHM

Education Specialist, 1977 

For more than 50 years, Sister Mary has built a national reputation for Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School in Washington, D.C. She has served as a model for Catholic educators and administrators nationwide. After receiving a B.A. in classical studies from Trinity College, she took a teaching position at Georgetown Visitation, with subsequent appointments in 1969 as headmistress and in 1989 as president. Sr. Mary also has served in national accrediting bodies and Catholic education organizations, including the national Catholic High School Principals' Association, of which she was president. She has also held leadership roles within her religious community. Recent years have found her focusing on the reconstruction of a main academic building at Georgetown Visitation after a 1993 fire and planning the school's yearlong bicentennial celebration in 1999.