Assistant Superintendent of Catholic Schools Appointed

The Diocese of Owensboro is pleased to announce that Jo Ann Mathieson has accepted the position of Assistant Superintendent of Catholic Schools effective July 1, 2019. Mathieson will join David Kessler, who becomes superintendent on August 1, and Chelsea Lanham, administrative assistant for Catholic schools.

“The Diocese of Owensboro Catholic School’s Office is truly excited to welcome Jo Ann Mathieson to our staff as Assistant Superintendent,” said Kessler. “She has a wealth of educational knowledge and experience in many different school settings across the country that truly made her a unique candidate for the diocesan search committee.”

Mathieson has 30 years of teaching and leadership experience with twelve of those years as a principal in Catholic schools throughout Tennessee, Ohio, Illinois and Louisiana. Her teaching experience has centered on language arts and religion. While principal she assisted with several school building designs and redesigns; school re-accreditation; and the creation of alumnae and development programs. She was an adjunct theology teacher at Aquinas College in Nashville for a couple years and is currently the principal at St. Thomas Aquinas School in Fairfield, Connecticut.

“The Catholic Diocese of Owensboro is small but mighty in its history of faithfulness,” said Mathieson. “It is an honor to be able to work in a supportive role for the Catholic school communities who strive to educate the future leaders in society and in the Church.”

“Jo Ann’s educational and theological background will be a great resource to our principals and staff across the diocese,” continued Kessler.

Mathieson received her Bachelor of Art in education from Belmont University; her Masters in Administration from the University of Southern Mississippi; and her Master of Theology from Providence College, all either Summa or Magna cum Laude.

“It is true I am an ‘outsider’ never having lived in Kentucky, but I believe the variety of my experiences around the nation can only serve to strengthen the best practices in our Catholic schools in Owensboro,” continued Mathieson. 

Mathieson has a professional teaching and administrator license from Tennessee; a child protection certification from each state she’s served in since 2003; and a catechetical certification from the Diocese of Nashville.