Monica Hayden is the new director of St. Mary School System in Paducah. ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD | WKC
New St. Mary School System director looks forward to serving community
BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC
Monica Hayden, the new director of St. Mary School System in Paducah, has “a strong belief in Catholic education overall.”
Hayden replaces Eleanor Spry, who retired after eight years as director of SMSS.
Hayden, who assumed the role on July 6, 2021, told The Western Kentucky Catholic that she and her husband sent their two sons to Catholic elementary school and high school. Both are now successful, well-rounded young adults, and Hayden credits it to their Catholic education upbringing.
“I really value Catholic education,” said Hayden in a July 13 interview with the WKC. “I am excited to see it from preschool to high school.”
Hayden was born and raised in California and her husband is from Fancy Farm, where they now live.
A product of Catholic education herself, Hayden worked as an engineer for 11 years, and then changed careers to become a teacher. She even served as a principal of the elementary school she had attended, St. Irenaeus Parish School in Cypress, Calif., for eight years.
She looks forward to taking a holistic approach to the students’ education – for the “whole child,” she explained – especially through athletic and music opportunities.
She is also glad to see that the school system has a “strong alumni connection.”
“I sacrificed so that my children could attend Catholic school,” she said, adding that she can empathize with the sacrifices of families who choose to invest in their children’s Catholic education. “I don’t know everyone’s situation, but I’ve been in their shoes.”
Originally printed in the August 2021 issue of The Western Kentucky Catholic.
