Central School Board Members

The Most Reverend Edgar Moreira da Cunha, S.D.V., was installed as Bishop of Fall River on September 24, 2014, in the context of Mass at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Fall River.

He was born in Nova Fatima, Bahia, Brazil, on August 21, 1953, the son of Manoel and Josefa Moreira.

Bishop da Cunha was ordained to the priesthood for the Society of Divine Vocations, in the Church of St. Michael, Newark, by Bishop Joseph A. Francis, S. V .D., Auxiliary Bishop of Newark, on March 27, 1982.

Rev. David A. Costa is pastor of the three Catholic parishes in North Attleboro, MA:  Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception, Sacred Heart, and Saint Mark.  A native of Taunton and a proud graduate of the Catholic schools of that city, Fr. Costa was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Fall River on June 22, 1985. He has served as parochial vicar at Saint Thomas More Parish, Somerset, Saint Mark Parish, North Attleboro, and the former Saint Joseph Parish, North Dighton.  His first pastorate was at the former Sacred Heart Parish in Fall River. He has served in North Attleboro since 2000.  In addition to his parochial duties, Fr. Dave has served as Director of Youth Ministry for the Diocese of Fall River, Director of the Diocesan Choir, and chaplain of Bishop Connolly High School, Fall River.

Dr. Jean F. MacCormack has led the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate since 2014. The Institute is dedicated to educating the public about the important role of the Senate in our government, encouraging participatory democracy, invigorating civil discourse, and inspiring the next generation of citizens and leaders to engage in the civic life of their communities.

Fr. Jay Maddock was born on June 17, 1949, in Attleboro, Massachusetts, the son of the late James W. and M. Madalaine Maddock. He graduated from Monsignor James Coyle High School in 1967. He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Fall River by Bishop A. Cronin on August 2, 1975. In June of 1979 he received a Licentiate in Canon Law from the Gregorian University in Rome.

In 2010, Bishop Coleman appointed Fr. Jay to become the 7th Pastor of Holy Name Parish, Fall River, where his is today. In April of 2015, he was honored as an Outstanding Pastor of a Parish with a School by the National Catholic Education Association. In October of 2016, he was awarded the St. Thomas More Medal by the Diocese of Fall River as recognition for his years of service to the Diocesan Tribunal.

James has spent 35 year in banking and global markets, working with financial institutions and corporations. He was recently named a Senior Vice President with Bridge Bank in Boston. Previously, James was the Director of Planned Giving and Gifts Officer at St. Sebastian’s School in Needham. He has worked in many volunteer positions at Massachusetts organizations such as Education Partners Nigeria, St. Sebastian’s School, Roxbury Latin School, Mount Alvernia Academy, the City of Boston, and St. Lawrence Church.

He is a graduate of Stonehill College where he received a bachelor’s degree in Finance, a minor in Computer Information and attended the Instituto de Estudios Superiores de Administración in Caracas Venezuela, where he also lived and worked. James has been married to Anamaria Mier y Terán for 26 years and has raised three sons in Jamaica Plain. James and Anamaria attend both St. Lawrence Church in Brookline and St. Anthony’s Church in Mattapoisett. He is very grateful to Bishop Edgar da Cunha for his appointment to the board, and he believes that Catholic education fosters the intellectual and emotional development of students and equips them with the necessary skills to lead productive lives, to know, love and serve God and neighbor.

Certified Public Accountant, self employed at Castro Thresher & Oliveira in Attleboro. James has served on a number of local civic and not for profit boards.  Currently, James is a member of the Knights of Columbus, and is a lector and Eucharistic Minister at St. John the Evangelist Church in Attleboro. James is a graduate of St. John the Evangelist School, Bishop Feehan High School and Assumption College.  James and his wife, Lori, have three children who are all graduates of St. John the Evangelist School and Bishop Feehan High School.

On July 1, 2013, Rev. John Denning, C.S.C. took office as the tenth president in Stonehill’s 65-year history. Fr. Denning joined Stonehill College in 2000 and has served in the Student Affairs Division, as the College’s first Vice President for Mission, and as Director of Campus Ministry.

Prior to his arrival at Stonehill, Fr. Denning served as campus minister at the Catholic Center at Bridgewater State University; teacher, coach, and chaplain at Coyle & Cassidy High School in Taunton; and vocations director for the Congregation of Holy Cross.

Fr. Denning entered the Congregation of Holy Cross in 1983 and was ordained as a Holy Cross priest in 1987. A Rhode Island native, he graduated from LaSalle Academy in Providence and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Tulane University in New Orleans. He holds a Master’s of Divinity degree from the University of St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto. He received his doctorate in higher education administration from the University of Massachusetts, Boston in 2015.

Mr. Hamel is a graduate of Marian High School, Phillips Exeter Academy, PG and Northeastern University, B.S.. as well as the advanced commercial lending program at the State University of New York. After an early career in commercial banking, he has been involved in sales management in the marine industry over the last 36 years. He is Vice-Chairperson of the Advisory Board of SJPII as well as Chairperson of the Advancement Committee.

Kevin was hired as Chancellor and CFO of Diocese of Fall River in April 2016 and spent over 23 years in the Archdiocese of Boston previously in financial, operational and strategic roles. As Chancellor and CFO for the Diocese, Kevin assists Bishop da Cunha with the temporal affairs of all Corporation Sole and Affiliates of the Diocese including Catholic Schools. As a member of the Board, Kevin is committed to success for our great schools and excited to be part of the effort.

Kevin was educated at Suffolk University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting. Kevin is a Certified Diocesan Fiscal Manager and currently matriculating at Villanova University in their Masters in Church Management Program.

Kevin reside in Marshfield with my wife and four children, with one attending Catholic College and two attending Catholic High School.

• Founding Partner of civil litigation law firm: Lamontagne, Spaulding & Hayes, LLP.  (2015-Present); Cranston, RI and Wellesley, MA
  (Defense Counsel: Representing Clients in RI and MA through Insurance Carriers and Risk Pooling Trusts)
• Partner, Zizik, Powers, O’Connell, Spaulding & Lamontagne, 1993-2015
• J.D. Boston College Law School, 1993
• B.A. College of the Holy Cross, 1990

Relevant Service/Experience:

• Chair, Bishop Feehan President’s Advisory Board 2018-2020
• Bishop Feehan, President’s Advisory Board Member, 2015-Present
• Co-Chair, Bishop Feehan Strategic Plan, 2018-2019
• St. John’s Parishioner, 1996-Present
• St. John’s Parish Council, Member, 2015-2018
• St. John’s Discover Christ Initiative, Co-Chair, 2018
• St. John’s Lector, 1996- Present
• St. John’s Consolation Committee Member, 2017-Present
• Board Member, International Association of Defense Counsel, Treasurer

Married to Thomas Patriarca, 26 years

Three Daughters:

• Cayce Patriarca, Sophomore, College of the Holy Cross, Class of 2023
• Annie Patriarca, Sophomore, Sacred Heart University, Class of 2023
• Mary Patriarca, Freshman, Marist College, Class of 2024

Interesting Fun Fact:  All three of our daughters had the privilege of being altar servers and served a Confirmation mass presided over by Bishop da Cunha at St. Vincent’s.

A Catholic and public school educator for over 30 years, Jana currently works as a consultant for The S.E.A.L. Foundation and ADAC, Inc. She has presented at local, regional and national conferences and is a published author (The Mentor’s Handbook: Practical Suggestion for Collaborative Reflection and Analysis).

A product of the Diocese of Fall River Catholic Schools, she graduated from Holy Name School and Bishop Connolly High School, and holds a bachelor’s degree from Salve Regina University, a master’s degree from Lesley University, and a doctoral degree from University of Massachusetts Lowell.

Jana believes in the lived mission of Catholic education – to serve Christ and to serve others, in a culture of academic excellence for all.

Erich is responsible for the overall administration of My Brother’s Keeper, a Christian charity with locations in Easton and Dartmouth, MA which delivers furniture and food free of charge to local families in need. He is originally from New Orleans, Louisiana, and graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a degree in Finance. After college, he volunteered full-time at My Brother’s Keeper through a post graduate service program called Holy Cross Associates. He returned in 1998 as the ministry’s first paid employee and later became the organization’s first Operations Manager and first Executive Director. He has served as the President of My Brother’s Keeper since 2011. Erich and his wife, Jodi, have had 3 children attend Bishop Stang High School.

With over 40 years’ of combined CEO experience, Carol currently is the President of Family Service Association, a $27 million non-profit agency servicing all areas of Bristol , Plymouth and Barnstable County. Previously she was the CEO of Bristol Elder Services and Special Olympics Rhode Island. She serves on many Boards, including the Bishop Connolly Advisory Board. As a product of Catholic education, Carol attended St. Mary’s Elementary, Bishop Gerrard High School and Providence College.

Fr. Christopher Peschel is originally from Boston and was a parishioner at St. Teresa of Avila in West Roxbury until his family moved to Taunton in the mid 90s.  Fr. Chris attended church and grammar school at St. Mary’s in Taunton.  After graduating from Xaverian Brothers High School, he attended the Franciscan University of Steubenville in Ohio before entering the seminary at St. Charles Borromeo in Philadelphia, and later St. John’s Seminary in Brighton, MA.  On June 7th, 2014, Fr. Chris was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop George Coleman at St. Mary’s Cathedral.  He was then assigned to St. Pius X Parish in South Yarmouth, MA as Parochial Vicar while assisting as a part time chaplain of Cape Cod Hospital.  In 2015, he was additionally assigned to be the Assistant Director of Vocations and Seminarians for the Diocese of Fall River. He became the temporary administrator of St. Pius X  in the Fall of 2016.  In June of 2017 he was named the Parish Administrator of St. John the Evangelist and St. Vincent de Paul Parishes in Attleboro, MA where he happily serves and is actively involved in the life of St. John the Evangelist school.

Previously, Dan served as an associate superintendent at the Catholic Schools Office for the Archdiocese of Boston.  His focus was on mission effectiveness and leadership, developing and supervising a principal evaluation system, and providing ongoing support to principals and pastors on human resources, legal issues, and other school policy matters.

Prior, Dan was the principal at Nativity Prep, where he directed a rigorous, faith-based academic middle school program for boys from low-income families residing in Boston.

From 2007 to 2011, Dan was on the faculty at Bishop Feehan High School in Attleboro teaching theology for multi-grade levels.

Dan holds two Masters of education degrees from Boston College, in educational leadership and in secondary education. He earned his bachelor’s degree in religious studies from Macalester College in Minnesota.

He is married and the father of twin girls. His wife is a Catholic principal outside the Fall River Diocese and his daughters attend a Catholic elementary school.

Roger Sullivan has been a software high technology professional specializing in identity security management and retired from Oracle Corporation. Throughout his career, he has served on a number of international technology boards. He is an active member of St. Pius X parish in Yarmouth and thoroughly enjoys working in service to the families – and especially, the students – of the Fall River Diocese schools.  He is honored to have been asked to serve on the Board and is committed to ensure that we provide the very best Catholic education possible to all our students.  They are the future of our Faith.

Melodie Wyttenbach, Ph.D., serves as the executive director for the Roche Center for Catholic Education and is a faculty member for the Lynch School of Education and Human Development. Melodie’s professional leadership experiences in the Catholic sector include serving as an assistant professor and academic director of the Mary Ann Remick Leadership Program for the Alliance for Catholic Education at the University of Notre Dame, as president of Nativity Jesuit Academy, and director of mission effectiveness for the NativityMiguel Network of Schools in Washington, DC. Melodie serves as the chair for the Catholic Special Interest Group with the American Educational Research Association (AERA) and is a member of the Leadership Development Advisory Council for the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA). Melodie received a doctorate in educational leadership and policy analysis from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and master’s degrees in educational administration from Marquette University, and education from Mount Mary College. She received a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from Saint Louis University.