Board

Regina Coeli Academy Board

The members of the Board of Directors are leaders in many local, national, and international organizations. They have expertise in education, theology, psychology, science, and business. This combined experience has enabled the Board to maintain the school, and meet the demands of the curriculum and administration. The members of the Board of Directors are:

Board of Directors

William McLaughlin Chairman
Denise O’Connell, Vice Chair

Robert Fitzmartin, Treasurer

Patrick Stanton

Dr. Robert Brett

Michael Ferguson

William McLaughlin, Chairman

Bill joined the RCA Board in December 2022 and became Chairman in June of last year.  Bill is a life-long Catholic and a graduate of Georgetown University and Bishop McDevitt High School.  In addition to his work at RCA, Bill is President of the Archdiocesan Holy Name Union and a lector at The Basilica Shrine of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal.  In his day job, Bill, a former Certified Public Accountant, is head of recruiting for Stevens & Lee, a middle market law firm that is part of The Stevens & Lee Companies.  He previously worked at Dechert LLP and Price Waterhouse (now PwC).  Bill was also adjunct faculty at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania for 15 years.

Bill and his wife Lisa have been married for 25 years and are active parishioners at Our Lady Help of Christians.  They have three children and three grandchildren.

Denise O’Connell, Vice Chair

Denise O’Connell has a long history of commitment to Catholic education.  She taught for 29 years in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia before finding her way to Regina Coeli Academy. Denise has taught grades 1 and 2 at RCA and thoroughly enjoyed bringing the love of Our Lord to her students in a classical curriculum.  In 2020, she retired from teaching and is enjoying the time that stepping away has afforded her.  In 2021, Denise was invited to join the Board of Directors at RCA and she is enjoying her reconnection to her beloved school.

Denise holds a B.S. in Elementary Education with a minor in psychology from West Chester University. She and her husband Bill have two grown sons and seven grandchildren. In her free time, Denise enjoys spending time with her family and friends, reading, and going on long walks.

Robert Fitzmartin, Treasurer

Bob has been involved at Regina Coeli Academy through volunteering with bookkeeping and reporting functions. This experience led to his accepting the Treasurer position on the Board.

Mr. Fitzmartin is a graduate of Cardinal Dougherty High School and Temple University where he obtained his accounting degree. He is currently retired from the City of Philadelphia Finance Department where he served in various accounting and budgeting positions for 39 years. He was the Operating Budget Director at the time of his retirement. Bob lives in Fox Chase where he and his wife raised three daughters, and he has served on Fox Chase community boards as Treasurer over the years. They are active members of St. Cecilia Parish.

Bob has three grandchildren who attend RCA, and he is delighted to see the amazing progress they have made in their education and self-confidence along with learning and practicing Catholic morals.  He is impressed by the quality of teachers and staff with their absolute commitment and dedication to all the children of RCA. This appreciation of RCA leadership and teachers led him to reach out and offer any assistance he could provide to the school.

Bob enjoys spending time with his daughters and five grandchildren and enjoys hiking, photography, reading, listening to music, and vacationing with friends and family.

Patrick Stanton

Pat and his family have a long and dedicated history with RCA. His adult children attended the Academy when it first opened, and many of his grandchildren have been students here. Currently, his grandson Leo is in the fifth grade. Pat’s wife, Wendy, previously served as a board member, and in 2022, both Pat and Wendy were honored by RCA for their unwavering support of our school. Pat also plays an active role in the spiritual formation of our students, teaching Virtues to our 7th- and 8th-grade boys.

Dr. Robert Brett

Dr. Robert Brett is a founding parent of RCA. He and his wife, Maureen, were instrumental in the school’s early years and helped shape the foundation of our mission and community. In the earlier years of RCA, Dr. Brett served as a part-time faculty member. Several of his children attended RCA, and this fall, two of their grandsons will be joining our Montessori program. A lifelong resident of Roslyn, Pennsylvania, Dr. Brett continues to live and work in the community as the owner and lead dentist at Dublin Woods Family Dentistry, where he has practiced general dentistry for over 30 years. We are honored to welcome him back to serve in this new role.

Michael Ferguson

Michael Ferguson is the father of ten children, all of whom have attended Regina Coeli Academy. His youngest is set to graduate in 2026. Mr. Ferguson and his wife, Agnes, have been active contributors to the life of the school, particularly through their involvement with the Parent Association. He is a devoted parishioner of Our Lady Help of Christians and a member of the Holy Name Society. We are grateful for his deep commitment to our faith and school community.

Timothy J. Murnane, Chairman Emeritus

Timothy J. Murnane is a professional engineer with 41 years experience with the Rohm and Haas Company and has a BS and MS degrees in Structural/Civil Engineering from Villanova University as well as metallurgical engineering education from Drexel University.  He is the recipient of numerous professional awards during his distinguished career for technical excellence and significant contributions to Rohm and Haas.  For the last 15 years of his career, he was an active leader in the “Reliability Revolution” at Rohm and Haas which led to dramatic productivity improvements in many places across the company.

 

Tim is the father of 9 children and shares 35 grandchildren with his wife Mary Jane.  He has been a Catholic activist for the past 30 years.  Tim’s Catholic lay initiatives include:

  • Founder of The Philadelphia Catholic Forum, a Catholic speaker’s apostolate from 1987 to 1992
  • President of the Marian Consortium of Catholic Lay Organizations in Philadelphia, 1992-1993
  • Principal Author, Catholic Catechesis for a New Evangelization, Sept. 1992
  • Chairman, Stand Up for Life annual Pro-life dinner, 2001 to 2005
  • President of the Board, St. Francis Xavier Archdiocesan Grammar School, 2004-06
  • Chairman of the Board, Regina Coeli Academy, 2007 to 2023.
  • Chairman of the Board, Regina Academies, 2014 to present (there are now four academies K to 8 and K to 12, plus a high school honors track at Cardinal O’Hara H.S.)
  • Organizer, Evolution: The Untold Story, a conference for Catholics outlining the science behind Intelligent Design and the interest of Catholic leaders – Oct. 2009.
  • By invitation, Tim has taken his Intelligent Design message internationally to Ireland and the United Kingdom.
  • MC for the Humanae Vitae Conference at St. Simon and Jude, W. Chester, 5/2018.
  • MC of the Family Fully Alive Festival w/ Dr. Scott and Kimberly Hahn, St. Joseph’s, Downingtown, 9/2018.

 

Other

  • Tim and his family have been members of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel parish in Doylestown for 47 years where Tim is a Eucharistic Minister.
  • Tim has travelled widely in Europe, Asia and South America as a mentor and trouble shooter on reliability and manufacturing productivity issues for the Rohm and Haas Company.
  • During his time at Rohm and Haas, Tim received four Vice President Awards, two Talucci Quality Awards and the prestigious Otto Haas Award for technical excellence. He advised the University of Dayton on the development of their reliability curriculum.
  • Tim has taken his Intelligent Design (ID) message to over 80 audiences where he discusses the negative effects of Darwinian evolution on our faith and culture while showing that the Darwinian mechanism for macroevolution is no longer plausible.
  • Tim led the Regina Academies in creating a Catechetical Imperatives document that defines the crucial catechetical issues of our day including science and faith.
  • Tim is CA Captain for the Mid-Atlantic Knights of the Immaculata annual retreat and other activities that focus on male spirituality and leadership at Malvern. The group has grown rapidly in the last several years with over 900 men having attended.
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