Board of Limited Jurisdiction

The purpose of Our Mother of Consolation Parish School Board of Limited Jurisdiction (BLJ), in collaboration with the Principal and Pastor, is to foster the highest possible standards of academic and Catholic religious education for all students. Board Members are:

Alexis Abate

Alexis Abate is the Director of Communications at Salus University since 2014. In her role at Salus, she is responsible for all University press events, community outreach, communication materials, including the University’s websites, social media accounts and comprehensive media and marketing campaigns. Since 2017 she has been an adjunct professor in communication studies at Rowan University. She earned a B.A. degree in mass media writing with a concentration in mass communication from La Salle University and holds a M.A. degree from the New York Institute of Technology. Alexis has served as a member of the La Salle University Alumni Association Board of Directors. She is a member of the Philadelphia Public Relations Association and has been a volunteer for several nonprofit organizations.

Dr. Bernadine Ahonkhai

Dr. Bernadine Ahonkhai, a visionary and powerful community advocate and activist for justice and equity, founded Coalition for Racial Equity and Social Justice in 2020. Coalition4Justice provides a safe space for meaningful conversations about discrimination and racism. Under her prudent leadership, Coalition4Justice was awarded two grants in 2022 by the HealthSpark Foundation and Montgomery County to provide DEI education to youth. The recipient of several awards and recognitions, including the Pennsylvania Governor’s Family Engagement Award, the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Human Rights Award, and the PowerUp Foundation Ambassador of Social Justice Award, she serves on several community, private academic school, and college Boards and Commission in Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties.

Dr. Ahonkhai has advanced degrees (MA, M. ED, and ED. D) in Educational Policy, Leadership and Administration from Columbia University, New York. She is an Adjunct Educator of Multi-cultural and Early Childhood Education at higher education institutions in Pennsylvania. Born and raised in Nigeria, West Africa, she now resides in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania with her husband, Vincent I. Ahonkhai, MD. They have four adult children and five grandchildren.

Peter Amuso

Peter Amuso is a partner at the law firm of Rudolph Clarke LLC, and proud OMC parent. A member of the Jesuit Honor Society of Alpha Sigma Nu by way of Georgetown with a A.B. in Government and English, and an honors graduate of Harvard Law School with J.D. in law. Peter brings a personal commitment to Catholic education and a professional expertise in school law to the Board of Limited Jurisdiction. An active member of the parish, Peter coaches the CYO track team, and was the founding cubmaster of Pack 1855. He was recently awarded the St. John Neumann Emblem by the Archdiocesan Committee on Catholic Scouting.

Pat Cunningham

Pat Cunningham was born and grew up in Mexico City. In Mexico she attended bilingual school (Spanish/English) from 1^st grade until graduating from secretarial school. While in Mexico, she worked for the International Department at the Universidad Iberoamericana. She relocated to Philadelphia in 1970 and joined the Latin American studies program at St. Joseph’s University. In 1988 she began a 30-year career with the William Penn Charter School, first in the development office and then in the admissions office. Pat retired in 2018. She has been a member of the OMC parish for 17 years and volunteers as a eucharistic minister and funeral sacristan.

Madeline Franze, SSJ

Madeline Franze, SSJ is a Sister of Saint Joseph having entered the congregation in 1967. She received a B.S. degree from Chestnut Hill College in elementary education and a M.A. degree from Villanova University in educational administration. She holds certificates in fundraising from the University of Pennsylvania and human resources from LaSalle University. Sister Madeline also holds the designation of Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) since 1994. Her past professional experience includes 12 years as an elementary school teacher, 8 years as an elementary school principal, 15 years as Director of Development for Sisters of Saint Joseph and 18 years in her current role as a development consultant, working with religious communities of women and men throughout the United States, Ireland, and Jamaica. She has been a member of the OMC parish since 1998.

Stewart Graham

Stewart Graham is retired after a 42-year career as a Legislative Attorney. He has served as Attorney-Advisor to the Comptroller General of the United States, and Chief-of-Staff to Philadelphia City Councilmen Frank Rizzo and David Oh. He has a Master of Public Administration degree from Harvard, a Master of Business Administration degree from William and Mary, a Juris Doctor degree from Wake Forest, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hope College. He is the Owner of Gilly Gooley Investments, which holds commercial property in Chestnut Hill. He has served on several Boards: Chestnut Hill Community Association (President); Chestnut Hill Historical Society; Chestnut Hill Senior Center; Chestnut Hill Teenagers, Inc. (President); Crefeld School; Lycoming Trust; Norwood-Fontbonne Academy (advisory) (President); St. Paul’s Episcopal Church (Rector’s Warden); Unitarian Universalist House (President); and Unitarian Universalist Outreach (President). He is also a member of numerous professional associations.

Marie Leahy, SSJ

Marie Leahy, SSJ is a Sister of Saint Joseph who serves as the Chair of Education at Chestnut Hill College, where she oversees the teacher preparation program. Sister Marie earned a B.A. degree from Ursinus College with a double major in economics and philosophy & religion, a M.Ed. degree from Eastern University with a major in multicultural education, and an Ed.D. degree from Widener University in educational leadership K-12: curriculum, instruction, & staff development. She has been a Catholic school teacher for 25 years.

Sue Oleszewski

Susan Oleszewski received her B.S and O.D. (Doctor of Optometry) degrees from the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO), the founding College of Salus University in 1976. She completed an optometric residency at The Eye Institute (the clinical practice of the Pennsylvania College of Optometry) in 1978 and received an M.A. degree in neurobiology from Temple University in 1979. She joined the faculty at the Pennsylvania College of Optometry in 1979 and held numerous positions at PCO/Salus, including: clinical instructor and classroom lecturer, clinical service chief, Associate Dean for Optometric Practice, Director of Residencies, Vice President for Clinical Operations, and Chief of Staff. In July 2016 she assumed the role of Vice President of Institutional Advancement and Community Relations at Salus University. In 2018, after 40 years of service, she retired from the University as Professor Emerita.

Mary Osirim

Mary Osirim is Professor of sociology at Bryn Mawr College. She received her A.B. and Ph.D. degrees from Harvard University and a M.S in sociology from the London School of Economics. At Bryn Mawr, she was the former Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies. Included among her previous board positions is service on the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, the Baldwin School and the African Studies Association. Her experience includes faculty and curricular development, finance, and diversity and inclusion. Mary attended Catholic schools in New York and has been a parishioner at OMC for over 30 years.

Eileen Wilkinson

Eileen Wilkinson has served as a Catholic school teacher and administrator for over three decades. Her career was formed by her years as an elementary teacher in Philadelphia and Washington DC, during which time she completed a B.A in history at Chestnut Hill College and a M.A. in education from Villanova University. Eileen continued her career as a secondary social studies and religion teacher, where she taught pre-service teachers at Wilmington University. Currently, Eileen is pursuing a doctorate in educational leadership at Immaculata University, with a focus on staff development. She is a member of the Board of Trustees for the Delaware Law Related Education Center. Eileen recently concluded a five-year appointment as the Vice President of Student Affairs at Camden Catholic High School in order to return to full time teaching. Eileen is currently a member of the Social Studies department at St. Mark’s High School in Wilmington, DE.