Educator presented with proclamation by White Plains Mayor declaring Oct. 24 “Sister St. John Delany Day” in White Plains

Lifelong educator Sister St. John Delany presented with proclamation by White Plains Mayor Tom Roach declaring October 24, 2013 “Sister St. John Delany Day” in White Plains.

WHITE PLAINS – White Plains Mayor Tom Roach declared October 24, 2013 to be “Sister St. John Delany Day” at a ceremony at the Center for Literacy Enrichment located on the Pace University’s Law School campus Thursday.  Mayor Roach presented Sister St. John Delany, PhD, Founder and Director of the Center for Literacy Enrichment with an official proclamation to mark this special occasion. The room was filled with Sister’s friends and supporters from the Westchester community, including Interim Superintendent of White Plains schools Timothy Connors and fellow educators and administration officials from Pace University. 

In a heart-felt speech Mayor Roach spoke about Sister’s dedication to teaching and her contributions to literacy in Westchester and the countless students she has taught through the years. "Sister St. John is a remarkable person who has been teaching and caring for others for most of her life.  You can see the affection that the young people who work with her have for her and it is heart-warming and inspiring to watch. That’s the kind of thing you can’t quantify.”

“Sister St. John absolutely exemplifies the values of the Pace University School of Education,” said Dean Andrea (Penny) Spencer, Dean of the School of Education. “As a teacher, she is a tireless advocate who ensures that all students have the skills and opportunities to grow into excited and life-long learners. She further serves as a beloved instructor and mentor to pre-service educators, inspiring them to create caring classroom communities where learning is a joy not a task.”

Sister St. John taught first grade in White Plains from 1941 to 1972 before founding the Center for Literacy Enrichment and becoming an Associate Professor in the School of Education at Pace University. Sister’s former students include U.S. Poet Laureate (2004-2006) Billy Collins, NFL great Robert “Bob” Hyland and Pat Casey, editor of the White Plains Examiner. Sister will also be honored on December 6 at a lunch at the Marriot in Tarrytown as a Senior Hall of Fame Honoree, for her significant contributions to enhance educational opportunities and achievement for Westchester County children.

Years before commercial tutoring centers became the norm, Pace University’s Center for Literacy Enrichment was established offered affordable literacy instruction to students of all ages. This year, the Center is proudly celebrating its 41st anniversary with its founder and Director, Sister St. John Delany who is 90 years young.  “We encourage students in their efforts with their studies,” said Sister at the ceremony. “We tell the students, ‘You can do it. You can do better’ … and they do.”

About the Center for Literacy Enrichment

The Center for Literacy Enrichment, part of the School of Education at Pace, is housed on Pace University’s Law School campus in White Plains. The Center is staffed by trained literacy tutors, many of whom are enrolled in the Masters in Literacy Program at Pace. The Center serves a broad range of students from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. Instruction to improve reading skills is provided in small groups or private sessions to K-12 students – both U.S. and foreign-born. The Center takes a skills-based approach with an emphasis on literature.

About Pace University

Since 1906 Pace has produced thinking professionals by providing high quality education for the professions on a firm base of liberal learning amid the advantages of the New York metropolitan area. A private university, Pace has campuses in New York City and Westchester County, New York, enrolling nearly 13,000 students in bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs in its Lubin School of Business, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences, College of Health Professions, School of Education, School of Law, and Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems.www.pace.edu