Sister Noreen Nolan, O.P.

Sister Noreen Nolan, O.P., who served as principal of St. Elizabeth’s School in northern Manhattan for the past 22 years, died Feb. 6 at Siena Hall in Sparkill after a long struggle with cancer. She was 63.

She was principal of St. Elizabeth’s in the Washington Heights section from 1989 until her death. She was principal of Our Lady of Good Counsel School in Manhattan, 1984-1989.

In 1999, she was recognized with the Distinguished Principal Award for the New York Region of the National Catholic Educational Association. “This is a wonderful honor,” she told CNY at the time. “Most rewarding for me is to see what it means to the faculty here, the parents and the students.”

Before serving as principal, Sister Noreen had taught in a number of schools in the archdiocese. They were: St. John Chrysostom, Bronx, 1982-1984; New Hope Manor, Garrison, 1981-1982; St. Augustine’s, New City, 1978-1981; Sacred Heart, Suffern, 1969-1978; St. Theresa’s, Bronx, 1968-1969; and St. Anthony’s, Bronx, 1967-1968.

Born in New York City, she entered the Dominican Sisters of Sparkill in 1964, taking the religious name Sister Marie Eymard, and made final vows in 1974.

A graduate of Cathedral High School in Manhattan, she earned a bachelor’s degree in education from St. Thomas Aquinas College in Sparkill and a master’s in reading from William Paterson College in Wayne, N.J. She held a certification in administration from Manhattan College.

She is survived by her father, Frank Nolan, and her sister, Virginia Ripp.

A Funeral Mass was to be offered Feb. 9 at Our Lady of the Rosary Chapel at Dominican Chapel in Sparkill. Burial was to be in St. Agnes Cemetery in Sparkill.