DR. TRACY BONDAY
SUZANNE DORSEY HEIDEL ’85
Dr. Tracy Bonday joined the Ursuline family as Head of High School in the 2019-2020 academic year. She transitioned from Des Moines, Iowa, where she served as the Superintendent for the Diocese of Des Moines. She has two daughters: Cassie, a teacher in Virginia, and Gabi, an Ensign serving on the USS Chafee, and a dog named Reagan.
Suzanne Dorsey Heidel ’85 returned to Ursuline Academy following 17 years of service at the Academy of the Sacred Heart in New Orleans. She now serves as the Ursuline High School Dean of Students. Sue has teaching and administrative experience and served as Community Outreach Coordinator, Service Learning Coordinator, and Religion Department Chair. She has led visits and served on several AdvancED accreditation teams.
Head of High School
Dr. Bonday holds a Bachelor in Business Administration, a Juris Doctor, Master of Science in Educational Administration, and has completed specialist coursework leading to Superintendent's licensure. She has served in Catholic schools in many capacities. Previously serving in roles from teacher to Chief School Administrator and Director of Development, to name a few, she has a deep understanding of the business, operational, and instructional aspects of Catholic education. In sharing her philosophy of Catholic education, she feels strongly that "each student must be a person whose intellectual growth is balanced with spiritual, emotional, and social growth. Teachers must accompany each individual child to assure that each child achieves his or her God-given talents. The balance of faith, culture, and life within our school buildings requires staff who are willing to model their faith and teach the message of social justice found in the gospels."
High School Dean of Students
Sue earned a B.A. in English Literature from Louisiana State University and a Master of Theology from Notre Dame Seminary. She has training in Design Thinking for educators and innovation in schools, completing training with 4.0 Schools, Cooper-Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum and Leadership & Design of California. Sue and her husband David have three daughters and live in River Ridge. When asked to describe Ursuline, Sue stated: “There is no Ursuline Academy without St. Angela and her companions or the twelve women who traveled to New Orleans in 1727. Fearless women know that you can not manage the demands and concerns of daily life or realize a great enterprise alone. I cannot imagine traveling overseas the way they did, but maybe I could have done it with a few of my best friends! I believe there is not a more powerful force than a band of women joined in common purpose and virtue.”
Ursuline Academy of New Orleans welcomed two new high school administrators in the 2019-2020 school year.
