July 3, 2018, Ellicott City, Maryland – Our Lady of Perpetual Help School in Ellicott City announced that the school’s principal, Victor J. Pellechia, earned his Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Educational Administration and Policy Studies from The George Washington University on June 27, 2018.
Receiving the doctoral degree culminated nearly 33 consecutive years in school - eight for his doctorate, preceded by an undergraduate degree from Rutgers University, a Master of Theological Studies from Washington Theological Union, and Education Specialist degree in Education Leadership and Administration from The George Washington University.
Sharing his delight, Dr. Pellechia stated, "I'm so blessed to share this stage of my own educational journey with my Our Lady of Perpetual Help School and Parish families. I pray that my experience serves as an example to our students that learning is a lifelong endeavor of curiosity and discovery with the world God has given us. Thank you to all who have helped me reach this joyous milestone!" This coming school year will be his seventh as principal at OLPH.
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Dr. Pellechia's dissertation studied aspects of ethical leadership, titled, “Do we value ‘values’ in education? A study of values alignment in the ethical decision-making of Catholic school principals.”
He successfully defended his doctoral dissertation as the final step in the degree process. The purpose of his study was to explore personal and organizational values, their influence and alignment, in the ethical decision-making of Catholic school principals. Semi-structured interviews allowed the twelve participants to explore personal and school values, areas of congruence and dissonance, methods for resolving dissonance, the process of values alignment, and the influence of the Catholic school culture. Site observations and analyses of mission statements provided insight as to community values for each of the participating schools. The process of ethical decision-making formed the lens through which to evaluate the dynamic connection between values sets. Dr. Pellechia’s research yielded insight into the important relationship between a principal's personal values and those of the school community and how a greater awareness and cultivation of this relationship may impact various aspects of school success.
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Our Lady of Perpetual Help (OLPH) Catholic School is a 2016 Blue Ribbon School of Excellence. This Archdiocese of Baltimore school in Ellicott City was founded in 1879 and serves 240 students from preschool through grade 8. For more information, please contact Dr. Victor Pellechia at vpellechia@olphschool.org or 410-744-4251. Additional information at www.OLPHschool.org