By Anna Weaver
Hawaii Catholic Herald
As St. Ann School in Kaneohe closes at the end of this academic year, its principal Mandy Thronas-Brown will be transitioning to a new job as the associate superintendent of Hawaii Catholic Schools.
Mandy Thronas-Brown
Former associate superintendent Betsey Gunderson came out of retirement to fill in for that position after the promotion of Llewellyn Young from associate superintendent to superintendent this past fall.
“We are extremely grateful for her service, and she continues to do an amazing job in this role!” wrote Dara Perreira, the Diocese of Honolulu’s human resources director, about Gunderson in an email to diocesan staff.
As Gunderson heads back into retirement again, Thronas-Brown will fill the associate superintendent role permanently.
“She and her family are devout Catholics who are very active in service to our faith and our Lord,” Perreira wrote. “She is also very familiar with our Diocesan processes, policies, and procedures, and we are confident that she will serve all our schools with her expertise, wisdom, gifts, and sense of Aloha.”
At the 2020 Annual Conference of Catholic Educators on Oahu, Thronas-Brown was honored for 20 years of service in Hawaii Catholic Schools.
“The best thing about working at St. Ann School is being able to speak, teach and learn about God freely and without reservation,” she said in her bio for the service milestone. “The faculty, staff, parents and students treat everyone as family and work diligently on ensuring the best for each other daily. I love working at St. Ann School and I am so grateful for all that God has blessed me with.”
Thronas-Brown was born on Kauai, attended St. Catherine School in Kapaa and graduated from Kapaa High School with honors in 1988. She received her bachelor’s degree in music from the University of Hawaii at Manoa in 1994.
She was first hired as a music teacher at the PreK-8 school in 1997. She also served as student council advisor, level moderator and summer sessions director.
After getting her master’s degree of education in leadership and administration at Chaminade University of Honolulu, Thronas-Brown became the principal of St. Ann Early Learning Center in 2010. She became principal of the entire St. Ann School in 2013.
She is married to Ryan Brown and they have two children, Agnes and Emily. The family belongs to St. Ann Parish.
