Sister Mary Aloysius Molloy, President of the College of Saint Teresa

Image of Sister Mary Aloysius Molloy courtesy College of Saint Teresa Archives, Winona, Minnesota

Mary Molloy was born in Sandusky in 1880 to Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Molloy, who were both Irish immigrants. She graduated from Sandusky High School in 1899, and during her senior year won a silver medal from the Ohio Society of the Sons of the American Revolution for her essay on “The Causes of the American Revolution.” Mary attended the Ohio State University, earning a degree in Philosophy in 1903. She earned a Master’s Degree in English Philology from Ohio State in 1905. In 1907, Mary Molloy got her PhD from Cornell University. Her doctoral thesis was entitled “The Vocabulary of the Old English Bede.” After leaving Cornell, Mary began teaching freshmen courses at the Winona Seminary. Soon she began teaching higher level courses, and eventually became the dean of the college in 1911, which by then had become the College of St. Teresa. A brief article about Mary Molloy appeared in the August 1, 1920 issue of the Sandusky Register, which reported on several local residents whose names had been listed in the book Who’s Who in America.

In 1922 Mary Molloy entered the novitiate of the Sisters of the Third Order Regular of Saint Francis of the Congregation of Our Lady of Lourdes, in Rochester, Minnesota, and she became a Franciscan Sister in 1923. After a fire had done serious damage to Sister Mary Aloysius Molloy’s home parish of Saints Peter and Paul Church in Sandusky, Ohio, she contributed $5000.00 to the renovation.

The generous gift was designated for two new side altars and a communion railing made from Italian marble. These gifts were given in memory of her parents. 

Sister Mary Aloysius Molloy was devoted to excellence in parochial education. In 1928, she was named president of the College of St. Teresa. She wrote several books, including: Give Us Teachers, The Parochial Schools, Catholic Colleges for Women, and The Lay Apostate. Sister Mary Aloysius was the first woman to be appointed to the executive committee of the college department of the National Catholic Educational Association. She retired from the college in July, 1946. 

On September 27, 1954, Sister Mary Aloysius Molloy died in Rochester, Minnesota at the age of 74. She was selected as an honoree of the National Women’s History Project in 2006, for her contributions to education. A biographical essay about Sister Mary Aloysius Molloy is found in the book Women of Minnesota. You can read more about Sister Mary Aloysius Molloy in a book published when Saints Peter and Paul Church celebrated its 125th Anniversary, available in the local history section in the Lower Level of the Sandusky Library. Though the College of St. Teresa is no longer in existence, Sister Mary Aloysius Molloy will long be remembered for her leadership and her contributions to parochial higher education.