Our Mission

The mission of Strada is to educate and equip young Catholic leaders to positively impact their communities by modeling the Gospel values of service, justice, and community.

Through the lens of Student Government, Strada emphasizes the importance of effective collaboration, communication, and problem solving, empowering students to actively serve the needs of their schools and communities. Strada leaders respond to the call to faithful citizenship by acknowledging and cultivating our unique contributions and God-given strengths.

Our Founders

Catherine Mifsud Heller [CEO] is a 1993 graduate of Sacred Heart School in Holllister, CA.  During her time as a student, she was an active member of the student council, holding positions of Commissioner of Finance, Commissioner of Publicity, and Commissioner General.  Catherine continued her involvement in student government at Notre Dame Salinas and at the University of San Francisco.  In July of 2013, along with two friends, Catherine founded Strada Leadership to serve Northern California Catholic Schools in leadership development and training.  Catherine has spent over 25 years as a Theology teacher, Catholic School administrator, Campus Minister, Retreat Director, and Catechist. She holds a Master’s degree in Theology from Boston College. In addition to her work with Strada, Catherine also is employed by WestCoast Children’s Clinic. WestCoast provides psychological services to vulnerable children, youth, and their families.  Catherine currently resides in Oakland, California with her husband, Rich and 17-month-old son, Walter.

Greg Callaghan [Treasurer] has been involved in student government for over 25 years. At St. Cecilia’s School in San Francisco, Greg was a Class Representative, Commissioner of Finance, and Assistant Commissioner General.  Greg continued to serve on student council at St. Ignatius College Preparatory and Santa Clara University, where he was the president of the Alpha Psi Omega honors society.  He holds a B.A. in Theatre Arts and an M.A. in Interdisciplinary Education with an emphasis on Teaching and Learning With Technology.  Greg currently serves as the Director of Theatre at Archbishop Riordan High School.

Jeff Callaghan [Secretary] A fundraising professional in Los Angeles, Jeff Callaghan holds a Master’s Degree in Educational Studies from Loyola Marymount University. He graduated from UCLA in 2008 and has been involved in Student Government since he was in the third grade.  He currently serves as Director of Development Information Services at Loyola Marymount University.

Feedback

“I cannot tell you how exciting it is to watch you work with the kids and bring out the best in them. Thanks for all the hard work you and your company are able to do as you guide them and push them along on their journey. It was a pleasure to see you and I hope we can schedule you with the school again next year!!”
-8th Grade Teacher, Sacred Heart School – Salinas

“You folks are amazing.  With your uplifting and confidence building presentations/ activities, your Strada program provides great ways for students to develop leadership skills. You make the students believe that they can lead not only their school projects, but also that they can imagine leading the world to better places. Thank you again!”
-Head of School, Santa Catalina – Monterey

One habit that I plan on including in my leadership practice:

– To do my chores around the house the first time my dad asks me.
– I want to completely own up to things that I might want to blame on others if I might look bad.
– I plan to take responsibility for things that I do wrong or make a bad decision.
– I can look at all possibilities when completing a task.
– I plan on not lying.
– I plan on being more prepared rather than doing things at the last minutes.
-Student Leaders, St. Catherine’s School – Morgan Hill

“I wanted to say thank you for a great retreat yesterday. I really got a lot from it. It was fun and productive to work with our board team.”
-School Board Member, Sacred Heart School – Salinas

“Thank you for the wonderful conference today. I spoke to my daughter through FaceTime tonight where she told me all about it. She was nervous and worried before she got there, but told me she had so much fun and has a lot of new ideas! She’s looking forward to more leadership camps put on by Strada Leadership!!”
-Mother of Strada Leader

– I will write things down to remember
– I will review and organize upcoming events
– I will write my plans in a planner
– I plan on using the points of STRIKE in the near future
– I learned how to plan events for my school
– I plan to use the goal setting FRAME
– I learned how to discuss and communicate better with my group members
– I plan on working on my system of remembering things and keeping track of events – IT NEEDS WORK
– I plan on using the 10 steps on planning projects for my school
– I learned how to shake hands
– I learned to maintain eye contact and always contribute during meetings.
-Student Leaders, St. Joseph Elementary School – Alameda & St. Philip Neri School – Alameda