Hello

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Dr. Marie Bordeleau is a seasoned Catholic school leader, author, and coach with over 20 years of experience guiding schools through both triumphs and challenges. As principal of thriving Catholic schools in California, she has led communities of up to 500 students, increased fundraising by 25%, and built high-performing teams that reduced staff turnover by nearly a third.

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Marie holds a doctorate in Interdisciplinary Leadership from Creighton University, with research focused on organizational sustainability, as well as two master’s degrees in education and administration. Her leadership blends scholarship with lived experience in Catholic schools.

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Marie’s true credibility comes from the arena itself. As she shares in her book In the Arena: My Life as a Catholic School Principal, she knows firsthand the dust, sweat, and sacrifice of Catholic school leadership. Her coaching is not theoretical—it’s forged from years of navigating conflicting demands, building resilient school cultures, and leading with faith at the center.

Through In the Arena Coaching, Marie walks alongside Catholic school leaders, helping them stay rooted in mission, resilient in struggle, and joyful in their vocation.

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She has lived the reality of Catholic school leadership—the sleepless nights, impossible decisions, the joy of watching students thrive, and the pain of feeling misunderstood. She knows what it means to be in the arena.

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Marie commits to standing in that arena with you—not as someone who has all the answers, but as someone who knows the struggle, honors it, and believes deeply in the sacred work you do every day.

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Together, you will ensure your schools not only survive, but thrive—rooted in mission, strengthened by community, and sustained by faith.

 

"It is not the critic who counts… The credit belongs to the one who is actually in the arena." — Theodore Roosevelt

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I can't wait to connect with you 

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