Local News

OSF leader Sister Judith Ann Duvall's successor announced

WCBU | By Tim Shelley

Published October 7, 2024 at 3:09 PM CDT

This new OSF Healthcare Headquarters in Downtown Peoria brought in an estimated 500 employees.

Sister Agnes Joseph Williams is becoming the new major superior of the Sisters of the Third Order of Saint Francis, which operates the OSF HealthCare System. She replaces Sister Judith Ann Duvall, who has led the system for the past sixteen years. A governing council of Williams, Duvall, and three other sisters will lead the order for the next six years.

The order of nuns who helm the OSF HealthCare System are getting a new leader.

The Sisters of the Third Order of Saint Francis are appointing Sister Agnes Joseph Williams as their next major superior. She will co-lead for the next six years with a governing board comprised of Sister Judith Ann Duvall, Sister Theresa Ann Brazeau, Sister Rose Therese Mann, and Sister Teresa Paul Selamat.

Williams replaces Duvall as major superior and leader of OSF HealthCare. Duvall led the Catholic order as major superior for the past 18 years.

Williams has a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Akron.

The Peoria-based OSF HealthCare operates 16 hospitals in Illinois and Michigan, and employs nearly 24,000 people. The hospital system adopted a new governance structure last year that appoints the Diocese of Peoria as a "backstop" in the event that were needed to ensure the hospital maintains a Catholic identity.