THE REVEREND JOSEPH M. McSHANE, S.J.

The Reverend Joseph M. McShane, S.J., became the 32nd president of Fordham University
on July 1, 2003. His appointment as president marked his return to the University, where he had previously served as dean of Fordham College at Rose Hill, a professor of theology and a member of the Board of Trustees.

A native of New York City, Father McShane entered the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) in 1967 and was ordained a priest in 1977. He received a bachelor's degree in English and philosophy and a master's degree in English from Boston College, and he holds a Ph.D. in the history of Christianity from the University of Chicago. He earned M.Div. and S.T.M. degrees from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley.

He served on the religious studies faculty at LeMoyne College in Syracuse, N.Y., from 1982 to 1992, and as chair of LeMoyne's Department of Religious Studies from 1991 to 1992. Father McShane joined the Fordham University Board of Trustees in 1987 and served until 1992, when he was appointed Dean of Fordham College and professor of theology. In 1998, Father McShane left Fordham to become president of the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania. He was reappointed to Fordham's Board of Trustees in 2001. In 2003, he left the University of Scranton to return to Fordham.

Father McShane has served on the boards of Fordham University, Canisius College, Loyola University of New Orleans, the University of Scranton, St. Joseph's Preparatory School in Philadelphia, Fordham Preparatory School, Canisius High School, Scranton Preparatory School, Regis High School and the American Council on Education. He presently serves on the boards of Santa Clara University, the Commission of Independent Colleges and Universities, and Canisius High School in Buffalo, New York. In June 2008 he was appointed to the Commission on Metropolitan Transportation Authority Financing by New York Governor David A. Paterson.

Updated June 2008