PROVIDENCE – Former Providence College President Rev. Brian J. Shanley is heading to the Big Apple.
Shanley, PC’s longest-serving president in the college’s 103-year history, has been named the new president of Queens, N.Y.-based St. John’s University, PC and St. John’s announced Tuesday. Shanley was unanimously selected to become St. John’s 18th president by the university’s board of trustees and will begin his tenure Feb. 1, 2021.
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Shanley will succeed Conrado “Bobby” Gempshaw, who announced in June his plans to retire as St. John’s president after joining the university in 2014, St. John’s said.
“I have long admired St. John’s commitment to the founding mission set forth by the Vincentian community to provide a Catholic education for first generation students in a diverse and inclusive environment,” Shanley said in a statement. “I look forward to leading our community to remain committed to that mission amidst the unique challenges of the current times.”
Shanley, a 1980 PC graduate, served as the college’s president for 15 years, from 2005 through last academic year. In 2019, Shanley was told by the Dominican Friars Province of St. Joseph, which oversees PC, that he would not be made available to serve another five-year term as PC’s president after 2020.
Current PC President Rev. Kenneth R. Sicard said in a statement that Shanley was an “impactful president” during his tenure at PC and will be remembered as “one of the best presidents” in the college’s history.
““He was an amazing colleague, friend and mentor to me,” Sicard said. “I know that he still had more to offer, and I have no doubt that he will do a wonderful job at St. John’s University.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
