J. Donald Monan,
SJ (December 31, 1924 – March 18, 2017) was the chancellor of
Boston College
Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...
from 1996 to 2017 and its 24th president from 1972 to 1996—the longest such tenure in the university's history until it was surpassed by his successor. A native of
Blasdell, New York
Blasdell is a village in Erie County, New York, United States. The population was 2,553 according to the 2010 Census. The name is derived from Herman Blasdell, the first station master of the Erie and Pennsylvania railroad depot. It is part of th ...
, he joined the
Society of Jesus
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, caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits
, abbreviation = SJ
, nickname = Jesuits
, formation =
, founders ...
in 1942. Monan earned a bachelor's degree, a licentiate of philosophy, and a
Licentiate of Sacred Theology
Licentiate in Sacred Theology ( la, Sacrae Theologiae Licentiatus; abbreviated STL) is the second of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the first being the Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology and the third being the Doctorate in Sacred Theol ...
at
Woodstock College
Woodstock College was a Jesuit seminary that existed from 1869 to 1974. It was the oldest Jesuit seminary in the United States. The school was located in Woodstock, Maryland, west of Baltimore, from its establishment until 1969, when it moved to ...
. He then studied at the
University of Louvain
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...
(UCLouvain) in Belgium, where he earned a
Ph.D.
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...
in philosophy. He was ordained a priest in 1955.
Prior to becoming president of Boston College, Monan served as acting president, vice president, academic dean, chairman of the philosophy department, professor and instructor at
Le Moyne College
Le Moyne College is a private Jesuit college in DeWitt, New York.http://www.ongov.net/planning/haz/documents/Section9.7-TownofDeWitt.pdf It was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1946 and named after Jesuit missionary Simon Le Moyne. At its fo ...
.
Boston College
When Monan took over as president, BC was approximately $30 million in debt and its endowment totaled just under $6 million. By the time he retired, the university's endowment had risen to over $500 million and the campus had greatly expanded to include such new buildings as O’Neill Library, Merkert Chemistry Center and Conte Forum.
Monan served as chancellor of the university after retiring as president. His memberships included the
National Leadership Roundtable on Church Management
Leadership Roundtable (formerly known as the National Leadership Roundtable on Church Management) is a lay-led group born in the midst of the Catholic clergy's sex abuse scandal and dedicated to bringing better administrative practices to diocese ...
, the Jesuit Philosophical Association,
"2012 Jesuit Jubilarians"
/ref> New England Province of Jesuits. the Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy The Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy (SPEP) is a philosophical society whose initial purpose was to promote the study of phenomenology and existentialism but has since expanded to a wide array of contemporary philosophical pursui ...
, and the Massachusetts Historical Society
The Massachusetts Historical Society is a major historical archive specializing in early American, Massachusetts, and New England history. The Massachusetts Historical Society was established in 1791 and is located at 1154 Boylston Street in Bost ...
.
Notes
External links
About The Chancellor
Boston College Chancellor bio
The 1863 Society bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monan, J. Donald
1924 births
2017 deaths
20th-century American Jesuits
21st-century American Jesuits
Presidents of Boston College
People from Erie County, New York
Religious leaders from Massachusetts
Religious leaders from New York (state)
Catholics from New York (state)
American expatriates in Belgium