Boston College announced that Rev. Michael C. McCarthy, S.J., will serve as the new dean of the School of Theology and Ministry (STM) on Thursday in a University release.
“As someone who has worked at other Jesuit universities, I have long admired the way Boston College integrates academic excellence with human formation,” McCarthy said in an email to The Heights. “So I am very happy to be joining this university community and support that aspect of its culture especially.”
This decision comes after the University announced in late January that Rev. Thomas D. Stegman, S.J., would step down as the dean of STM amid his battle with glioblastoma. The search for a new dean officially began in February.
McCarthy—who most recently served as the vice president for mission integration and planning and an associate theology professor at Fordham University—will begin his new role on July 1.
McCarthy said he is excited to work with colleagues at the STM who are committed to theological education and ministerial formation, according to the release.
“I am especially grateful to Tom Stegman, for whom I have immense personal respect,” McCarthy said in the release. “He leaves office with the STM in a terrific place, and I look forward to building on the school’s remarkable success under his leadership. Being asked to succeed Tom in this important work gives me joy.”
At Fordham, McCarthy oversaw Campus Ministry, the Fordham Center on Religion and Culture, and the Global Outreach program. He also founded Fordham’s Center for Community Engaged Learning—which aims to build bridges between Fordham’s campus and neighboring communities—in 2018 and taught classes within the theology department.
“A distinguished theologian and teaching scholar and experienced university administrator, Fr. McCarthy brings more than 30 years of academic, administrative, and ministerial experience to his new position,” the release reads.
Beyond his time at Fordham, McCarthy worked at Santa Clara University as the executive director of the Ignatian Center for Jesuit Education and assistant to the president for mission and identity. He has also worked at Loyola University Chicago and the University of San Francisco.
McCarthy earned his bachelor’s degree from Santa Clara, his master’s from Oxford University, his master of divinity from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley, and his doctorate from the University of Notre Dame. According to the release, his main academic interests include Jesuit higher education in the United States and historical theology surrounding early Christianity, religious belief, and Augustine.
“As a Jesuit, there are few things I can imagine more important for the Church or the work of the Society of Jesus than developing the next generation of leaders,” McCarthy said in the release. “So I approach my service as dean with my whole heart and with trust in God. My first order of business will be to listen and to learn.”
In the release, Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley said McCarthy’s career and experience with other Jesuit universities prepared him well to lead the STM.
“I am excited to welcome him to campus this summer and to build on Dean Stegman’s remarkable legacy,” Quigley said. “Mick is committed to extending STM’s reach in service of the local, national, and global Catholic Church.”
