Brian J. Shanley (born July 7, 1958), is an American priest of the

Order of Preachers The Order of Preachers (, abbreviated OP), commonly known as the Dominican Order, is a Catholic mendicant order of pontifical right that was founded in France by a Castilian priest named Dominic de Guzmán. It was approved by Pope Honorius ...

, who began his tenure as the 18th President of St. John's University in New York on February 1, 2021. Previously, he was the president of

Providence College Providence College is a Private university, private Roman Catholic university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1917 by the Dominican Order and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, it offers 47 undergraduate Academic ...

in Rhode Island from 2005 to 2020.

Biography

Shanley was born in

Warwick, Rhode Island Warwick ( or ) is a city in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States, and is the third-largest city in the state, with a population of 82,823 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Warwick is located approximately south of downtown Pr ...

, on July 7, 1958, After completing undergraduate studies in history at Providence College in 1980, he earned a licentiate degree in philosophy from

The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily ...

in 1984. He also earned a Master of Divinity in 1986 and a licentiate degree in sacred theology in 1988 from the

Dominican House of Studies The Dominican House of Studies is a Catholic institution in Washington, DC, housing both the Priory of the Immaculate Conception, a community of the Province of St. Joseph of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), and the Pontifical Faculty of the I ...

in Washington, D.C. Shanley was ordained to the priesthood as a member of the Dominican

in 1987. Shanley served as an instructor in philosophy at Providence College from 1988 to 1991. He earned a doctorate in philosophy from the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

in 1994 and completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

's Center for Philosophy of Religion. He served as a philosophy professor at the Catholic University of America from 1994 to 2005 was a visiting professor at

Emory University Emory University is a private university, private research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded in 1836 as Emory College by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory. Its main campu ...

Candler School of Theology Candler School of Theology is one of seven graduate schools at Emory University, located in Atlanta metropolitan area, metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. A university-based school of theology, Candler educates Minister (Christi ...

in Fall 2002. In 1999, he was named to the Board of Trustees of Providence College. Shanley previously served as both an associate editor and editor of The Thomist and as a member of the editorial board for the International Journal for Philosophy of Religion. His research interests include

Thomas Aquinas Thomas Aquinas ( ; ; – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican Order, Dominican friar and Catholic priest, priest, the foremost Scholasticism, Scholastic thinker, as well as one of the most influential philosophers and theologians in the W ...

philosophy of religion Philosophy of religion is "the philosophical examination of the central themes and concepts involved in religious traditions". Philosophical discussions on such topics date from ancient times, and appear in the earliest known Text (literary theo ...

metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that examines the basic structure of reality. It is traditionally seen as the study of mind-independent features of the world, but some theorists view it as an inquiry into the conceptual framework of ...

medieval philosophy Medieval philosophy is the philosophy that existed through the Middle Ages, the period roughly extending from the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century until after the Renaissance in the 13th and 14th centuries. Medieval philosophy, ...

, and

ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...

. He was also a member of the executive committee of the

American Catholic Philosophical Association The American Catholic Philosophical Association (ACPA) is an organization of Catholic philosophers established in 1926 to promote the advancement of philosophy as an intellectual discipline consonant with Catholic tradition. Among the means used t ...

President of Providence College

During his time as President of Providence College from 2005 to 2020, he also served as regent of studies for the Dominican Province of St. Joseph, during which time he held a seat on the Provincial Council, a body of 12 Dominican Friars serving as cabinet-level advisors to the prior provincial. He advised the Prior Provincial on all matters pertaining to the intellectual and academic life of the province. On March 29, 2019, Shanley announced that, while the Providence College Board of Trustees had recommended that he serve another 5-year term, the Prior Provincial would not be making him available to do so. As a Dominican Friar, he accepted his superior's decision and concluded his service as President of Providence College at the end of his third term on June 30, 2020.

President of St. John's University

Shanley assumed the office of President of St. John's University in New York in February 2021.

Personal life

Shanley is an

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

aficionado, enjoys

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

, and practices

xingyiquan 形意拳, Xingyiquan , or Xingyi, is a style of internal Chinese martial arts. The word approximately translates to "Form-Intention Fist", or "Shape-Will Fist". The style is characterized by aggressive, seemingly linear movements, and expl ...

martial arts.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shanley, Brian J. Living people 1958 births American Dominicans Providence College faculty American Roman Catholic priests People from Warwick, Rhode Island Catholic University of America alumni University of Notre Dame alumni Providence College alumni Catholics from Rhode Island