Timothy Ryan Lannon,
S.J. was the 24th president of
Creighton University
Creighton University () is a private research university in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1878, the university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. In 2015 the university enrolled 8,393 graduate ...
from July 1, 2011, to January 20, 2015. He was previously the president of
Saint Joseph's University
Saint Joseph's University (SJU or St. Joe's) is a Private university, private Jesuits, Jesuit university in Philadelphia, Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, and Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The university was founded by the Jesuits, Society of J ...
.
Biography
Early life
Timothy Ryan Lannon, S.J., is a native of
Mason City, Iowa
Mason City is a city and the county seat of Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, United States. The population was 27,338 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Mason City is known for its musical heritage, a significant ...
.
[ His father, James Lannon, played ]football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
at Creighton University, where he earned a medical degree
A medical degree is a professional degree admitted to those who have passed coursework in the fields of medicine and/or surgery from an accredited medical school. Obtaining a degree in medicine allows for the recipient to continue on into special ...
during the 1930s.
Lannon graduated from Newman Catholic High School in 1969.[ He graduated from Creighton in 1973 with a bachelor's degree in mathematics, and was president of the Student Board of Governors. While at Creighton, Lannon was also an active member in the ]Phi Kappa Psi
Phi Kappa Psi (), commonly known as Phi Psi, is an American collegiate social fraternity that was founded at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania in 1852. The fraternity has over ninety chapters at accredited four-year colleges and uni ...
fraternity. Lannon holds two master's degrees from Weston Jesuit School of Theology (now Boston College School of Theology and Ministry); a doctorate in administration, planning and social policy from the Graduate School of Education at Harvard University; and a professional diploma from Fordham University.
Career
Lannon entered the Jesuits in 1977.[ He was ordained a ]Catholic priest
The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in common English usage ''priest'' refe ...
of the Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...
in 1986.[
Lannon began his professional career as an admissions counselor at Creighton and honed his educational and administrative skills as an instructor and assistant principal at Marquette University High School, an instructor at Boston College, and an assistant professor at Marquette University.
Lannon served as the President of ]Creighton Preparatory School
Creighton Preparatory School (simply referred to as Creighton Prep or Prep) is a private, Jesuit high school for boys in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. It was established in 1878 under the name Creighton College and is located in the Archdio ...
, a Jesuit all-male high school
A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...
in Omaha, from 1988 until 1995.[ He then joined Marquette University, where he served as the vice president for university advancement and associate executive vice president.][
Lannon received Creighton University's College of Arts and Sciences Alumni Merit Award in 1993 and has been inducted into Creighton Prep's Hall of Fame. As an undergraduate, he received Creighton's highest student honor, the Spirit of Creighton Award, in 1973.
]
President of Saint Joseph's University (2003-2011)
Lannon was elected as president of Saint Joseph's University on December 6, 2002. He was chosen to succeed Rev. Nicholas S. Rashford, who has served as Saint Joseph's president for seventeen years.[ Lannon became the 26th President of ]Saint Joseph's University
Saint Joseph's University (SJU or St. Joe's) is a Private university, private Jesuits, Jesuit university in Philadelphia, Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, and Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The university was founded by the Jesuits, Society of J ...
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
during the summer of 2003.
Lannon spearheaded the acquisition of the 38-acre former Episcopal Academy in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania
Lower Merion Township is a Township (Pennsylvania), township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Philadelphia Main Line. The township's name originates with the county of Merionethshire, Merioneth in north Wales ...
, which has been renamed the Maguire Campus in honor of James J. Maguire, a Saint Joseph's alumnus
Alumni (: alumnus () or alumna ()) are former students or graduates of a school, college, or university. The feminine plural alumnae is sometimes used for groups of women, and alums (: alum) or alumns (: alumn) as gender-neutral alternatives. Th ...
. Lannon also added new residence halls and a parking garage to Saint Joseph's main campus. The renovation of Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse
The Michael J. Hagan Arena (previously known as the ''Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse'') of Saint Joseph's University is SJU's home court for men's and women's basketball. The new arena seats 3,800, which is 600 more than the Alumni Memorial Fieldh ...
, which will be called Michael J. Hagan arena when completed, was begun during his tenure.
SJU's historic comprehensive campaign With Faith and Strength to Dare: The Campaign for Saint Joseph's University, raised more than $152M exceeding its goal of $150M during Father Lannon's tenure.
In 2008, Father Lannon became the chairman of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities
The Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities (AJCU) is a consortium of the 28 Jesuit colleges and universities and three theological centers in the United States, Canada, and Belize committed to advancing academic excellence by promoting an ...
.[ Additionally, Lannon serves on the boards of directors of Marquette University, ]Saint Joseph's Preparatory School
St. Joseph's Preparatory School, known as "St. Joe's Prep" or simply "The Prep", is an urban, private, Catholic, college preparatory school run by the Society of Jesus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The school was founded in 1851 ...
in Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
, the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce and the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania.
President of Creighton University (2011-2015)
Lannon became the 24th president of Creighton University
Creighton University () is a private research university in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1878, the university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. In 2015 the university enrolled 8,393 graduate ...
, a Jesuit, Catholic university in Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...
, in July 2011.[ Lannon was the first alumnus of Creighton to be president.]
During Father Lannon's short tenure, the university named its first school, the Heider College of Business due the largest gift in the university's history from Charlie and Mary Heider, achieved record enrollments, created the Provost model which resulted in a more unified and integrated educational experience, and forged a clinical partnership for the Health Sciences Schools and the College of Nursing with what is now called CHI Health. Lannon with others was instrumental in the university's affiliation with the Big East Athletic Conference in 2013.
In February 2014 Lannon announced his retirement as of June 2015. Creighton's Board of Trustees launched, in April 2014, a search for Lannon's successor and in December 2014, named Daniel S. Hendrickson, SJ, PhD as the prospective president.
Lannon retired, in January 2015 with J. Christopher Bradberry, Dean of the School of Pharmacy and Health Professions, named as interim president, until Fr. Hendrickson's arrival in July 2015.
Post-retirement Plans
Lannon, following retirement from Creighton University, took a sabbatical. Upon completion, the Harvard University Graduate School of Education – from whence Lannon was awarded his doctorate – will welcome its alumnus as “president in residence.” Lannon was appointed in 2015, as formation director for the USA Midwest Province of the Society of Jesus.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lannon, Timothy R.
Living people
20th-century American Jesuits
21st-century American Jesuits
Presidents of Saint Joseph's University
Marquette University faculty
Creighton University alumni
Weizmann Institute of Science alumni
People from Mason City, Iowa
Boston College School of Theology and Ministry alumni
Catholics from Iowa
Harvard Graduate School of Education alumni
Year of birth missing (living people)
Presidents of Creighton University