Back
Address GO
2010Women’s Lacrosse
Siena College Administration
Fr. Kevin J.Mullen, O.F.M. – President
The Rev. Kevin J.Mullen, O.F.M., Siena College Class of 1975, was appointed the 10th President of the College on June 1, 2007. Fr. Kevin directed the Franciscan Center
for Service and Advocacy since 2005, taught a seminar in Franciscan service and Siena’s Foundations course for first-year students, and was also a guardian (supervisor) of the
Franciscan friary at the College. He was previously a member of the Board of Trustees of Siena
College from 1987-1996, and from 1999-2005. Siena has had a profound influence on the greater part of this
alumnus’s adult life. He is happy to be able to give back his skills and energy to the academic community that introduced him to the liberal arts and helped to shape his outlook and perspective. Fr. Kevin was born in Paterson, N.J., “the cradle of Holy Name
Province” where the largest group of Franciscan Friars Minor in the country had its program for novices. St. Bonaventure Church, just a few blocks from home, introduced Franciscan themes into the grammar school curriculum. Fr. Kevin’s family also nurtured his Franciscan spirit throughout his early life. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history at Siena College in 1975.
Why history? “It unfolds the story of humanity: how human beings have behaved, and misbehaved. It’s an essential facet of under- standing who we are. Look atWorldWar II, the CivilWar, etc.” Why Siena College? “The Franciscan formation, the people,
and the facilities: which were tremendous for the time.We took pride in the Siena campus.” He remembers several formative Siena people: outstanding
professors and lecturers who opened him to the writings of St. Bonaventure and the Franciscan sources. From administrators to advisors to Mrs. V in the dining hall, Siena people became family. He also extended himself in volunteer service, teaching religious
education at St. Pius X parish in Loudonville, and helping people at nursing homes. Amonth after graduation, Fr. Kevin was received as a member
of the Order of Friars Minor. Four years later, he made his solemn profession of vows in 1979, and was ordained a Roman Catholic priest in 1980. He received his Master’s of Divinity degree from Washington Theological Union (during those studies he also did supervised ministry in adult education and hospital chaplaincy), and a Ph.D., in theology from The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C. (where his interest in medical ethics grew, and where he continued to hone his pastoral heart).
Fr. Kevin’s administrative and leadership experience includes
serving as Rector/Guardian of St. Anthony Shrine in Boston, Mass., from 1990-1999. The popular downtown church offers numerous pastoral, liturgical, and educational programs. Fr. Kevin also chaired the Board of Directors of St. Francis House, hailed by Boston’s church and business leaders and residents as a model for multi- faceted outreach helping the homeless and marginalized. In addi- tion, he served on the Board of Directors of Franciscan Children’s Hospital from 1997-1999, and was on the steering committee for the Interfaith Clergy Breakfast. Concurrently, Fr. Kevin served on the Provincial Council of the
Franciscans of Holy Name Province, and as director of finance for the Province. From 1990-1993 he was also a member of the Board of Trustees of Christ the King Seminary in East Aurora, N.Y. In 1999, Fr. Kevin was appointed Pastor/Guardian of St. Leo’s
Church in Elmwood Park, N.J., where he served until his Siena College appointments in 2005. Fr. Kevin taught full-time at Christ the King Seminary from
1987-1990, and concurrently was a member of the Ethics Com- mittee of Sisters’ Hospital in Buffalo, N.Y. He also taught at various times at Pope John XXIII National Seminary inWeston, Mass., Weston School of Theology in Cambridge, Mass., Emmanuel College in Boston, Mass., Felician College in Lodi, N.J., The Franciscan Institute at St. Bonaventure University, Olean, N.Y., and TheWashington Theological Union in Silver Spring, Md. Since his return to the Siena College campus in 2005, he has
added part-time chaplaincy at a state correctional facility to his life as a friar. He describes his Franciscan experience of community not in
terms of dramatic events as much as in everyday encounters when you connect, and are glad of who you are, and feel you have some- thing to offer: “For example, when you’re working with the poor. In terms of education, when you’re opening people up to information and thoughts.When we’re aware of that, we know: ‘This is where I belong.’ ” During a forum with Siena community members, Fr. Kevin
spoke about his ethos, which he outlined as respect for the human person, relationships (“not only one-to-one, but communal”), justice and respect, and being good stewards of God’s creation. And, he added, “finding what education, business, etc., can bring to that.” Fr. Kevin looks forward to reflecting together with the Siena
community “upon how we may further our communal commitment to the values that support the Franciscan and Catholic traditions of a liberal arts education.” He sees Franciscan Insight courses – wherein Siena faculty and students apply what they learn about St. Francis to service tasks in their chosen profession – as an important way to develop that commitment.
page 36 of 50
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50