Leahy Takes the Helm at Monmouth University

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Patrick F. Leahy, Ed.D. will serve as the university’s 10th president, succeeding Grey J. Dimenna, Esq.
Photo courtesy Monmouth University

By Philip Sean Curran

WEST LONG BRANCH – Monmouth University’s new president Patrick F. Leahy said during his induction ceremony Oct. 18 that private colleges need to prepare students for a rapidly changing world, make higher education accessible as student bodies get more diverse and use research to solve the nation’s problems.

Leahy, the 10th president in university history, made his case for the role of private schools during a 21-minute speech in the on-campus Oceanfirst Bank Center with his wife Amy, their four children and others looking on.

“Students at private colleges and universities today will face uncertain futures,” he said. “In my opinion, there’s no better way to prepare students for this dynamic and uncertain world than to integrate the liberal arts and humanities into professional programs. And we’ll do that here at Monmouth.”

Private colleges, he continued, will need to make first class education “as accessible as possible to a diverse citizenry.” He referenced U.S. Census Bureau forecasts showing the nation’s population will be majority nonwhite by 2050.

“Students in the decades to come will be increasingly diverse, increasingly financially needy and, I hate to say it, but increasingly underprepared for rigorous college-level work,” he said. “Despite these challenges, colleges and universities, especially private ones, will need to be more welcoming to students of all backgrounds in order to create our nation’s workforce for the 21st century.”

At a university where tuition alone is nearly $40,000 a year, Leahy said 33 percent of the current freshman class qualifies for federal Pell grants, which are for low-income students.

Leahy, originally from Towson, Maryland, recalled the humble roots of his ancestors who came from Ireland in the 1850s and settled in America working “tough jobs.” He said his paternal grandfather Vincent, the oldest of 11 children, “left school in the seventh grade to help raise his siblings.” The grandfather later insisted that all of his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren go to college.

“He believed if you get an education, you get a chance,” Patrick Leahy said of a grandfather who died before he was born.

Leahy earned his undergraduate degree in English from Georgetown University, two master’s degrees from Cornell University and his doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania.

In his speech, he recalled that he first wanted to become a university president when he was at Georgetown. He said he took a poetry course taught by then-university president Rev. Timothy S. Healy. His interactions with Healy planted the seed for a future career in higher education.

“That one class with that one professor changed my life forever,” he said.

Before Monmouth, Leahy was the president of Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania for seven years. During that time, the school expanded academic and athletic programs, began a fundraising campaign and invested in campus improvements. His résumé includes stints in the private sector as well.

Leahy is the third president Monmouth has had in the last few years. In 2017 Paul R. Brown retired after serving since 2013 and was replaced on an interim basis by Grey J. Dimenna. Dimenna served until this year.

The university’s board of trustees looked nationally for a new leader and chose Leahy unanimously, said board chairman Michael A. Plodwick during the ceremony. Leahy began his tenure in Wilson Hall, the campus building where the president’s office is located, in August.

“You have opened your doors, star ted new dialogues and quickly formed new bonds with students, faculty, staff and the many friends and neighbors who depend upon and sustain our university,” Plodwick said.

“To serve as the president of this university is a great honor for me,” Leahy said.

Later in his remarks, Leahy said private colleges and universities “need to continue to expand their research and scholarship profiles, not at the expense of teaching but to enhance it.” He said that as a university located near the Jersey Shore, Monmouth is “well positioned to contribute to our collective understanding of coastal issues” through the school’s Urban Coast Institute.

The ceremony began shortly after 2 p.m., with Leahy and others in their academic robes entering the arena. He and other dignitaries took their seats on the platform, where a large university banner hung in the background.

Rev. Scott R. Pilarz, president of the University of Scranton, spoke of knowing Leahy, “my dear friend,” from the time Leahy was a high school senior. Pilarz would later gave Leahy his first job in higher education.

In attendance were the leaders of other universities in New Jersey, including Rider University president, Gregory Dell’Omo.

“He’s got the right focus,” Dell’Omo said after the ceremony of Leahy.

Others attending the ceremony included Monmouth County Sheriff Shaun Golden, a university alumnus and an adjunct professor, state Assemblyman Eric Houghtaling (D-11) and Assemblywoman Serena DiMaso (R-13).

State Sen. Vin Gopal (D-11), set to begin teaching a course at Monmouth in the spring semester as an adjunct professor, was among the featured speakers during the program. He called Leahy “someone who’s going to always do the right thing and put the interest of Monmouth University ahead.”