University of Scranton Names Four New Trustees

The University of Scranton has named four new members to its Board of Trustees: Brian Archer ’90; Rev. Dennis M. Baker, S.J.; Rev. James F. Duffy, S.J., M.D.’88; and Theresa Pattara ’95.

Brian Archer ’90

Brian Archer, a 1990 graduate of The University of Scranton, is currently an adjunct professor in accounting at Seton Hall University in New Jersey.

Prior to getting his start in teaching, Archer worked for more than 25 years in the financial services industry. Most recently, he served for 10 years as the head of global credit trading for Citigroup. Before that, Archer held various management and trading positions at Citigroup and JP Morgan in their New York and London offices. He dealt with numerous fixed income and equity products, including derivative instruments.

Earlier in his career, Archer worked as a certified public accountant in the audit department of KPMG, one of the largest accounting firms in the U.S.

Archer was recently elected chair of the St. Peter’s Prep Board of Trustees in Jersey City, New Jersey, a board on which he previously served as a member for two terms. He graduated from St. Peter’s Prep in 1986. Archer also serves on the finance and audit committees of KIPP – NJ, a charter school organization in New Jersey, has been actively involved with the Cristo Rey School in Harlem, New York and previously served on the board of St. Aloysius School in Harlem, New York.

Archer is a currently member of the investment committee of Astoria Advisors. He has served as a board member of the International Swap Dealers Association and was an inaugural member of the Securities and Exchange Commission Fixed Income Market Structure Advisory Committee. He also served as a member of Scranton’s investment committee.

Archer earned his bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University, an MBA with a concentration in finance from the Stern School of Business at New York University, and a Master of Education degree from Drew University in New Jersey.

Archer and his wife, Gina (Scranton ’90), reside in Chatham, New Jersey, with their three daughters, Emily, Cate and Elizabeth.

Rev. Dennis M. Baker, S.J.

Rev. Dennis M. Baker, S.J., recently completed tertianship, the final stage of his Jesuit formation. He has been praying, reading and writing with seven other Jesuits from around the world in Zinkwazi Beach, on the northeast coast of South Africa.

A 1998 graduate of Canisius (Jesuit) High School in Buffalo, New York, Father Baker earned a bachelor’s degree in history with minors in English and religious studies from Fordham University in New York City in 2002. He went on to earn a master’s degree in criminal justice administration from Niagara University, a Vincentian school in New York, in 2004. After joining the Jesuits, he later returned to Fordham where he earned a master’s degree in philosophy in 2009. Father Baker also earned a Master of Divinity degree in 2015 from Boston College and a Master of Education degree in 2016 from Columbia University.

Father Baker taught at Xavier High School in New York City before moving to Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. He also served as president of Xavier High School in Chuuk in the Federated States of Micronesia until 2021. After returning to the United States, he then worked as director of engagement and planned giving at Xavier High School in New York City.

He was ordained in 2015.

Rev. James F. Duffy, S.J., M.D. ’88

Rev. James F. Duffy, S.J., M.D.,’88, who is currently serving as superior for the Scranton Jesuit Community, returns to the University’s board after a seven-year hiatus. He previously served on the Board of Trustees from 2007 to 2013.

A 1988 graduate of The University of Scranton, Father Duffy earned his medical degree from Georgetown University in 1992. He then served as an undersea medical officer for the U.S. Navy in Sardegna, Italy, on the USS Simon Lake (AS-33) from 1993-1996.

Upon returning to the U.S., Father Duffy entered the Society of Jesus in 1996. His first mission was to complete his residency training in internal medicine at Georgetown University Hospital, which he did from 1998 to 2000. Father Duffy also earned a master’s degree in health care ethics from Loyola University of Chicago and a master’s in divinity from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley in California. He was ordained in 2006.

During his distinguished career, he served as associate dean of clinical education at Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington D.C. from 2006 to 2016 and was later named dean of clinical education at the Saint Louis University School of Medicine in Missouri.

In 2013, Father Duffy received the University of Scranton’s Frank J. O'Hara Distinguished Alumni award, the highest award bestowed jointly by the university and its Alumni Society.

In keeping with the Universal Apostolic Preferences, Father Duffy, a board-certified internist, has continued to practice in Spanish-speaking, underserved medical clinics throughout his Jesuit formation and medical career.

Theresa Pattara ’95

Theresa Pattara is a public policy executive with extensive experience in the federal government and private industry, most recently serving as vice president in federal relations for Aflac, one of the nation’s top supplemental insurance companies. Prior to that, she held the same position at the data and records management company Iron Mountain. She is a former senior director for public policy at H&R Block.

In those roles, Pattara was responsible for leading teams in navigating laws and regulations to achieve business objectives by identifying innovative solutions for unique public policy challenges through public-private partnerships.

Before moving into corporate work, Pattara served as tax counsel to the chairman and ranking member of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee. In that capacity, she helped draft numerous pieces of legislation including the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the Affordable Care Act. She joined the Senate staff from the Internal Revenue Service and specialized in non-profit tax law and governance. She began her career as a certified public accountant with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.

Pattara currently serves on the board of directors for Court Appointed Special Advocates in Prince George’s County – a nonprofit organization advocating for permanent placements for foster children. She is also active in Many Hands, a women’s collective giving organization, and the Annandale Volunteer Fire Department, as an administrative volunteer.

Pattara graduated from The University of Scranton in 1995 with a bachelor of science degree in accounting and earned her juris doctorate degree from Georgetown University Law Center.

A Scranton native whose parents emigrated to the U.S. from Kerala, India, Pattara currently resides near Annandale, Virginia.