Provost Named St. Bonaventure University President

Jeff Gingerich, Ph.D., has been named as the next president of St. Bonaventure University.
Jeff Gingerich, Ph.D., provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at The University of Scranton, has been named as the president of St. Bonaventure University.
Jeff Gingerich, Ph.D., provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at The University of Scranton, has been named as the president of St. Bonaventure University.

Jeff Gingerich, Ph.D., provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at The University of Scranton, has been named the 22nd president of St. Bonaventure University.

“On behalf of the Board of Trustees, I want to offer my heartfelt congratulations to Dr. Gingerich on this fitting recognition of the leadership, innovation and devotion to mission that we have come to appreciate during his tenure at Scranton,” said Rev. Joseph Marina, president of The University of Scranton in a message to the University community about the announcement. “On a personal level, I cannot thank Jeff enough for his wise counsel, steadfast support and friendship throughout my own transition and during this first year with you. … I look forward to remaining colleagues in Catholic higher education and wish him and St. Bonaventure every success in the coming years.”

St. Bonaventure announced the appointment to their campus at noon today. Dr. Gingerich will continue to serve at Scranton through June 1, 2022. He will assume duties as the president of St. Bonaventure on June 20.

“I am overwhelmed with gratitude for the opportunity I’ve been given to join the Bonaventure community,” said Dr. Gingerich. “I have always had such deep respect and admiration for the Franciscans. Their humility, reflection and sense of community are fundamental in the way I strive to live my life.”

“Seldom in life do you see so many points of interest intersect on one conclusion, but in this case, all facets of the university community converged on a singular belief – that Jeff should be our next president,” said John Sheehan, chair of St. Bonaventure’s board of trustees, in a press release announcing the appointment.

St. Bonaventure Trustee Deb Henretta, who co-chaired the search committee, said, “Jeff is mission-driven, he’s student-centered and he’s a caring, empowering leader.”

Dr. Gingerich joined Scranton as provost and senior vice president of academic affairs in 2018. He served as Scranton’s acting president for four months after the death of the Rev. Scott R. Pilarz, S.J., who passed away March 10, 2021.

During the pandemic, Dr. Gingerich helped guide the University through unprecedented transitions to online and hybrid formats before returning to fully in-person instruction. A consistent voice for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, Dr. Gingerich advanced new initiatives and programs at Scranton related to faculty hiring and development, staff and administrator training, curricular improvements and student support and engagement. He also led Scranton’s most recent accreditation review by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and led the University’s planning efforts, which culminated in a new Strategic Plan. His tenure included a renewed focus on securing federal support for research and sponsored programs. An avid supporter of student-centered program growth, Dr. Gingerich led the University’s strategic enrollment planning and worked with faculty to develop successful new undergraduate and graduate programs.

Prior to his role as provost at Scranton, Dr. Gingerich spent nearly 20 years at Cabrini University in suburban Philadelphia, teaching in the Department of Sociology and Criminology and serving as their provost and vice president for academic affairs.

Dr. Gingerich earned master’s and doctoral degrees in sociology from the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor’s degree in social work from Eastern Mennonite College.

Additional information can be seen in St. Bonaventure’s press release announcing Dr. Gingerich’s appointment.

Father Marina’s video congratulations to Dr. Gingerich can be seen here.

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