The Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University of Mary in Bismarck, ND, announced last Friday that Rev. James Patrick Shea will succeed Sister Thomas Welder as president effective July 1, 2009. Shea, who is 33 years old, was selected because of his ability to communicate with a variety of people, and understand the needs of young people, theBismarck Tribune reported. “Shea has broad ideas for the direction of the university. He wants to enhance the Catholic identity of the university, strengthen its Christian identity and continue the Benedictine values of leadership.”

Father Shea has studied at The Catholic University of America, the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, and the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome, where he specialized in marriage, family, and biomedical ethics studies. While in Washington, D.C., Shea worked with Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity at the Gift of Peace AIDS Hospice. During his time in Rome Father Shea served the Catholic Studies Institute of the University of St. Thomas as chaplain. He is currently serving on the executive committee of the National Advisory Council to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.Sources: Bismark Tribune and University of Mary

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