Father Michael Scanlan (born December 1, 1931) is a
CatholicThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church. With more than a billion members, over half of all Christians and more than one-sixth of the world's population, the Catholic Church is a communion of the Western, or Latin Rite Church, and...
priest, author, and Chancellor of the
Franciscan University of SteubenvilleFranciscan University of Steubenville is a Catholic institution located in Steubenville, Ohio, 40 miles west of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The school was founded in 1946 by the Franciscan Friars of the Third Order Regular. In 1974, Fr...
.
Michael Scanlan was born in Far Rockaway, New York to Vincent M. Scanlan and Marjorie O'Keefe Scanlan. After a strong Catholic upbringing, he matriculated to
Williams CollegeWilliams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts.Williams was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams as a men's college, located in the Berkshires in northwestern Massachusetts, at the foot of Mount Greylock. In 1834, the first...
in
Williamstown, MassachusettsWilliamstown is a town in Berkshire County, in the northwest corner of Massachusetts. It shares a border with Vermont to the north and New York to the west. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 8,424 at the 2000 census...
, where he received his bachelor's degree at the age of 22 in 1953.
In 1956, Scanlan graduated from
Harvard Law SchoolHarvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. HLS typically ranks among the top law...
and from there gained admittance to the New York Bar Association.
Father Michael Scanlan (born December 1, 1931) is a
CatholicThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church. With more than a billion members, over half of all Christians and more than one-sixth of the world's population, the Catholic Church is a communion of the Western, or Latin Rite Church, and...
priest, author, and Chancellor of the
Franciscan University of SteubenvilleFranciscan University of Steubenville is a Catholic institution located in Steubenville, Ohio, 40 miles west of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The school was founded in 1946 by the Franciscan Friars of the Third Order Regular. In 1974, Fr...
.
Michael Scanlan was born in Far Rockaway, New York to Vincent M. Scanlan and Marjorie O'Keefe Scanlan. After a strong Catholic upbringing, he matriculated to
Williams CollegeWilliams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts.Williams was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams as a men's college, located in the Berkshires in northwestern Massachusetts, at the foot of Mount Greylock. In 1834, the first...
in
Williamstown, MassachusettsWilliamstown is a town in Berkshire County, in the northwest corner of Massachusetts. It shares a border with Vermont to the north and New York to the west. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 8,424 at the 2000 census...
, where he received his bachelor's degree at the age of 22 in 1953.
In 1956, Scanlan graduated from
Harvard Law SchoolHarvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. HLS typically ranks among the top law...
and from there gained admittance to the New York Bar Association. He then served as Staff Judge Advocate in the
United States Air ForceThe United States Air Force is the aerial warfare branch of the U.S. armed forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on 18 September 1947 under the National Security Act of 1947 - 80 P.L....
. He attended graduate studies in political science and higher education administration at
The Catholic University of AmericaThe Catholic University of America , located in Northeast Washington, D.C., is the national university of the Roman Catholic Church and the only higher education institution founded by U.S. Roman Catholic bishops...
and
Boston UniversityBoston University is a private nonsectarian university located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Although chartered by the Massachusetts Legislature in 1869, Boston University traces its roots to the establishment of the Newbury Biblical Institute in Newbury, Vermont in 1839...
.
Scanlan entered the Franciscan Third Order Regular in 1957. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1964, after having graduated from
St. Francis SeminarySt. Francis Seminary is a seminary for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee, located in the Milwaukee suburb of St. Francis, Wisconsin. Its main building, called Henni Hall, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.- Dedication :...
in
Loretto, PennsylvaniaLoretto is a borough in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Altoona, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Loretto is located at ....
. He served as acting dean of the College of Steubenville and as a lecturer in
theologyThe term "theology" literally means the study of God, deriving from the Greek word theos, meaning 'God', and the suffix -ology from the Greek word logos meaning "discourse", "theory", or "reasoning"...
from 1964-1966, and from 1966-69, as dean of the General Honors Program. Father Scanlan was appointed rector-president of St. Francis Major Seminary in Loretto, Pennsylvania in 1969. He accepted the office of president of the College of Steubenville in 1974, a position he held until 2000, when he was named Franciscan University's first chancellor.
In addition to his duties as University chancellor, Father Scanlan is president of FIRE (A Catholic Alliance for Faith, Intercession, Repentance, and Evangelism), and a past member of the Board for the Christian Film and Television Commission, Campaign for America National Committee, the Advisory Board for the Institute on Religious Life, and past member of the Board of Directors of Renewal Ministries.
Father Scanlan has published numerous articles in religious periodicals and over sixteen books and booklets. He has also spoken at numerous national and international conferences and leads pilgrimages and retreats throughout the world with Franciscan University Journeys.
Father Scanlan received the Holy Cross
Pro Ecclesia et PontificeThe Holy Cross Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice is an award of the Catholic Church. The English translation of Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice is "For Church and Pope", and is also known as the "Cross of Honour"...
in 1990, the Founders Award from Fellowship of Catholic Scholars in 1993, the Protector Award from the Pro-Life Action League in 1995, Sacrae Theologiae Magister awarded from the Third Order Regular of St. Francis, Province of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus with the approval of the Vatican in 1997. He holds honorary degrees from the College of Steubenville (LittD, 1972), Williams College (LLD, 1978), and St. Francis College (MDiv, 1975; PhD, 1987), and
Ave Maria CollegeAve Maria University - Latin American Campus ' is a branch campus of Ave Maria University in Florida. It is located in the small town of San Marcos, Carazo, Nicaragua...
(Doctorus Honoris Theologiae, 2002).
Sources