June 9, 2021
Rev. Brian J. Shanley, O.P., President of St. John’s University, was recently included on “The 2021 Queens Power 100” list published by City and State New York, a media publication that covers government, politics, and business in New York.
The list features health-care professionals, business executives, nonprofit leaders, union organizers, advocates, and community activists. With a focus on civic leaders who are working to bring the borough back from the dramatic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and who have responded forcefully to the public crisis as well as the economic shutdown that ensued, the list represents and celebrates the diversity that is a trademark of the global vitality of Queens County, often referred to as “The World’s Borough.”
In the citation highlighting Fr. Shanley, City and State editors wrote, “Fr. Shanley said he plans to start his new role as President of the nation’s second-largest Catholic university by tackling the emotional and financial hardships faced by students because of the coronavirus pandemic. He also joined other university presidents in pushing for international students to be allowed to return to campus in the Fall of 2021.”
Fr. Shanley, a member of the Dominican Order of Preachers, began his tenure as the 18th president of St. John’s University in February. Prior to working at St. John’s, he served as President of Providence College in Providence, RI, for 15 years; he was the longest-serving President in the college’s history.