The Office of the President

Father Michael Sheeran, S.J.

Father Sheeran became the 23rd president of Regis University on Jan. 1, 1993. He had served as academic vice president of the University since 1982. In August 1993, Father Sheeran hosted the first meeting between Pope John Paul II and President Bill Clinton at Regis University.

He also served as an expert commentator for Channel 4 in Denver during World Youth Day in 1993 and the 2005 election of a new Pope.

He received his doctorate in politics from Princeton University in 1977. His dissertation on the consensus-based Quaker decision-making process is now a book used by Quakers to teach their method to new members of their community.

Father Sheeran entered the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) in 1957 and was ordained a Catholic priest in 1970. His multiple degrees from St. Louis University include an A.B. (Philosophy and Letters), Ph.L., A.M. (Political Science), A.M. (Theology), and an STL.

Father Sheeran has promoted Regis' dedication to its Jesuit, Catholic mission. His commitment to academic excellence has enabled the creation of new programs, including Regis' first applied doctoral programs and curriculum expansion in each of the three colleges. He has recently focused on raising financial aid to ensure that a Jesuit education is accessible to students of all economic levels. To view the full announcement, click here.

Please join us in thanking Father Sheeran for his years of leadership and service:

Thank You Father Sheeran

"The number of programs in RHCHP has grown exponentially during Father Sheeran’s time. We started with nursing in 1989 with less than 100 students, and today we have over 1500 students in nursing alone. In addition to nursing, physical therapy was the second program, and now we have a school of pharmacy. So, we have three major schools, plus a health services administration program, a department of ethics and a large service learning component in all programs as well. So, from my perspective, the university has grown and prospered tremendously thanks to the leadership of Father Mike.”

Sara Jarett
Professor of Nursing, RHCHP

"I will always remember the day that I met Father Mike Sheeran in 1989. In his role as VP for Academic Affairs, Fr. Sheeran, had a vision and sincere desire to expand professional health education beyond nursing at Regis University. He and the late Dr. Marie Milliken, visited my clinical practice to share this vision and asked if I would help the University make this vision a reality. How can anyone say no to Mike’s passionate requests? It was through his continued support and persistence that he and Dr. Patricia Ladewig found the startup funds for PT in 1993 from a tagged endowment traced back to the 1950s (if my recollection of the year is correct). As Allan Service shares, “PT had the longest incubation period of any program prior to its time in University history!” So yes, PT has made history in many ways."

"As President, he personally reached out to me being a new administrator of Regis, to show his unconditional support to the success of the then department that has grown from one program of 27 students to that of a School with over 400 students involved in 4 different educational offerings. His trust in our abilities enabled us to be the 21st University in the nation to move PT education from a professional entry master’s degree to that of doctoral education. He helped us be a recognized leader in our profession. We initiated our first professional doctoral program here at Regis University in physical therapy in 2001. I will always be personally indebted to him for having the trust and confidence in me to move the University forward in this critical way. We now offer 3 professional doctoral programs at Regis, one in PT, Pharmacy and Nursing and have a national presence and recognition as being leaders in education in our respective professions. He indeed helped us to truly live our mission of being “men and women in the service of others.” We in the health professions exemplify this mission on a daily basis and we have Fr. Sheeran to thank for seeing to it that we are part of this great University!"

Dr. Barbara A. Tschoepe PT PhD
Dean, Professor
School of Physical Therapy

FEATURED WHITE PAPER
Leaders in Service: Students of Regis University (PDF)

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