College President Rev. Brian J. Shanley, O.P., center, beams as the Very Rev. D. Dominic Izzo, O.P., left, adjusts his stole during the Inaugural Installation Ceremony. At right is Michael A. Ruane ’71, chair of the Board of Trustees.

• Father Shanley’s Inaugural Address

• Father Di Noia’s Inaugural Convocation Address

In a campus ceremony rich in academic and religious tradition, Rev. Brian J. Shanley, O.P. ’80 was installed as the 12th president in the 86-year history of Providence College on September 30.

An audience of approximately 800 members and friends of the College community—including academics from more than 100 colleges and universities, five bishops, and numerous U.S., state, and local government officials—watched as Father Shanley received the presidential robes and symbols of office in the ceremony held in the Peterson Recreation Center.

The robes and the symbols—the College charter, the College seal, and the presidential medallion—were presented by the Very Rev. D. Dominic Izzo, O.P. ’88, prior provincial of the Dominican Province of St. Joseph and chair of the Providence College Corporation, and Michael A. Ruane ’71, chair of the Board of Trustees, with assistance from Rev. Kenneth Sicard, O.P. ’78 & ’82G, College executive vice president and treasurer.

“As chair, I am privileged to bear witness to this special day in Providence College history,” Ruane said in presenting the new president. “Brian is a high-energy individual fiercely committed to living out the mission of Providence College,” he added.

Saying he drew inspiration for his inaugural address from Thomas Aquinas after praying for direction, Father Shanley underscored the need for PC to continue to cultivate students who are contemplative. Just as strongly, he emphasized the critical role their teachers play in leading students into the contemplative vocation.

“In educating our students to be contemplative, we are educating them to be prophetic agents of social change. The most powerful force for transforming both self and society is the contemplation of truth,” said Father Shanley.

The Installation Ceremony was the highlight of a two-day Inaugural Weekend celebration, whose theme was “Sacred Truths, Transformed Lives, and Signs of the Times.” The ceremony, which included the Order of the Service of Vespers, was preceded by a short prayer service in St. Dominic Chapel. The Inaugural Ball followed that evening in the Peterson Recreation Center.

The next day, October 1, featured several academic, spiritual, and social events beginning with the Inaugural Convocation. That was followed by three Inaugural Symposia; the Inaugural Vigil Mass, with Father Shanley as the main celebrant; and a barbecue with students. The convocation featured a keynote address by the Very Rev. J. Augustine Di Noia, O.P. ’02Hon., undersecretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Father Di Noia spoke on “The Dominican Charism in Catholic Higher Education: Providence College on the Eve of its Second Century.”