About SBU

Sr. Margaret Carney, O.S.F., S.T.D.

Sr. Margaret Carney is the 20th president of St. Bonaventure University. Sr. Margaret is working with Trustees and the University community to develop a 21st century plan for educational excellence in a student-centered learning environment.

She has established the Damietta Center, a multicultural center that celebrates the diversity of the campus community and provides cultural, intellectual and spiritual enrichment. Diversity enrollment has climbed steadily for the last three years at St. Bonaventure.

The University’s First-Year Experience program is the result of early planning decisions and is already renewing the way in which new students come to grips with the potential of their college careers. During her presidency, the University has added majors in several areas and an exciting dual-admissions/dual-degree program in health professions.

Since the beginning of her presidency, St. Bonaventure University has invested approximately $25 million in seven major projects on the 500-acre campus. Among them are the spectacular renovation of Hickey Dining Hall, one of the University’s historic and signature buildings; complete renovation of Shay-Loughlen residence halls and the baseball complex, Fred Handler Park at McGraw-Jennings Field; construction of a gourmet coffee café; a $13.5 million, 46,000-square-foot science center; a rare books library addition; and the complete renovation of the Bob Lanier Court in the Reilly Center Arena. She was also a driving force in The Anniversary Campaign for St. Bonaventure University, which garnered more than $95 million in pledges and gifts.

A leader with a strong impulse for collaborative models, she engages her Cabinet and senior management in regular exercises to improve communication and planning activity. She serves on the board of the Council of Independent Colleges of New York and is a member of the board of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities, the Association of Franciscan Colleges and Universities, and the Secretariat for the Franciscan Intellectual Tradition. She has a seat on the Atlantic 10 Conference’s Council of Presidents and the Board of Alvernia University of Reading, Pa.

She received her doctorate in theology in Rome in 1988, becoming the first woman to graduate from the Franciscan University of Rome at the doctoral level. She studied in Europe after completing master’s degrees in theology at Duquesne University and Franciscan Studies at St. Bonaventure University.

From 1980 to 1982, she worked as part of an international commission on a new Rule of Life for the 400 institutes of the Franciscan Third Order Regular. This Rule was eventually approved by John Paul II. She has lectured extensively in the U.S. and abroad.

In 1997, Sr. Margaret came to St. Bonaventure University to serve as a faculty member of its world-renowned Franciscan Institute. Within two years she was named dean and director. She promoted a number of important collaborations during her tenure, including the foundation of what is now the Secretariat for the Franciscan Intellectual Tradition.

Sr. Margaret holds six honorary doctorates* and is a member of Duquesne University’s prestigious Century Club. Most recently she was named one of the most influential Irish-American educators by Irish Voice magazine. A native of Pittsburgh, she is especially fond of her role as aunt to 10 nephews and nieces and a host of young cousins.

"St. Bonaventure University welcomes and rewards those who seek excellence in a variety of professions and fields of knowledge. What is more, we welcome the opportunity to demonstrate that your collegiate experience can also be the source of friendships that will color your life and world in hues of joy, hope and beauty."  
 Sr. Margaret Carney, O.S.F., S.T.D.