February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
The Rev. Joseph A. O’Hare, S.J. became the 31st President of Fordham University on July 1, 1984 and served in that position until June 30, 2003. His 19-year tenure as President is the longest in the 167-year history of the University. Prior to coming to Fordham, Fr. O’Hare had been the Editor-in-Chief of America, the weekly journal of opinion published by Jesuits of the United States and Canada, and President of America Press, Inc. He currently is an associate editor of America. For the academic year, 2004-2005, he served as President of Regis High School in New York City, his alma mater.
Fr. O’Hare was born in New York City on February 12, 1931. After graduating from Regis High School in Manhattan, he entered the Society of Jesus (the Jesuit Order) in 1948. He was ordained a priest in 1961 in the Fordham University Church in the Bronx. Fr. O’Hare holds licentiate degrees in philosophy (1961) and in theology (1962) from Woodstock College, Maryland, and a doctorate in Philosophy from Fordham University (1968).
Father O’Hare served as Chairman of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities (AJCU) and Chair of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities (ACCU). He is a former trustee of the Asia Society and was part of a study mission to the Philippines sponsored by that Society in 1986. In 1987, Fr. O’Hare received the Gold Medal of the American Irish Historical Society, and in 1992, he was honored by the Citizens Union with its Civic Leadership Award for his work as founding chairman of the New York City Campaign Finance Board. He is the Vice President of the Appeal of Conscience Foundation and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.