Mount St. Mary’s University will welcome the Rev. James Michael Donohue, C.R., Ph.D., a distinguished Mount theology professor, as the speaker for the 214th commencement exercises on Saturday, May 14. Donohue, affectionately known as Fr. Jim to the Mount community, will be honored with a doctorate of humane letters in recognition of his service to the university, his order and the local and global communities.
Donohue came to Mount St. Mary’s in 1996 as an assistant professor of theology and quickly became one of the university’s most popular faculty members. Twenty-six years later, he is retiring from the university after this academic year so that he can support his order, the Congregation of the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ, in building up the Church in Tanzania. He began his work in Tanzania during a sabbatical from the Mount in 2019-20.
“Through his numerous leadership roles, his work on key initiatives, his long list of publications and presentations, and his popularity as a teacher, Fr. Jim has generously given much to the university and its students,” said President Timothy E. Trainor, Ph.D. “We are blessed that he has spent a considerable share of his life of service at the Mount and look forward to seeing him spread his goodness in Tanzania.”
Donohue received the Richards Award for Teaching Excellence in 2000 and a Carnegie Foundation nomination for the U.S. Professor of the Year Award in 2005. As a leader on campus, he served as Theology Department chair, Knott Professor of Theology, faculty chair, interim dean of the College of Liberal Arts, co-chair of Middle States Accreditation and ice hockey coach. He has taught thousands of Mount students, married many alumni couples and baptized many of their children.
Among Donohue’s many writings is the book Moral Vision: Seeing the World with Love and Justice, coauthored in 2018 with Associate Provost David McCarthy, Ph.D. He is a frequent book reviewer and a prolific blogger for his order. He also blogged for the MSMU Travel Blog during the last of the three times that he led a study abroad semester in Prague.
Born and raised in Ontario, Canada, Donohue earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in English from St. Jerome’s College, The University of Waterloo; Master of Divinity from St. Peter’s Seminary, The University of Western Ontario; Master of Arts in theology from Catholic Theological Union in Chicago; and Ph.D. in theology from the Catholic University of America.
For over 30 years, Donohue generously served two Maryland Catholic parishes, St. John’s Parish in Columbia and St. Bernadette’s Parish, Severn. He has given many lectures, retreats, and workshops at these and many other parishes.