Amid financial crisis, Saint Martin’s University in Lacey names new president
William “Bill” Brownsberger is the new president of Saint Martin’s University, the Lacey college announced Friday.
Brownsberger has been serving as the vice president of academic affairs and workforce solutions at Mountain Empire Community College in Virginia. He starts at Saint Martin’s July 1.
He will replace two interim co-presidents and former president Jennifer Bonds-Raacke, who served as president for about a year. After her departure in August 2023, former longtime president Roy Heynderickx returned in an interim capacity. He has shared the interim co-president duties with Father Kilian Malvey.
“Dr. Brownsberger’s experience at other Catholic colleges and universities will be an asset at Saint Martin’s University as we continue our 128-year tradition of providing a uniquely Catholic Benedictine education,” said Abbot Marion Nguyen, chancellor of Saint Martin’s, in a statement.
“We welcome Dr. Brownsberger and his family to our academic community and look forward to the next chapter of our university’s future with his leadership and vision.”
At Mountain Empire Community College, Brownsberger manages division finances and engages with students and other stakeholders in the academic affairs of the college. Before that he was the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas, where he led the college’s fundraising efforts and managed the budget as well as faculty workloads and scheduling, according to a news release.
His financial experience will be put to use as Saint Martin’s faces shrinking enrollment and a budget deficit for its next fiscal year. As part of that process, the university has alerted some faculty that they do not have a guaranteed teaching position after the 2024-2025 school year.
The presidential search committee consisted of 15 representatives from Saint Martin’s Abbey, faculty, staff, students, Board of Trustees and the Archdiocese of Seattle.
“Entrusted with the mission of finding a president capable of guiding Saint Martin’s towards greater financial stability and academic distinction, the committee sought individuals with strategic foresight and a commitment to transparent servant leadership,” the university’s news release reads.
“He’s a great candidate,” said David Price, a longtime professor of sociology and anthropology at the school. “I think the faculty really liked him. He will bring needed hope.”
“We are hopeful that the new president will reverse these faculty terminations and work with faculty to make positive changes to the university,” Jamie Olson, a professor of English, said on Friday.
Brownsberger earned a doctorate in sacred theology and his licentiate in sacred theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Italy. He earned a master of arts in theology from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., and his bachelor of arts in philosophy from the University of Dallas.
“I look forward to working with the talented faculty, staff, administration, trustees, and monks toward a bright future of service to students in the Pacific Northwest and beyond,” he said in a statement.
Bonds-Raacke has resigned from her post as Saint Martin’s University’s president
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