College Announces Dr. Michael Lewis as 12th President

Good afternoon, everyone.

Following Dr. Favazza’s announcement last June that this would be his final year as President, we appointed a Presidential Search Committee, chaired by my colleague Mike Riegel, and comprised of representatives from the Trustees, faculty, administration, students, alumni, and the monastic community.

They each gave considerable time to this presidential search over the past nine months as they conducted an extensive national search for the right successor. I wish to extend my deepest gratitude to the members of our presidential search committee.

I also want to thank Anne Coyle and Zach Messitte from Russell Reynolds, our executive search firm, for their hard work and guidance to the search committee over the past year.

The first thing the Search Committee did was hold dozens of listening sessions with several hundred participants both on campus and via Zoom.

They also conducted an online survey that received well more than a thousand responses from community members, and we took in a significant amount of feedback and suggestions, all of which helped shape our leadership profile.

With the role, the priorities, and the qualities we were seeking established, we began the presidential search in earnest and were very fortunate to have a large pool of highly qualified applicants from across the country vie for this job.

What became crystal clear from all the listening sessions and the online survey is that we needed the right leader to take the baton from Dr. Favazza – and take it to the next level. There was clear consensus that our next leader is someone who:

• Is a strong listener who builds deep relationships with others; and has made difficult decisions with the mission as the guide.
• Cares deeply for the welfare and success of students.
• Knows how to reinforce and build on our Catholic, Benedictine, liberal arts identity.
• Understands how today’s students and parents want to see the College bring together excellent liberal arts education with thorough career preparation.
• Has strong financial management and operational skills and will make tough choices to build and prioritize for the future.
• Has led and managed extensive graduate programs and the evolution to schools within a college.

We found all of that and more in our next President.

Without further delay, it is my great honor to introduce the 12th President of Saint Anselm College, Dr. Michael Lewis, who currently serves as Provost and Chief Academic Officer at Saint Louis University.

Here with him today are his wife, Heather, and their two children, Jack and Grace. Heather is an Associate Clinical Professor of Social Work at Saint Louis University.

Welcome to all of you! We are very excited for your family to be joining the Saint Anselm community.

Dr. Lewis, he prefers to go by Mike, is a passionate believer in a liberal arts education and will bring an outstanding track record of shaping and growing Schools, increasing in-person undergraduate enrollment, and creating and expanding online graduate programs.

After a long and thorough process, Dr. Lewis was the unanimous choice of the Presidential Search Committee and received a unanimous vote of approval from the Board of Trustees.

Born and raised in Halifax, Nova Scotia – yes, he is a Canadian native like our Chancellor and Abbot, Isaac murphy – Dr. Lewis received his Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from Saint Mary’s university in Halifax in 1996, and his Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 2001.

He also was a postdoctoral research associate at Harvard University from 2001 to 2004.

Dr. Lewis joined the Department of Chemistry at Saint Louis University in 2004. As a faculty member, he has received multiple teaching awards and authored numerous scholarly publications.

Appointed Provost in 2020, he has been responsible for supporting major initiatives advancing the University’s strategic plan and has been responsible for the development and implementation of all academic strategic priorities, as well as the academic affairs budget, and has been overseeing 11 Schools and Deans, plus their campus in Madrid, Spain!

Saint Louis University is a Catholic, Jesuit liberal-arts institution and the fifth-largest Catholic University in the United States with more than 13,000 undergraduate and graduate students.

Like Saint Anselm, it integrates the liberal arts, humanities, and sciences into its core mission and curriculum.

One of the areas that was most compelling during his final interview was how eloquently and deeply he spoke about how he and his wife view serving in Catholic higher education as their vocation and life calling.

Over the past seven years, Dr. Favazza has guided Saint Anselm into the future with steadfast leadership and a vision that has generated significant momentum for the College. Joe, we cannot thank you enough!

As Dr. Favazza passes the baton, we are very excited for the experience and perspective Dr. Lewis will bring to Saint A’s.

On behalf of the Saint Anselm community, it is my privilege and pleasure to welcome Dr. Lewis and his family to the Hilltop.

Dr. Lewis, would you like to share a few words?

Congratulations Mike!

Thank You

Thank you for the generous introduction, Chairman Lavelle. It is humbling to hear your words of introduction. Being here in New Hampshire, on Saint Anselm College’s campus, so steeped in politics, I’m reminded of remarks that are often attributed to LBJ – that introduction was one my father would be proud of, and my mother would believe. And by no means is that to compare myself to President Johnson, but to say your kind words are meaningful to me. Thank you.

It is a profound privilege to stand before you today and to accept the presidency of Saint Anselm College. It is humbling to be in front of this audience – students, faculty, staff, members of the monastic community, alumni and friends of the institution. And I know many others are joining online – my mother is online – she believed Chairman Lavelle’s kind words. It is wonderful to be with you all. Thank you for making me and my family feel so welcome with your presence.

Let me begin with gratitude.

Thank you to Chairman Lavelle, search committee chair Mike Riegel, Abbott Issac, and the entire Board of Trustees and search committee for the care, discernment, and dedication you brought to this process. I know how much work it required, and I am deeply honored by your trust. I will work tirelessly to live up to the privilege of the position.

I also want to thank President Favazza and the entire College community for your extraordinary stewardship. Saint Anselm is thriving. The enrollment growth, the expansion of graduate programs, the thoughtful development of three Schools, the renewal of the core curriculum, and the transformational philanthropy — especially from Robert and Beverly Grappone — speak to a College that is strong and forward-looking. President Favazza, it is humbling to follow your impressive tenure as President. Thank you for advancing the mission of this remarkable institution.

And to Abbott Isaac and the monastic community: thank you for the gift of this Catholic, Benedictine College. The world needs the education offered here – an education that forms humble, compassionate, community-centered citizens. Thank you for sharing your home, your wisdom, and your lives with the College.

Brief Introduction

Let me share a bit about my journey and why this moment means so much to me.

After earning my bachelor’s and PhD degrees in chemistry and serving as a postdoctoral fellow, I have spent my entire career to this point at Saint Louis University, where I served as both faculty member and administrator in various roles, most recently as Provost and Chief Academic Officer for the past six years. Along the way, I fell in love with Catholic higher education – this has not simply been a profession for me. It is my vocation.

We do meaningful work in Catholic higher education. In my lifetime, I do not believe it has ever been more important. We educate students holistically — in mind, body, and spirit. We do not see faith and reason in opposition. We see them in conversation. We see them informing one another in the pursuit of truth.

This is the Catholic intellectual tradition — a two-millennia heritage of seeking truth with both rigor and humility. Saint Anselm College stands firmly within that tradition.

We are also guided by Catholic social teaching, grounded in the unwavering dignity of every human person. At Saint Louis University, I engaged this mission through the Jesuit charism. As I learn the Benedictine tradition, I find deep resonance in its emphasis on stability, hospitality, humility, and community. During the interview process, it was clear to me that these values are not aspirational here – they are lived.

Ensuring that Catholic identity animates every dimension of institutional life has been the most meaningful part of my leadership at Saint Louis University. I look forward to leading with that same clarity of mission here at Saint Anselm.

Excitement to Join Saint Anselm

I want to share with you what it felt like in my shoes when the Presidency of Saint Anselm College came open. Many people who know my deep commitment to Catholic higher education reached out to me. They spoke of the strength of this College, the clarity of its mission, and the seriousness with which it approaches its work.

From the outside looking in, the success of this community is widely recognized, and I think this is important for you all to hear. In a time of significant challenge across higher education, Saint Anselm stands out – not only for its enrollment growth and strategic planning, but for its fidelity to mission.

The commitment to forming students in the Catholic, Benedictine, liberal arts tradition is both timeless and urgently needed. We need graduates who understand the constructive interplay of faith and reason. Or, as Saint Anselm of Canterbury put it, faith seeking understanding. We need leaders who are humble, capable of respectful dialogue, and committed to the common good. We need citizens formed to see the dignity of every person, who see God in every person – even, and especially, in those with whom they disagree.

Saint Anselm graduates embody this formation. The success of your students and alumni is the clearest testament to the College’s mission.

The strategic growth of graduate programs and academic Schools, along with the commitment to revising the core curriculum, demonstrates thoughtful planning from a position of strength. The strength and vitality of the athletic programs, with its student-first centric approach, is focused on forming disciplined, service-oriented leaders and building a vibrant campus community. And the engagement of alumni and benefactors reflects the deep and lasting impact of this institution.

Saint Anselm College is confident in who it is — and courageous in planning for the future.

This is how it felt to be in my shoes when the presidency of Saint Anselm’s came open. This opportunity is exciting. And I am thrilled to be standing here with you today.

Personal

My wife, Heather, and our children, Jack and Grace, are here with me today. Heather is a social work professor at Saint Louis University, and my partner in everything. Jack is a sophomore at Loyola University Chicago, and Grace is a high school junior at Ursuline Academy in St. Louis. Heather and I have been married for 22 years, and we are deeply committed to Catholic education. All four of us are so excited for this opportunity, to join the Saint Anselm community and to call the greater Manchester area home.

For us, this is also a return to the Northeast. We spent three wonderful years in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Heather worked for a social service company providing services to children from eastern Mass. We grew to love this region. I am originally from Halifax, Nova Scotia, and have long felt at home in New England.

I am, in many ways, a northeastern Catholic. And it feels deeply right for our family to be here.

We are excited to join the greater Manchester community. We are humbled by this opportunity. And we are ready to serve.

President Favazza, you have set a high bar. Chairman Lavelle, Trustee and search committee chair Riegel, members of the Board, Abbott Issaac – thank you for your trust. I will never take it for granted.

The mission of Saint Anselm College is not simply a heritage to preserve — it is a responsibility to carry forward. In a world searching for truth, stability, community, and hope, this College has an indispensable role to play.

To the students, faculty, staff, Benedictines, alumni, benefactors, and friends of Saint Anselm: I look forward to listening, learning, and leading alongside you. And I look forward to working with you to steward this remarkable institution with fidelity to its Catholic and Benedictine identity, with courage in the face of change, and with unwavering commitment to our students.

I am honored by your trust. I am grateful for this calling.

Thank you.