James Patrick Shea

James Patrick Shea (born March 27, 1975) is an American Catholic priest of the Diocese of Bismarck who has served as the president of the University of Mary since 2009.

The Reverend Monsignor James Patrick Shea KHS
Shea in 2025
Church	Catholic
Diocese	Diocese of Bismarck
Orders
Ordination	July 3, 2002 by Paul Albert Zipfel
Personal details
Born	(1975-03-27) March 27, 1975 (age 50) Hazelton, North Dakota, U.S.
Profession	President, University of Mary
Alma mater	Catholic University of America Pontifical North American College Pontifical Lateran University Pontifical Gregorian University

Early life and education

James Shea was born on March 27, 1975, to Joseph and Patricia Shea.^[1] He and his seven younger siblings all grew up on their parent's farm outside of Hazelton, North Dakota.^[2][3] He graduated from Hazleton-Moffitt-Braddock High School in 1993 and then studied philosophy and English at the University of Jamestown for two years before entering seminary in 1995 and transferring to the Catholic University of America.^[3] He earned a bachelor's degree in philosophy with honors in 1997 as well as a licentiate through the Basselin Scholars program at Catholic University the following year.^[3][4] During this time he also taught religion in two inner-city elementary schools and worked at a hospice run by the Missionaries of Charity.^[5] He then was sent to the Pontifical North American College in Rome and studied theology at both the Pontifical Gregorian University and the Pontifical Lateran University.^[6][3] While studiying in Rome he was a chaplain at the Bambino Gesù Hospital as well as for the Rome campus of the Center for Catholic Studies of the University of St. Thomas.^[6] On July 3, 2002, bishop Paul Zipfel of Bismarck ordained Shea to the priesthood for the Diocese of Bismarck at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit.^[7][8][6] The celebration following for Shea in his hometown of Hazelton was so large that his first Mass was said in a gymnasium.^[7]

Priesthood

Shea's first assignment as a priest was as parochial vicar at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit as well as teaching religion at St. Mary's Central High School.^[8] While teaching at St. Mary's, Shea taught a seminar-style class to seniors at the school titled "The Catholic Disciple". Student participants in the course, which included topics such as the spiritual authenticity of Johnny Cash, Catholic themes in Brideshead Revisited, and the involvement of Catholics in the Solidarity movement in Poland, stated that it deepened their understanding of Catholicism and allowed faith to take clearer shape.^[9] During this time, Shea also said Mass in Spanish for the Latino community in Bismarck at the cathedral.^[10][11] Shea then served at Christ the King church in Mandan, North Dakota before becoming pastor of St. Joseph Church in Killdeer and St. Paul Church in Halliday.^[3] Shortly after this appointment, he received an e-mail invitation to meet with Pope Benedict XVI at the White House. Believing it was an April Fools' Day prank, he deleted the email, putting it "the same place I put all the emails with special offers for Viagra" and thinking nothing of it until he was contacted regarding the meeting a second time.^[12]

President of the University of Mary

In December 2008, the University of Mary announced that Shea would succeed Sister Thomas Welder as the sixth president of the Bismarck university.^[13] Welder, who had been president of the institution since 1978, stepped down due to health issues.^[13] This appointment made Shea, then 34, the youngest college or university president in the United States.^[14] Shea oversaw the addition of the university's Rome study-abroad campus in 2010,^[15] as well as the $1.5 million donation of a new financial center for the university's business school^[16] and the inauguration of an interdisciplinary Catholic Studies program.^[17] In 2012 he announced a public-private partnership between the University of Mary and Arizona State University to bring University of Mary courses to Arizona, as the state has no Catholic colleges or universities.^[18][19] That same year, Benedict XVI named him a Chaplain of His Holiness with the title of "Monsignor".^[20]

Shea has spoken at Catholic conferences and other events, including the Fellowship of Catholic University Students' national SEEK conference in 2024, the 10th National Eucharistic Congress, and the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in 2025.^[21][22][23] He serves on the board of directors of Saint John Vianney Seminary, the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, and the Fellowship of Catholic University Students as well as the National Advisory Council to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. He is also a Knight Commander of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, a knighthood of the Holy See.^[2]