Jim Towey
President
Saint Vincent College

Jim Towey is not your typical college president.

He worked for 12 years as legal counsel to Mother Teresa of Calcutta and lived two years in her missions caring for those dying with AIDS in Washington, D.C. and struggling to survive along the U.S.-Mexico border.

He also worked at the White House as Assistant to the President of the United States and Director of the White House Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives where he sought to apply the lessons learned from Mother Teresa to the problems of America's poor. Mr. Towey reported directly to the President and attended Cabinet meetings, and during his four years at the White House he lectured at Princeton, Yale, Notre Dame, and other leading institutions of higher learning on the subjects of church and state and compassion.

Since July 1, 2006, Mr. Towey has been the chief executive of Saint Vincent College and responsible for its hundreds of employees and multi-million dollar budget. He is no stranger, however, to managing a complex business enterprise -- he once led Florida's health and human services agency and its 40,000 employees, overseeing a budget of over $4 billion. When he left state government, Mr. Towey founded a non-profit organization, Aging with Dignity, and created the Five Wishes advance directive that is now used by seven million American families to help them plan for and discuss end-of-life care.

All of these experiences are now in the service of Saint Vincent College's students, faculty, administrators, staff and alumni. He has dedicated his presidency to Mother Teresa with the hope that Saint Vincent graduates will be prepared to make a living for themselves and a difference in the world. For more information on Mr. Towey's vision for the College, click here to read his Inaugural Address.

A 1978 graduate of Florida State University where he earned a Bachelor of Science Degree with high honors, Mr. Towey earned a Juris Doctor Degree from the Florida State University College of Law in 1981. He has been honored many times for his public service including six honorary doctoral degrees, the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross from His Holiness John Paul II, the Omicron Delta Kappa Award from Florida State University, and the Regnum Dei Award from the Archdiocese of Miami. Mr. Towey and his wife, Mary, have five children.