By: Stephanie Turaj
Posted In: News
Photo credit: Public Affairs Office Salve Regina University
Sister Jane Gerety RSM, the president of Salve Regina University
A new chapter in Salve Regina history began on Sept. 18, 2009 with the inauguration of Salve’s seventh president, Sister Jane Gerety, RSM. At the inaugural ceremony on the Wakehurst lawn, Gerety delivered her inaugural address centered on the theme of hope.
Sister Jane Gerety arrived at Salve on July 1, 2009 to begin her duties as president and get acquainted with the University. “I ask myself, what is my dream?” Gerety said in her inaugural address. “What is my hope for Salve Regina University as I accept this great responsibility? Wherever my hope is for the institution, it’s inextricably linked to my hope for the students.” Gerety said she has not had a “typical day” at Salve. In addition to enjoying the variety of weather Newport has to offer, her days have been filled with meetings, presentations, desk work and getting to know faculty and students. She also enjoys the Cliff Walk, explaining that it connects her to her Irish roots and reminds her of West Ireland. “Salve is a place whose culture is as beautiful as its surroundings; warm and focused very much on the individual, the unique gifts of the individual and the community,” Gerety said. Gerety is working to continue to offer significant financial aid allowing Salve to be affordable even in challenges of today’s economy. She is also helping begin a self study for the 2011 New England Association of Schools and Colleges Accreditation. Gerety has a number of personal goals for the University as well. Gerety hopes to continue to strengthen particular academic programs, including undergraduate, continuing education and graduate programs. Gerety also described the hope she has for her students in her inaugural address. She urges students to have a spirit of openness, both willing to be changed but remaining grounded. In her inaugural address, Gerety explained the awe she feels at being named the seventh president of the University and continuing the unbroken line of the Sisters of Mercy. “There is something about the notion of the seventh president, that showed me where I stood, on which shoulders I stand,” Gerety said. “These women are a great inspiration of my hope.” Gerety has been a member of Salve Regina’s Board of Trustees since 1995. She has served in the health care industry at Saint Joseph’s Health System in Atlanta, Ga. She also served as the academic dean at Carlow University in Pittsburgh. Gerety earned a bachelor’s degree in French from Mount Saint Agnes College, a master’s degree in French from Middlebury College and a doctorate in English from the University of Michigan. “My dad would be so proud of me,” Gerety said in her inaugural address. “My mother would say, ‘enjoy your life’. I would tell her, ‘I am enjoying my life here at Salve Regina University’.”
