Mucowski, Father Richard J.

Fr. Richard Mucowski, a native to Pennsylvania, holds a Bachelors of Arts degree in philosophy from St. Bonaventure. He went on to receive a Masters in theology from Washington Theological Union in 1971, Masters degrees in sociology and anthropology from the University of Notre Dame, and a Masters in guidance and counseling psychology from Niagara University. He received a doctorate of counseling psychology and student personnel services from the State University of New York at Albany, and another doctorate in clinical psychology from Fielding Institute in Santa Barbara, California.

Fr. Mucowski is also a graduate of Harvard University's Institute for Educational Management. He completed his internship and post-doctoral residency in Neuropsychology from the Department of Behavioral Medicine and Psychiatry of the Thomas Jefferson University Medical School, Philadelphia PA.

Fr. Mucowski was ordained a Franciscan priest in 1971 and is able to preside in both Roman Catholic and Eastern Catholic Masses.

Before coming to Walsh he was the executive vice president and chief operations officer of St. Bonaventure University from 1989 to 1992 and vice president for administration and finance for the same institution from 1987 to 1989. Previous to that, Fr. Mucowski had been acting director of the counseling center at Siena College from 1973 to 1987.

On October 17, 1992, Fr. Mucowski was inaugurated as Walsh College's fourth president, a position he held until 1996 when he resigned. His inaugural program noted he was the "first Ukrainian American priest to become the president of a four-year Catholic college." While acting as president, Fr. Mucowski helped to transform Walsh College to university status in January of 1993. He was also instrumental in starting the physical therapy and accelerated degree programs, and the creating the intercollegiate football program.

After his resignation from Walsh University, Fr. Mucowski moved to Hewitt, New Jersey. He currently travels to the River Front State Prison in Camden, New Jersey, three days a week to help care for fifteen inmates with mental health problems. He is also practicing psychologist with FrancisCare, a counseling service founded in the Franciscan and Roman Catholic tradition.

From the guide to the Father Richard J. Mucowski, OFM, Papers 1990-1997, 1990-1997, (Walsh University Library)