Sr. Joan Lescinski, CSJ, Ph.D. | |
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Born | 1947 Albany, New York, USA |
Nationality | American |
Known for | President of St. Mary-of-the-Woods College, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Indiana President of St. Ambrose University, Davenport, Iowa |
Sr. Joan Lescinski, CSJ, PhD, is the 13th president of St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa. She is the first woman to lead the university in its history. Lescinski took office in the summer of 2007, succeeding Dr. Edward Rogalski, who retired after 20 years as the university’s president.
A native of Albany, New York, Lescinski is the daughter of Joseph and Lucy Lescinski. Sr. Joan professed religious vows as a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, St. Louis, Missouri in 1965. In 1970 she received a bachelor's degree and in 1974 a master's degree in English literature from the College of St. Rose in Albany. She earned a doctorate in 1981 from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.
Lescinski started her teaching career at an inner-city Catholic high school in Utica, New York. She has taught at the college level since 1972. From 1979-1991, she worked as a professor of English at the College of St. Rose; from 1991-1993 she served as associate dean, academic affairs and professor of English at Avila University in Kansas City, Missouri; and from 1993-1998 she served as vice president of academic affairs, dean and professor of English at Fontbonne University in St. Louis, Missouri, before becoming president and professor of English at St. Mary-of-the-Woods College from 1998-2007.