Board of Trustees unanimously voted at board meeting
Robert Daugherty, chair of St. Bonaventure’s Board of Trustees, received a phone call on July 30 informing him that the university had given an honorary degree to Cardinal Theodore McCarrick.
Pope Francis had accepted McCarrick’s resignation from the College of Cardinals two days earlier, ordering him to a life of prayer and penance following credible allegations of abusing minors and adults for decades.
Fr. Kevin Mullen, O.F.M., the university’s provincial minister and Franciscan sponsor from Holy Name Province, also told Daugherty on the call that Siena College awarded McCarrick an honorary degree in 2006.
Following this phone call, the Board of Trustees agreed to have a phone call with Mullen, Siena’s president and their board chair, in addition to Dr. Dennis DePerro, on July 31.
“We listened to Kevin Mullen and the church’s perspective about what happened, and we agreed that we, St. Bonaventure, needed to do some due diligence on,” Daugherty said.
The board then evaluated what was in McCarrick’s file for him to receive the award in 2011 and agreed to discuss this issue with the board at their executive committee call on Aug. 16.
At the meeting, they informed everyone that voting on rescinding McCarrick’s honorary degree would be on the Sept. 7 board meeting agenda.
“It was clear that it was a very serious matter and none, none of it, speaks to anything to do with our Franciscan teachings or traditions at St. Bonaventure University,” Daugherty said. “It’s horrific for all the abused victims and this is nothing we want to honor.”
After discussing the facts and circumstances surrounding McCarrick’s resignation from the College of Cardinals, the board voted to rescind his honorary degree. In order to rescind the award, the board needed a full, unanimous vote.
“Rescinding an award cannot take back what happened to the victims, but it certainly acknowledges we stand with them, we hurt with them and we feel their pain in this process,” Daugherty said.
However, Daugherty said this gave the board a chance to reflect, listen to and think about the environment they create on campus.
“We believe in an environment for everyone to feel safe and speak up about what they believe in,” he said. “To live their life at St. Bonaventure and learn in a way that creates a sense of freedom in the Franciscan tradition and what we believe in: love, hope and cherishing all living creatures.”
This gave them an opportunity to make sure they were and are acknowledging and establishing that environment and safeguards at St. Bonaventure for those who live and work here.
“I wasn’t aware of the fact that we even gave him an honorary degree until that phone call,” Daugherty said. “We wanted to move with speed and be thoughtful, making sure that people knew this was important to us.”
Daugherty acknowledged the importance of hosting the special campus listening session on Sept. 17 to address students’ concerns about the sexual abuse crisis in the church.
“I think it’s important to listen to our community and students, to understand how they feel about this issue with the Catholic Church,” he said. “I also think it’s important to listen carefully and clearly and take full advantage of the moment to talk about it, but also pray for and think about the victims.”
