Kathleen Cieplak Owens Comes Out of Retirement to Become President of Misericordia University in Pennsylvania

The board of trustees of Misericordia University in Dallas, Pennsylvania, has named Kathleen Cieplak Owens to serve as president of the university for the 2020-21 academic year. Dr. Owens’ term as president will begin July 1, 2020, and end June 30, 2021.

Misericordia University, affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church, enrolls just over 2,000 undergraduate students and about 500 graduate students, according to the latest U.S. Department of Education statistics. Women make up 69 percent of the undergraduate student body.

Dr. Owens is president emerita of Gwynedd Mercy University in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. She led the university as president from 2002 to her retirement in 2017.

“There is likely no other circumstances that would call me to take a sabbatical from my retirement than my commitment to the mission and core values of Misericordia University and the Sisters of Mercy,” Dr. Owens said.

Earlier in her higher education career, Dr. Owens served as vice president of academic affairs at Saint Francis University in Loretto, Pennsylvania, as well as dean and professor in the College of Arts and Sciences at Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois.

Dr. Owens earned bachelor’s and doctoral degrees at Loyola University in Chicago. She earned a master’s degree at DePaul University in Chicago.