UDM President Antoine Garibaldi

DETROIT -- In a ceremony filled with tradition harkening back to the year of the University’s founding in 1877, Antoine M. Garibaldi, Ph.D. was inaugurated as the 25th president of University of Detroit Mercy (UDM) on Friday, April 13 in Calihan Hall on the McNichols Campus. Delegates from more than 65 colleges and universities around the country, civic officials, business leaders, faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends were on campus to mark the special occasion as he was formally installed as president.

An inauguration Mass celebrated by Archbishop Allen Vigneron took place prior to the ceremony at Gesu Church,?17180 Oak Street, Detroit at 10:30 a.m. Gesu Church is located across from the McNichols Campus. A luncheon on the McNichols Campus was held at noon prior to the 1:45 p.m. installation ceremony

Unlike U.S. presidential inaugurations, which typically occur on the first day in office, college and universities often wait until the president has been in office for several months before holding their ceremonies — giving the new president time to become more familiar with the university and its many constituencies and to develop a vision for the institution.

The inauguration ceremony provided an opportunity to reflect on University of Detroit Mercy’s strong history and affirm UDM’s commitment to academic excellence and social justice in our community.

Nationally recognized for his more than 35 years of teaching, scholarly work and administrative experience in education as well as the federal government, Dr. Garibaldi also holds the rank of tenured Professor of Education. He is a Fellow of both the American Psychological Association and the American Educational Research Association and the author of 11 books and 85 research articles and chapters.

Prior to his appointment at University of Detroit Mercy, Garibaldi was the sixth President of Gannon University in Erie, Pa. During his nine and a half years as president of Gannon from July 2001 to December 2010, Gannon achieved significant gains in enrollment, fundraising, facilities, regional and national academic reputation, and more.

Before joining Gannon, Dr. Garibaldi was a Senior Fellow in the Office of the Vice President for Collaborations and Corporate Secretary at the Educational Testing Service in 2000-01; he served as the first Provost and Chief Academic Officer at Howard University and as a tenured Professor in the School of Education between 1996 and 2000; and, between 1982 and 1996, he served successively as Chairman of the Education Department, Dean of Arts and Sciences, and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Xavier University of Louisiana. Between 1977 and 1982, he was a federal government administrator and researcher at the U.S. Department of Education’s National Institute of Education, where he was also a staff member of the National Commission on Excellence in Education, which produced the landmark report, “A Nation at Risk.”

A native of New Orleans, La., Dr. Garibaldi earned his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the ?University of Minnesota in 1976 and his Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from Howard ?University in 1973. His research interests focus on educational achievement and attainment ?in schools, African-American males, teacher education, and the growing gender and racial ?disparities in education.

For more information, please go to the Inauguration website at http://www.udmercy.edu/inauguration/.