In keeping with Catholic tradition and the values of the Felician Sisters, who established the University, Inauguration Day will begin with a Mass. See the schedule below.
| 9:30 a.m. |
Inauguration MassPresentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Chapel |
| 11:00 a.m. |
Inauguration BrunchWelcome Center Enjoy food and refreshments following the Inauguration Mass and before the Installation Ceremony. |
| 1:00 p.m. |
Installation CeremonyKresge Hall Seating begins at 12:30 p.m. with the Academic Procession following at 12:55 p.m. RSVP, by September 27, for Mass, Brunch, and the Installation Ceremony. |
| 6:00 p.m. |
Changemakers Dinner & AuctionMadonna University Welcome Center Join the campus community in celebrating President Dougherty’s inauguration at a reception, dinner, and auction to raise funds to support the University’s efforts to change lives through a Madonna education. The Live Auction will consist of two exceptional experiences:
Silent Auction items include such experiences as: a Livonia Police Department ride-along and station tour and force simulator experience; an opportunity to host or guest star on Celebrate Michigan – a student-run public TV show produced and recorded in Madonna’s Derry Broadcast and Cinema Arts studio; have Madonna’s mascot Cruzer attend your next celebration (max. 30 min.) i.e., birthday, anniversary, graduation, or Christmas party; and several more experiences. For those unable to attend that evening, an online auction will be available in the days preceding Friday, October 11, the day of the President’s Inauguration and the Changemaker’s Dinner. More details on these experiences to follow. RSVP, by September 27, to attend the Dinner and Auction For questions, contact us at president@madonna.edu or 734-432-5589. |
Christopher “Chris” Dougherty, Ph.D.
Madonna University’s Eighth President
Madonna University, a Felician-sponsored ministry in Livonia, Michigan, offers more than 100 undergraduate and 35 graduate programs in the Colleges of Arts and Sciences, Education and Human Development, and Nursing and Health, as well as the School of Business. As its president, Dougherty works with a highly talented and engaged leadership team and Board of Trustees to deliver on Madonna’s tradition of outreach and engagement to the many communities and learners it serves, including traditional, adult, and graduate students in programs emphasizing excellence in professional practice informed by the liberal arts.
Before joining Madonna in July 2023, Dr. Dougherty’s experience included roles as full-time business faculty member, as assistant and associate dean, and as provost and vice president at several institutions. Those positions included leadership of academics, student affairs, enrollment management, and athletics. Dr. Dougherty also served as president of the Association for Continuing Higher Education and as chair of the board at Archmere Academy in Claymont, Delaware.
A lifelong Roman Catholic, Dougherty grew up in Glenolden, Pennsylvania, just outside of Philadelphia. He and his wife Joanne, married 33 years, live in Plymouth, Michigan, and are the proud parents of Madeleine, a master’s student at Chestnut Hill College, and Isabel, an undergraduate student at Penn State University. The Doughertys also share their home with two pugs, Wybie and Beeb, brothers rescued by Joanne in 2018. As hobbies, Dougherty enjoys running and biking, and has raced competitively in middle- and long-distance events as recently as 2021, including the 2002 and 2012 Boston Marathons, the 2014 USA Track and Field (USATF) Masters Cross County National championships, and multiple USATF Mid-Atlantic Road Series events.
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