Office Hours
Monday 1 PM - 3 PM CES
Wednesday 12:15 PM - 1:15 PM Priest Center East (Price Center East)
Fr.Joseph holds his office hours in the Center for Ethics and Spirituality (CES) Building 201 UCtr (across from the Cashier's Office). You can also arrange office hours by appointment by calling (858) 534-2548.
Biography
Hello, I am the associate director of the Newman Center Catholic Community at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). I am a Catholic priest in the Dominican Order, a religious order in the Catholic Church that was founded by St. Dominic in 1216. I was born and raised in Livonia, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. I grew up in a large Catholic family, with three brothers and three sisters. At age 19, I moved to Los Angeles, where I began working for Hughes Aircraft as a microwave technician. While at Hughes, I built and tested antennae sections of commercial satellites.
I entered the Dominican Order in 1988, where I began my studies for the priesthood. I received a B.A. in Philosophy at the Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology (DSPT) in Berkeley. During the 1992-93 academic year, I did my residency at the Newman Center at St. Thomas More in Eugene. That was my first exposure to campus ministry. I completed my studies by receiving an M.Div. and an M.A. in theology at the DSPT.
Upon being ordained a priest in 1996 in San Francisco, I was assigned to Holy Rosary Parish in Antioch, California. In 1999 I was assigned to Holy Family Cathedral in Anchorage, Alaska. While only in Alaska for three years, I had a variety of experiences there. In the last two years there I served as pastor of the cathedral. While ministering in Anchorage, I had the chance to serve in the Aleutian Islands, Cordova, Valdez, the Kenai Peninsula and various small villages throughout South Central Alaska. I also was able to experience the beauty of the land, the animals, and the native culture.
In 2002 I was elected prior of St. Dominic’s Priory in San Francisco. In my new assignment I was given the task of preparing the priory for the Western Province’s novitiate which was moving to San Francisco. (The novitiate is the house for novices who are in their first year in the Order.) The priory is attached to St. Dominic’s Church, a large thriving parish in the heart of San Francisco. While prior, I became vicar provincial of the Western Dominican Province. I continued on as vicar after my term as prior expired. As vicar provincial, I supported the provincial in various tasks including helping him with personnel in the province. In 2006, I became the pastor of St. Thomas More Newman Center in Eugene, Oregon. While there, I enjoyed the beauty of Oregon—including the rain! I found ministry with students and faculty at the University of Oregon to be very enriching.
In 2009, I joined the staff at UCSD and am very excited to be living in San Diego and ministering at the Newman Center here. Having had a variety of experiences in my years in ministry, I am excited to be working in campus ministry. One of the things that has always driven me is the opportunity to share my faith with others and to accompany them in their walk of faith.