University of Detroit Mercy Names Its First Lay President

The board of trustees of the University of Detroit Mercy has announced that Antoine M. Garibaldi will become president of the educational institution in July 2011. Dr. Garibaldi will be the first lay president of the Catholic educational institution, which is affiliated with the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas.

The university has three campuses in the Detroit metropolitan area. It has total enrollments of about 5,600 students. Approximately 19 percent of the 3,200 undergraduate students are black.

Dr. Garibaldi currently serves as president of Gannon University in Erie, Pennsylvania. A native of New Orleans, in 1973 Garibaldi earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Howard University. He holds a doctorate in educational psychology from the University of Minnesota.

Prior to assuming the presidency of Gannon University in 2001, Dr. Garibaldi worked for the Educational Testing Service. He has taught and held administrative positions at Howard University and Xavier University of Louisiana.

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