St Patrick's College in Maynooth has announced the appointment of Dr Jessie Rogers as the first woman and lay dean of the faculty of theology at the Pontifical University.
The appointment means Dr Rogers, originally from South Africa, will take on a senior management role at the college.
Founded in 1795 as a seminary for the education of priests, the college was at one time the largest seminary in the world and ordained more than 11,000 priests.
Today, the college has about 700 undergraduate and postgraduate students studying theology, philosophy and related areas.
“It is a real honour to be appointed to this role. It only struck me afterwards that not only am I the first woman to serve in this role, but also the first lay person,” Dr Rogers said. “I hope there is something about being a woman and married with children, and that experience of juggling lots of things, that I can bring to the role.”
Step forward
She said the appointment of a woman to such a senior role was another step forward for female academics.
“When I look back 10 or 15 years, I would say women had to work really hard to be noticed and to have their skills and contribution recognised. I feel that people like me are able to ride on the shoulders of those who have done an awful lot of hard work to prepare the way.”
After graduating from the University of Stellenbosch, Dr Rogers came to Ireland in 2007 to teach in Mary Immaculate College in Limerick before joining the faculty of theology at St Patrick's College in 2014.
Her academic work has focused on biblical wisdom literature and, in recent years, broadened to include spirituality and a focus on the theology of childhood.
Dr Rogers is a member of the Irish Biblical Association, the South African Society for Near Eastern Studies, the European Society for Catholic Theology, and the Godly Play International College of Trainers.
