Welcome New Faculty Father Joseph Fowler ‘02, of the Diocese of
Pensacola-Tallahassee, joins the faculty of the Pontifical North American College as Director of Admissions and as a formation advisor. Father Fowler will also be responsible for tasks such as visits to American seminaries, directing early orientation for the New Men each year, and overseeing the Rector’s Dinner in the spring. A alumnus of the College, he completed studies at Florida State University and Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans before arriving in Rome. He holds degrees in theology and canon law from the Gregorian University and was ordained a priest in 2002. He has held numerous positions in his diocese, including: diocesan ViceChancellor; Associate Judge for the Diocesan Tribunal; diocesan Director of Catholic Relief Services; and Chaplain for both Pensacola Catholic High School and the Alliance for Catholic Education of the University of Notre Dame. In his free time, he enjoys playing the piano and is a well-known movie buff. Father Fowler appreciates his role as a formator, hoping to encourage the seminarians in holiness. “Our Catholic faith is so rich!” he says. “As priests and future priests, we have the formidable task of inspiring God’s people to become true and living saints for the Church, but we must start with ourselves.”
Monsignor Francis Lo Bianco, of the Archdiocese
of Newark, will be the interim Director of Counseling Services and will serve this year as the College’s resident priest-psychologist. Monsignor Lo Bianco attended Immaculate Conception Seminary in Darlington and later completed a doctorate in psychology at Fordham University. He also
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holds a master’s degree in special education from Seton Hall University. He has a broad pastoral and professional background, including the following assignments: Rector of the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Newark; Executive Director of Catholic Community Services; Director of the Mount Carmel Guild Department of Psychological Services; the archdiocesan Secretary for Social Concerns and Liaison for Governmental Affairs; and as a consultant for the Bureau International Catholique de L’Enfance. He is a lifetime member of the American Psychological Association. His hobbies include painting and cooking. Monsignor Lo Bianco hopes to be a source of counsel and consolation for seminarians and to help them find alternate ways of looking at any problems. “I would like to establish a neutral environment where people would feel free to come and talk,” he says.
Father Gerald Vincke, of the Diocese of Lansing, will
serve the College community as a full-time spiritual director. He holds degrees in journalism and advertising from Ferris State University. Hearing the call to priesthood, he completed his theology studies at Sacred Heart Seminary in Detroit and was ordained a priest in 1999. He has served his diocese in a variety of roles, including as a parochial vicar and retreat director. Later, he served as Director of Seminarians and was the Chair of the Department of Formation, overseeing the diocesan offices for deacons, lay ministry, vocations and priestly life. Father Vincke arrives at the College with prior training and experience in spiritual direction through the Institute for Priestly Formation in Omaha. As the ninth of ten children, he likes to stay in touch with his family and also enjoys traveling, reading, and various outdoor sports. Father Vincke has already been impressed by the spiritual atmosphere at the College and looks forward to fostering it further. “The spiritual life is at the heart of everything that happens here,” he says. “I hope I can be an instrument of God’s peace and joy.”
The Pontifical North American College M agazine