Ten Saint Peter’s College students with the highest grade point averages in the senior class will be recognized on September 20 at the College’s annual Michaelmas Convocation. The group will join the Most Noble Order of the Peacock, the College’s top honor society. The ceremony follows the medieval tradition of convening the faculty and students to start the term and is celebrated in honor of the feast of the Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael.
Father William J. Currie, S.J., President Emeritus of Sophia University in Tokyo, will deliver the convocation address. Father Currie is a former faculty member, dean and president of Sophia University.
Born in Philadelphia and educated at St. Joseph’s Preparatory School, Fr. Currie entered the Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus in 1953. He received both his undergraduate degree and a Master of Arts degree from Fordham University. In 1960, he moved to Japan. Fr. Currie taught English at a Japanese high school for two years and completed theology studies in Tokyo. In 1967, he was ordained a priest. Father Currie earned a Masters in Theology from Sophia University in 1968. He also received his Ph.D. in comparative literature from the University of Michigan, where he also taught Japanese language and literature for two years.
Since returning to Tokyo in 1972, Fr. Currie has held several teaching and administrative positions, including chairman of the department of comparative culture, dean of the new faculty of comparative culture and executive vice president. He was appointed president of Sophia University in 1999. He is the author of several publications.
Saint Peter’s College is the Jesuit College of New Jersey. Founded in 1872, Saint Peter’s has an enrollment of approximately 3,000 students in undergraduate and graduate programs. The main campus is located in Jersey City. The College has a branch campus for adults in Englewood Cliffs, NJ and also offers courses at various corporate sites at the Jersey City waterfront and in South Amboy, NJ.