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Thomas S. Hibbs Appointed President of University of Dallas

Baylor University Honors College Dean to Lead UD

The University of Dallas Board of Trustees is pleased to announce that it has selected Thomas S. Hibbs, Ph.D., BA ’82 MA ’83, to serve as the university’s ninth president. The first alumnus of UD to be president, Hibbs has served as dean of the Honors College and distinguished professor of ethics and culture at Baylor University since 2003.

“We are extremely pleased to have Dr. Hibbs as our ninth president at the University of Dallas. Dr. Hibbs brings all the tools for a successful presidency. He is a phenomenal leader, a builder of complex programs, a prolific fundraiser, an academic and a scholar who has a great appreciation for the Core and for how a rigorous Catholic liberal arts education benefits not only the graduate, but society at large,” said Chairman of the Board Thomas Zellers, M.D., BA ’79. “I anticipate he will be a great role model for faculty, staff and students and will invigorate and sustain a collaborative and respectful culture on campus.”

“I am humbled and honored by this appointment, which allows me to return to the university where I first learned what Catholic liberal education is all about,” said Hibbs. “My experience at a number of other academic institutions since I left UD has only confirmed in my mind the distinctive and indispensable role of the University of Dallas in the landscape of American higher education and in Catholic education across the globe. I am especially honored to be joining a university with such a well-earned reputation for excellence in teaching, at the center of which is a faculty that combines scholarly achievement with devotion to the craft of teaching.”

“We are truly blessed to have Dr. Thomas Hibbs return to his alma mater as president. His educational history as a student, professor and administrator at top Catholic universities throughout our land and most recently at Baylor University is absolutely exceptional. I look forward to working with him and welcoming him into his role as president of the University of Dallas,” said Bishop of the Diocese of Dallas and University Chancellor Edward Burns.

Originally hailing from the D.C. suburbs, Hibbs first came to Irving in 1980 as a seminarian at Holy Trinity, after studying business for two years at the University of Maryland. A year later, he left Holy Trinity for his true calling: that of the intellectual life that he discovered at the University of Dallas.

"Being an alumnus and having been in higher education continuously since graduating from UD, I feel like I have a very good sense of where UD fits in the higher education sphere and the special, distinctive role it plays,” said Hibbs. “I know the culture and how students can be formed by it, as I certainly was during my years in Irving. I look forward to working closely with students, faculty and administrators across the university community, and with the board, parents, alumni and benefactors, to build a University of Dallas that will flourish for generations to come.”

Hibbs received a B.A. in English and an M.A. in philosophy from UD and both a master’s and a doctorate in medieval studies from the University of Notre Dame. He was a tutor at Thomas Aquinas College for three years before moving to Boston College, where he taught for 13 years as full professor and chair of the philosophy department.

“Tom Hibbs is one of the finest Catholic educators in America: a first-rate intellect wedded to administrative ability and a deep commitment to the church,” said George Weigel, distinguished senior fellow and William E. Simon chair in Catholic studies at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, as well as the father of two UD alumnae. “UD couldn’t have made a better or more exciting choice of president.”

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