Michael Scanlan (priest)

A revelation came about in late 2018 that a former chaplain at Franciscan of Steubenville, Father Sam Tiesi, had engaged in years-long abuse of women at the university. It has been reported by multiple victims that they made Father Scanlan aware but he did nothing or, in at least one case, verbally assaulted the accuser. Instead of dealing with the abuse he participated in covering up and silencing those who would report his close friend, Father Tiesi.

After 26 years as president of the university, Scanlan stepped down in 2000. The board of trustees for the university, however, asked him to take the position of chancellor. He accepted, and maintained a lively presence on the campus until his retirement in 2011. Scanlan returned to Loretto and resided at the Sacred Heart Province motherhouse until his death. Scanlan died on January 7, 2017, after a long illness.

Scanlan orchestrated numerous other beneficial changes to the university. He instituted an Oath of Fidelity to the Magisterium, which was required of the theology professors at the university. Under his guidance, the undergraduate theology program became the largest of any Roman Catholic university in America. He also created the Human Life Studies minor, the only one of its kind in America. By 2000, Scanlan's leadership and changes had helped the university to increase dramatically in size; there were more than 2,100 students, nearly double the amount in the early 1970s.

Scanlan was a prolific figure in the charismatic covenant community movement, acting in leadership roles in the Sword of the Spirit and Word of God (community). Scanlan led the covenant community group Servants of Christ the King, until he was requested to step down in 1991 at the behest of Bishop Albert Ottenweller, following concerns that the group had been influenced by elements in the Word of God (community) and Sword of the Spirit organisations, where leadership was said to be "excessively controlling members lives, including their marital relations and finances".

Despite these difficulties, Scanlan continued to make changes, especially to the curriculum. Scanlan reintroduced a theology program, which quickly became the top major at the college. Scanlan also oversaw the development of graduate programs in business and theology, which helped the college win the title of university in 1980. In addition, the nursing program rose to distinction. It was chartered by the state government of Ohio in 1984 and then received accreditation from the National League of Nursing in 1985.

After five years at the college, Scanlan accepted the position of rector at St. Francis Seminary, where he had begun his seminary formation. At the seminary, Scanlan began a charismatic renewal based on prayer and community. He encouraged strong personal prayer among the seminarians and emphasized the importance of spiritual direction. Scanlan also helped the seminarians to bond with each other through the use of small prayer groups. The renewal yielded mixed results; the small prayer groups were well attended, but the idea of charismatic personal prayer was not well accepted. Despite some visible successes, St. Francis Seminary was closed in 1978 due to a lack of interest in the Franciscan order.

In 1974, Scanlan left the St. Francis Seminary and returned to the College of Steubenville, this time to fill the position of president. Since Scanlan had left the school in July 1969, it had declined greatly in enrollment and revenue. As president, Scanlan aimed to institute a charismatic renewal similar to the one at St. Francis Seminary. Scanlan took over the Sunday liturgy on the campus, incorporating charismatic praise and worship and passionate preaching into the Mass. He instituted households, small groups of men and women devoted to personal and communal growth, and required students to join one. Scanlan also created a renewal center on the campus, which organized retreats and seminars to further instruct students in the Roman Catholic faith. The center began holding religious conferences in the summers, which attracted many young people to the college. Scanlan often spoke at these conferences.

Scanlan was ordained in May 1964, taking the name Fr. Theophane Scanlan, T.O.R., offering his first Mass, before family and friends, at St. Joseph's Church in Garden City, New York. A reception was held at the Garden City home of his aunt and uncle Gloria and Frank Polignani. As a new priest, Father Michael desired to become a missionary, but his superiors would not allow it. He was disappointed, but he returned to prayer and maintained an open mind about his future.

In May 1964, Scanlan was offered the position of academic dean at the College of Steubenville in Steubenville, Ohio. He accepted, and took the position in August 1964. As academic dean, Scanlan's primary responsibility was restructuring the dwindling academic program.

He began his seminary formation at the St. Francis Seminary in Loretto, Pennsylvania, in September 1957. A year later, he traveled to Washington, D.C., where he began his novitiate. The majority of his seminary training was spent in philosophy, theology, and Latin courses, which helped him to confirm his vocation.

Scanlan graduated from Harvard Law School and immediately received job offers from legal and political circles. However, he needed to complete his military service in the Air Force before he could consider taking a job. He served as a lawyer in the Judge Advocate Corps of the Air Force. He did not lose a single case during his first year. This success won him a position as a certified Judge Advocate in 1956.

Vincent Michael Scanlan, T.O.R. (December 1, 1931 – January 7, 2017) was a Catholic priest of the Franciscan Third Order Regular. He was responsible for the revival of the College of Steubenville, now known as Franciscan University of Steubenville. Scanlan served the university for 26 years as president and then 11 years as chancellor, before retiring in 2011. He resided at the Sacred Heart Province motherhouse in Loretto, Pennsylvania, prior to his death on January 7, 2017.

Scanlan was born on December 1, 1931, in Cedarhurst, New York, a small village on the South Shore of Long Island, to Margaret O'Keefe Scanlan and Vincent Scanlan. When he was three, his parents separated. His father moved to Mexico, while his mother remarried and moved to New York City. Scanlan remained with his mother in New York and was heavily affected by the social and cultural dispositions of New York City. The community that Scanlan was raised in was predominantly lower-class Irish families; because of this, he grew to despise the rich. However, his parents and his stepfather were all concerned with success, especially monetary success, and they tried to force this mentality upon Scanlan. He adopted this disposition and began seeking perfection in his academics, athletics, and social life. This attitude did not last long; Scanlan's restless nature never allowed him to do the same thing for too long. In his autobiographical work, Let the Fire Fall, Scanlan stated: "I decided that I could do anything, but not everything. I could live with lower grades if my goal for the semester was to become captain of the tennis team, as I did in prep school, or to become socially popular, as I strived to do in college. If a course bored me, I would settle for a 'B'."