The Aquinas Institute for Catholic Life at Princeton University is pleased to announce the appointment of Jamie Boulding as our first Executive Director, beginning July 1. Jamie will lead the strategic, operational, and intellectual dimensions of Aquinas’ mission. Among his responsibilities will be deepening our relationships and collaborations with students, faculty, and alumni, and developing our programming and public-facing activities, including preparing for our centennial in 2028.
Jamie previously worked as Assistant Professor of Systematic Theology at Seton Hall University and Associate Director of the Witherspoon Institute in Princeton. He has also held management positions at technology companies in Virginia and Florida. He holds B.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. degrees in Theology from the University of Cambridge. He lives in the Princeton area with his wife and three daughters.
Jamie says, “I am delighted to be joining Aquinas at this critical stage in our operations and growth. Aquinas offers the beauty and riches of the Catholic intellectual tradition in the heart of Princeton, forming students and faculty whose influence extends to all corners of our culture. I look forward to working with Fr. Zack Swantek and the team to build on the excellent work that has been accomplished and to advance our mission as a recognized center of Catholic life and learning.”
As the pastoral core of our work continues to expand at Princeton, Aquinas will also offer thoughtful perspectives on the most important public debates of our time. Jamie notes, “Pope Leo XIV’s first encyclical on artificial intelligence calls us to protect human dignity, build authentic community, and recommit ourselves to the pursuit of truth. Aquinas is uniquely situated to give expression to these values with both pastoral sensitivity and academic rigor in the service of strengthening our culture.”
Rob Hays, Chairman of the Board, says, “Jamie is that rare combination: a scholar of genuine distinction, formed at Cambridge in theology and the sciences, with a published body of work, and a man with real-world experience in business and institutional strategy outside the academy. He knows the Princeton community and he knows what Catholic intellectual life at a great research university should aspire to be. I am confident that, with God’s blessing, his leadership will help Aquinas to grow and flourish in the years ahead.”