Matt Miller/The World-Herald

Jesuit Father Timothy Lannon, who began his first official day as the 24^th president of Creighton University on August 1, is the university’s first alumnus to serve as president. He is happy to return to his roots.

“I have a sense of this place,” said Fr. Lannon, who credits previous president Jesuit Father John Schlegel with being instrumental in his decision to become a Jesuit priest. “It’s been a long time since I was here. But one thing that has not changed is that students’ lives are changed here,” he said.

Lannon said he plans to take the next few months to “listen and learn” before announcing any changes or plans for the university.

“I want to get a better feel and build upon those dreams for the university,” he said.

One plan Lannon does have is to try to encourage more young men to join the Jesuit priesthood, something he actively pursued in his previous position as president of Saint Joseph’s University.

Lannon said that as a kid, the priests at his home parish in Iowa “seemed almost too holy” while the Jesuits at Creighton appealed to him. “I am a Jesuit priest first,” he said, “and a university president second.”

Read more about Lannon in the Omaha World-Herald.