California seminary rector to resign in June after 16 years

Published: 2004-01-30

SAN FRANCISCO (CNS) -- Sulpician Father Gerald D. Coleman will resign as president-rector of St. Patrick Seminary in Menlo Park in June after serving 16 years in that post. In an announcement Jan. 12, San Francisco Archbishop William J. Levada, chancellor of St. Patrick Seminary, and Father Ronald D. Witherup, Sulpician provincial superior, said Father Coleman decided to resign at the conclusion of the spring semester. They said Father Coleman had announced earlier a long-delayed sabbatical for the coming year and this seemed an opportune time to make this decision and to prepare for an administrative transition. St. Patrick's Seminary and University is an entity of the Archdiocese of San Francisco, which is overseen by a board of trustees, composed of clergy, religious and laity and chaired by the archbishop of San Francisco. In their statement, Archbishop Levada and Father Witherup commended Father Coleman for his service as president-rector, noting that during his tenure "he oversaw the development of a new master plan for the seminary, new programs in priestly formation, a recruitment plan and a significant increase in enrollment."

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