Loras College Announces Bishop William M. Joensen to Receive Honorary Degree and Serve as Commencement Speaker

Loras College will welcome the Most Reverend William M. Joensen as the commencement speaker for its 186th graduation ceremony on May 3, 2025. During the ceremony, 301 degrees will be conferred by Loras, and Bishop Joensen will receive an honorary degree.

After graduating from Iowa State University in 1982 with a degree in zoology, Bishop Joensen experienced a reawakening of his childhood desire to become a Catholic priest. He began seminary studies at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio, where he earned a Master of Arts in moral theology. He was ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Dubuque in June 1989.

“Fr. Bill” spent eighteen years at Loras College in a variety of roles. He served as a philosophy professor, director of spiritual formation, and chair of the Division of Philosophy, Religion, and Theology. From 2010 to 2019, he was a member of the president’s cabinet as dean of campus spiritual life.

As bishop, Joensen currently oversees eighty Catholic parishes and sixteen parochial schools in central and southwest Iowa. He chairs the boards of Catholic Charities, the Catholic Foundation of Southwest Iowa, and the St. Thomas More Center. He also serves on the boards of Mercy College of Health Sciences, Biking for Babies, and chairs the Iowa Catholic Conference.

Nationally, with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Bishop Joensen is a member of several committees including the higher education working group, domestic justice and human development, and, most recently, doctrine.

After thirty years of priesthood, Fr. Joensen was appointed by Pope Francis as the tenth bishop of the Diocese of Des Moines. He was ordained to the episcopacy in September 2019 and currently resides in Des Moines, serving parishioners at St. Ambrose Cathedral.

In addition to Bishop Joensen’s honorary degree and address, Dr. Donna N. Heald, retiring provost of Loras College, will also receive an honorary degree. The student speaker for the commencement ceremony is Caroline Hutchinson (’25), a Wahlert Catholic High School graduate, creative media major, and director of communications for Loras student government.

The Loras College Commencement ceremony will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 3, at Rock Bowl Stadium on the Loras campus. The event will be streamed live at loras.edu/live. Additional commencement details are available here.