Catholic Relief Services President and CEO Speak Providence College
Providence, R.I. – Providence College School of Business (PCSB) and the Office of Mission and Ministry present the second annual PCSB Dean’s Symposium – “Laudato Si”: I am Climate Change, by Dr. Carolyn Woo, president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services (CRS), on Thursday, March 17, 2016, from 4:00 p.m. to 5:15 p.m., in Slavin Center, ’64 Hall (reception to immediately follow).
Since 2012, Dr. Woo has been the head of CRS, the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. Prior to this position, she had a distinguished academic career, in which she served as dean of the University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business and, before that, as associate executive vice president for academic affairs at Purdue University.
Dr. Woo was born and raised in Hong Kong, and immigrated to the United States to attend Purdue University, where she received her bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate degrees, and joined the faculty. Her teaching, research, and administrative leadership have been recognized through Best Paper Awards by the Academy of Management-selection as one of 40 Young Leaders of American Academe by Change Magazine; the journal of the American Association for Higher Education; distinguished alumna and honorary alumna by Purdue University and University of Notre Dame; as well as the conferral of honorary doctorates from Providence College, Loyola University of Maryland, Manhattan College, Wake Forest University, the University of Notre Dame, and others.
Dr. Woo was the first female dean to chair the accreditation body for business schools – AACSB: Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business—and directed its Peace Through Commerce initiative. She helped launch the Principles for Responsible Management Education for the United Nations Global Compact.
From 2004 to 2010, Dr. Woo served on the Board of Directors of CRS. Her current board service includes Aileron Foundation; Catholic University of America; Archdiocese of Baltimore Independent Child Abuse Review Board; Migration & Refugee Services, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops; and the International Policy Committee, United States of Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Dr. Woo was one of five presenters in Rome at the release of Pope Francis’ encyclical on the environment in June 2015. Her faith journey and work at CRS are recounted in her book, Working for a Better World, published in 2015 by Our Sunday Visitor.
Representing CRS, Dr. Woo was featured in the May/June 2013 issue of Foreign Policy as one of the 500 Most Powerful People on the planet and one of only 33 in the category of “a force for good.” Dr. Woo’s Catholic News Service monthly column took first place in the 2013 Catholic Press Association Awards in the category of Best Regular Column – Spiritual Life.
Providence College participates in fair trade education and activism. From CRS Fair Trade Sales during the holidays to educational events throughout the year, the College supports fair trade and many other CRS initiatives. Since opening the College’s Dunkin Donuts café (on campus) in 2012, all of its commissions, totaling $69,000 (through August 2015), have been donated to CRS’ Fair Trade Coffee program.
