Dates

• Existence: 1956-

Biography

Harry James "Jim" Towey II was born in Indiana in 1956. Within his first year of life, his family moved to Jacksonville, Florida. He attended Florida State University, earning his bachelor’s degree in 1978, and a law degree in 1981. He came to Washington, D.C., to take part in the founding of a religious educational institute, which never materialized. He briefly served as an aide to Florida Senator Lawton Chiles, but soon moved to Senator Mark Hatfield’s office. He was a legislative assistant for Hatfield from 1982 to 1984, then legislative director until 1988. In 1992, he and Mary Sarah Griffith were married; they later had five children. He also served as legal counsel to Mother Theresa from 1985 to 1997, was secretary for the Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services from 1993 to 1995; led the non-profit organization Aging with Dignity from 1996 to 2002, was director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives from 2002 to 2006, was president of St. Vincent College from 2006 to 2010; and was president and CEO of Ave Maria University from 2011 to 2020.

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