Agent of Change
One can enter through the doors of Bartley Hall and immediately feel the impact of Dr. Thomas “Tim” F. Monahan. Serving as Dean from 1996 to 2003, Monahan oversaw the major renovations and facility improvements to the home of VSB, a featured stop on campus for all Villanova community members and prospective student tours.
However, the transformation of VSB during Monahan’s tenure goes far beyond a physical structure.
Much of what are considered to be core elements of VSB began as initiatives under Monahan’s leadership: programs such as the Executive MBA and the Master of Accountancy, Summer Business Institute, Villanova Academic Year Business Minor, peer counselors, Wall Street Journal access, and the Dean’s Advisory Council, just to name a few. His efforts to advance Villanova’s mission continue to benefit the VSB we know today, as they will for many years to come.
“The significant changes within VSB over the past 100 years are aimed at improving student lives and focusing on service learning,” Monahan says. “Flexibility and openness to change, while maintaining our commitment to Augustinian values, is key to our ability to improve the lives of others.” For Monahan, the interaction with the students is the highlight of his time at VSB.
In recognition of his accomplishments as dean, as well as his service to the University as a member of its faculty, Monahan was named Dean Emeritus in 2013. His distinguished career at VSB spanned more than 40 years, concluding with his retirement in 2022.
Despite the numerous individual accolades he received over the years, Monahan attributes credit to a communal effort amongst faculty, staff and alumni, who taught him so many lessons over his career: “Each of us realizes that we are a small cog in this great University that dramatically impacts student lives.”
Monahan concludes, “I believe that all Villanovans, whether staff, faculty or administrators, realize that the whole is much greater than the individual parts. At VSB, when we talk about accomplishments, the correct pronoun must be we, not I.”
Thomas “Tim” F. Monahan, VSB Dean Emeritus
“I believe that all Villanovans, whether staff, faculty or administrators, realize that the whole is much greater than the individual parts. At VSB, when we talk about accomplishments, the correct pronoun must be we, not I.”