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Though former SU President Stephen Sundborg, S.J., was scheduled to return to campus July 1 as chancellor, he arrived early, taking up residence at Arrupe House and once again in the community of his fellow Jesuits. 

“In the Jesuit tradition, there's something we call consolation,” says Father Sundborg, who is affectionately known on campus as “Father Steve.” “It is really a kind of joy that bubbles up from within. And I just felt that walking around. I'm back home. So, it's great to be here.”

He adds: “I love the mountains. I love the water. I'm a Northwest guy.”

Fr. Sundborg served as president of Seattle University from 1997 to 2021, a period described by current President Eduardo Peñalver as “a remarkable period of growth, innovation, and transformation.” 

In the three years he was away from campus, he took a sabbatical and for the last two years assisted the president of Georgetown University to build capacity for communal discernment with senior leadership, a goal he has set for his chancellorship at SU.

The role of chancellor itself is not a new one. In fact, Fr. Sundborg’s predecessor, William Sullivan, S.J., held the position for nine years after Fr. Sundborg took over as president. 

“Part of my work will be maintaining the connection with the friends of Seattle University that I know from my years of having been the president,” says Fr. Sundborg. “It's good to have someone who is a Jesuit who on certain occasions can be a representative.”

First arriving on campus in 1982 to teach theology, Fr. Sundborg has since then been a near constant presence, except for six years away as the Provincial of the Oregon Province Jesuits. During his time on the East Coast he says he missed the informality and familiarity of SU.

“I think students and others here, we take you for who you are.”

He has also resumed his practice of walking—in particular, around Green Lake early in the morning.

“I listen to the morning news and then I walk the lake. And I used to do it every Saturday and Sunday when I was president. But now I've got a little bit more time, so I can do it more frequently than that,” he says. “I wouldn't say it's a form of prayer, but it is some form of letting your mind sort itself out. There's something about that, just that sort of contemplative, meditative walking.”

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Father Steve’s Summer Book Recommendations

Always a voracious reader, Fr. Sundborg shares a list of recommended summer reading, showing the breadth of his interests, including his love of poetry.

All the Beauty in the World: The Metropolitan Museum and Me by Patrick Bringley
“A museum guard’s story of working at the MET. Love it if you love living with art.”

One Long River of Song: Notes on Wonder by Brian Doyle
"The late University of Portland author’s inspiring essays."

On Call: A Doctor’s Journey in Public Service by Anthony Fauci, M.D.
“A great story of the career of a great man of service who was Jesuit-educated.”

G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century by Beverly Gage
“Understanding a complex man and his times; he was once the most popular man in America!”

An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960s by Doris Kearns Goodwin
“Memoir of Doris and biography of her husband, Dick Goodwin. Fantastic!”

The Afternoon of Christianity: The Courage to Change by Tomas Halik 
“The most talked- about book in the Catholic Church; A vision of our times and future. Not for beginners.”

Kindest Regards: Poems Selected and New by Ted Kooser 
“A favorite poet of mine; acute observer, easy-access poems.”

Over My Dead Body: Unearthing the Hidden History of America’s Cemeteries by Greg Melville 
“If you like cemeteries—I do!—and American history, this book is for you.”

Father and Son by Jonathan Raban 
“The late Seattle writer, British, about recovering from his stroke and recovering his father through his WWII letters.” 

The Universal Christ. How a Forgotten Reality Can Change Everything We See, Hope for and Believe by Richard Rohr 
“My first plunge into Richard Rohr. (This) his major, recent work.”

Read more about Father Steve's chancellorship in the fall edition of Seattle University Magazine out in November.