William Joseph McDonald

William Joseph McDonald (June 17, 1904 – January 7, 1989) was an Irish-born bishop of the Catholic Church in the United States. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Washington in the District of Columbia from 1964 to 1967 and the Archdiocese of San Francisco in California from 1967 to 1979. He also served as rector of Catholic University of America from 1957 to 1967.

Biography

Early life William McDonald was born on June 17, 1904, in Kilkenny in County Kilkenny, then part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

Priesthood McDonald was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of San Francisco at St. Mary's Cathedral in Kilkenny by Bishop James J. Roche on June 10, 1928.

From 1960 to 1963, McDonald served as editor-in-chief of the New Catholic Encyclopedia, then as president of the International Federation of Catholic Universities.

Curran's dismissal was met with anger by the faculty and the student body. The faculty had been chafing on the restrictions of the university; it had previously called for the abolishment of the post of rector, to be replaced by a secular president. Within a few days, all of the schools at CUA had gone on strike. As the board reconsidered its decision, McDonald joined a group of board members that wanted to rehire Curran. On April 24, the board surrendered and Curran was rehired.