The University of St. Michael’s College extends its congratulations to Professor James Ginther on his appointment as Director of the Centre for Medieval Studies (CMS) at the University of Toronto, effective July 1, 2026.
Ginther is Professor of Medieval Theology at Regis St. Michael’s Faculty of Theology and has previously served as CMS’s Associate Director and Interim Director, and as the USMC Dean of Theology.
“Jim’s appointment is a recognition of his exemplary scholarly reputation and his demonstrated leadership both at St. Michael’s and at the Centre, says Professor David Sylvester, President of St. Michael’s. “He is a wonderful colleague, teacher, and mentor who is known for his generosity with colleagues and students. His appointment bodes well for the future of medieval studies across the University of Toronto campus.”
“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to serve the community that was so pivotal in my own academic formation,” says Ginther. “I am excited to collaborate with a fantastic group of scholars who are committed to the highest quality of research and to mentoring the next generation of medievalists. Above all, I look forward to continuing the Centre’s support for its students so that they are prepared for a future career, whether that be in the academy or other sectors in Canada and around the world.”.
Ginther earned his master and doctorate degrees from CMS before being becoming a Lecturer in Medieval Christianity at the University of Leeds. By 2011, he was a Full Professor at Saint Louis University in the Department of Theological Studies and then departmental chair in 2013. He also created and directed the university’s Centre for Digital Humanities. He returned to Toronto in 2015 to serve as Dean of the University of St. Michael’s College’s Faculty of Theology and has been an Associate Fellow of the Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies since 2015. In Spring 2025, he was appointed CMS’s Acting Director and has served as its Interim Director since July 1, 2025.
For over 25 years, he has been engaged in various digital humanities research projects, including the digital tool T-PEN (Transcription for Paleographical and Editorial Notation, www.t-pen.org).
“I am delighted to hear of Professor Ginther’s appointment,” says St. Michael’s Principal and Vice President Irene Morra. “Professor Ginther is an internationally acclaimed scholar who has maintained an impressive research profile while performing a number of senior administrative roles to great success. He is a key liaison between the undergraduate program of Medieval Studies at St. Michael’s, where he serves as program coordinator and a very popular faculty member, and the Centre for Medieval Studies. He is student-focused in the most holistic sense of the term, and I am delighted that he has accepted this appointment.”
In this role, Ginther plans to continue to foster close ties between St. Michael’s undergraduate Mediaeval Studies program and graduate studies at CMS.
“The medieval studies program at St. Michael’s in one of the reasons that CMS continues to flourish and there is a good partnership there already. CMS has been developing ways to further support St. Michael’s undergraduate program, and I have been able to provide instructors for new and existing courses in the program,” he says.
As part of this appointment, Ginther looks forward to continuing to teach St. Michael’s College’s 300 level course, Imagining the World: Maps in the Middle Ages.