Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas was installed as Bishop of Tucson on March 7, 2003 and became Bishop Emeritus on November 29, 2017. He was appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Tucson on October 30, 2001. He was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago on January 24, 1995 and served as Episcopal Vicar of Vicariate I of the Archdiocese of Chicago. He was ordained a bishop on March 20, 1995. Bishop Kicanas is currently the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Las Cruces, New Mexico.
Ordained a priest on April 27, 1967, Bishop Kicanas has served in various capacities in the seminary system of the Archdiocese of Chicago for over 25 years, preparing men for parish ministry. He served as Religion Teacher and Counselor for five years and then Principal for ten years of a secondary school of 800 boys. In 1984 he was appointed Rector of Mundelein Seminary at the University of St. Mary of the Lake, Mundelein, Illinois, which is the theologate graduate level seminary of the Archdiocese. Concurrently, he served as a lecturer in Community and Organizational Development at Loyola University.
Over the years Bishop Kicanas has served as:
- Director of the Catholic Chaplaincy Program of the Cook County, IL Juvenile Temporary Detention Center, Chicago
- Caseworker for Catholic Charities
- Chaplain for the Chicago Parental School
- Lecturer in Clinical Psychology at Loyola University
- Episcopal Liaison to the National Association for Lay Ministry
Bishop Kicanas has served as trainer, facilitator, or lecturer in:
- Personnel / human resources development
- Leadership and human growth
- Conflict management
- Homiletics and Pastoral Ministry at the University of St. Mary of the Lake
He conducts Retreats and missions in many dioceses in the U.S.
Bishop Kicanas is currently Vice Chancellor of the Catholic Extension Society, and Chair of the Mission Committee. Bishop Kicanas is the Chair of the National Catholic Education Association [NCEA]. He is a member of the USCCB Communications Committee; the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC Board), the Catholic Education Committee, the Subcommittee on Africa, the Subcommittee for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development., the Subcommittee on Hispanic Affairs, and the Subcommittee on Certification for Ecclesial Ministry and Service.
Bishop Kicanas is the former Vice President of the USCCB and the former Secretary of the USCCB. Bishop Kicanas is the former Chair of the Board of Directors of Catholic Relief Services, (CRS), and a former member of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Administrative Committee; former member of the National Advisory Council; a former member of the USCCB Budget and Finance Committee; a former member of the Committee for Migration; former chair of the Communications Committee; former Chair of the Sub-Committee for Lay Ecclesial Ministry; former chair of the Diaconate Committee; former member of the committee for the Laity; former member of Liturgy, Priestly Formation and Doctrine Committees, as well as the National Advisory Council.
Bishop Kicanas is the former Chair of the Board of the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA); Bishop Kicanas was a member of the Board of Directors of the National Pastoral Life Center; a former member of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC). Bishop Kicanas is the recipient of an honorary Doctorate in Humanities from Lewis University in 2010, and an honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Notre Dame, 2011, and an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from St. Xavier University, Chicago, 2019. Bishop Kicanas was the recipient of the Cardinal Joseph Bernardin Award in 2008. Bishop Kicanas received the Bishop John England Award from the Catholic Press Association in 2018.
Educational credentials include post-graduate work in several areas, as well as a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology, a M.Ed. in Guidance and Counseling from Loyola University, and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology from St. Mary of the Lake Seminary, Mundelein, IL.
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