By Jeff Fish, Ethan M. Long, and Derek J. Anderson

One week from today, Suffolk’s new president, James McCarthy will begin his tenure at the university more than a year after David Sargent retired. The Journal spoke with McCarthy in a phone interview Monday about his plans for Suffolk moving forward.

“I think on a general level what I need to do is make sure that we preserve all those wonderful things about Suffolk’s history and its mission, and we enhance those as much as we possibly can,” said McCarthy.

“We have to reconfirm who we are, what our mission is, we have to ask what our focus should be,” he said. “The first thing on my agenda is launching and then quickly completing a strategic planning process so that we answer some of those fundamental questions – set the direction that we should follow.”

Board of Trustees Chairman Andrew Meyer said that McCarthy has “all the qualities we’ve been looking for in a new president. We’re very optimistic about his ability to effectively lead this university into the next generation.”

McCarthy, born in Waterbury, Conn., spent time in Massachusetts while pursuing a bachelor’s degree in sociology at Worcestor’s College of the Holy Cross before spending time at Indiana University (Masters) and Princeton University (Ph.D). He’s worked many jobs since then, whether it be a research associate, visiting academic, or professor of public health at Columbia. Most recently, he served as Dean of the School of Health and Human Services at the University of New Hampshire and later Provost at Baruch College, a member of New York’s CUNY system.

“He has the perfect combined elements of understanding Suffolk and its students in a way that will really resonate to help us move forward and achieve even more success,” said Provost Barry Brown, who has served as Suffolk’s acting president since Sargent’s retirement.

“[He has a] substantial background in urban education. Baruch mirrors Suffolk and the needs of our students,” said Brown. “He’s led that school as provost and senior vice president, led school to increasing levels of national prominence. [He’s] sensitive to the needs of students in the college [of arts and sciences], the business school, and the law school. [He will] lead us to a period of exciting and dynamic growth.”

McCarthy applied for the position at Suffolk last summer.

“I was very interested in coming to Suffolk because of it’s long history of outstanding urban education. What attracts me to Suffolk I think are probably two things,” said McCarthy. “One is the combination of professional and arts and sciences education that characterizes the university. I’m really excited about the fact that Suffolk has a business school, a law school, and a school of arts and sciences. I spent my whole career in professional education, but all my training is in arts and sciences. I really see great value in the way Suffolk is structured. Second reason goes back into the founding of the university. It was founded to provide opportunity to people for whom access to higher education for any one of a number of reasons was closed off.”

When Suffolk was first founded by Gleason L. Archer in 1906, the classes took place in his parlor room — admitting anyone. In those days, area schools had a history denying admittance to immigrants.

“So I think that history of providing opportunity is a noble history, and that’s very attractive,” said McCarthy. “If you will, a kind

of mission, history, and location that are what really attracted me to Suffolk.”

As an institution that has been voted in the top 10 best schools for international students by U.S. News and World Reports, a candidate with worldly experience is ideal. McCarthy not only worked in Dublin, Ireland, but in many other countries as well. His professional career has taken him to the every continent except Australia and Antarctica, spending time in the Middle East, Egypt, Lebanon, Belgium, England, as well as a lot spent in Latin America. Until his appointment as a Dean at the University of New Hampshire, McCarthy figures about half of his entire career was spent globally.

Suffolk, smack dab in the middle of the city’s financial and government center, spreads itself out throughout every community and neighborhood through its students.

“I think both in the academic realm and in the student life realm, Suffolk should spend a lot of time capitalizing on its location. I really do see the location as so important,” said McCarthy. “I have a strong belief that there’s no one way to accomplish any one thing, so I’d like to make sure Suffolk provides lots of opportunities to get involved in Boston, either through courses, through student life issues, or through internships — which I know are extensive — or through opportunities to get to meet people in Boston industries.”

McCarthy cited a number of programs at Suffolk that can attract people from around the city, including Suffolk’s Political Research Center, which has become well known in recent years for its accurate polling, and was featured every day on 7 News in the 10 days leading up to the New Hampshire primary.

“Everybody in Boston — everyone in the country — knew about Suffolk polls. The university got great press for that,” said McCarthy. But Suffolk’s external out-pour is balanced by a number of programs open to anyone, including the Ford Hall Forum series — where Bill Murray is scheduled to appear this semester, according to their official website — as well as the events being held all the time at the University’s recently renovated Modern Theatre. “We ought to be supporting programs that bring Boston residents to us.”

McCarthy will take the helm at Suffolk, closing a chapter that was marred by controversy surrounded by President Sargent’s salary, but he is committed to remaining positive.

“It’s very clear that Suffolk has had the great advantage throughout its history of having wonderful people lead it for long periods of time and David Sargent was clearly one of those people,” said McCarthy. “He was responsible for the transformation of the university from a Boston Institution to a global institution. There were undoubtedly issues that arose but those are things that I don’t really know about, but what I want to focus on is the very positive history of the university and the people who contributed to that and I want to carry those legacies forward.”

Suffolk students Jake Pitochelli and Brian Carey were optimistic when the Journal asked them about the university getting a new president.

“I think it’s a welcome change, I think it’s exciting. I hope he can bring about some new perspectives, maybe bring good press to Suffolk,” said Pitochelli.

Carey said, “I’m hoping he can hopefully organize the university a little bit better. Make the organization a little more comprehensive, a little easier to understand from an outsider’s perspective.”

SGA President Megan Caron was unavailable for comment.

Perhaps the most important question of all in Boston right now — is McCarthy, who is moving from New York, a Giants fan?

The answer was a resounding “No!” McCarthy is a Patriots fan, who, if all goes well during Super Bowl XLVI, will be moving to Boston at the perfect time.