Scott R. Pilarz (July 31, 1959 – March 10, 2021) was an American Jesuit priest and academic. He served two stints as president of the University of Scranton, first from 2003 to 2011 and again from 2018 until 2021. Pilarz was announced as the successor of Kevin Quinn on March 21, 2017, serving until his death in 2021. Prior to returning to Scranton, Pilarz served as the president of Marquette University and Georgetown Prep. As an academic, Pilarz was considered an expert on medieval and Renaissance literature as well as Jesuit education. Early life and education Scott Pilarz was raised by his parents, Joan and Joseph Pilarz, in Pennsauken Township, New Jersey, a suburb of Camden and Philadelphia. Pilarz has a younger sister, Susan. Pilarz graduated from Camden Catholic High School in 1977. He received a bachelor's degree in English from Georgetown University in 1981, although he had initially enrolled at Georgetown with the intention of studying politics. Pilarz became interested in the priesthood as an undergraduate student at Georgetown and put together a plan to join the Jesuits during his senior year. Pilarz elaborated on his interest in a 2010 article in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "I remember going into the library, sneaking into the stacks, looking at books about Jesuits. I wouldn't want all my friends to know I was thinking about this. It was kind of an impulse thing at the time...I thought I'd give this a shot and I did...And it felt right all the way along." Pilarz told his family of his decision to join the Jesuits after dinner at their home in Voorhees, New Jersey. He first entered the Society of Jesus in August 1981 and was ordained a Catholic priest within the Jesuit order in 1992. Pilarz later obtained a master's degree in philosophy from Fordham University. He also attended Weston School of Theology, where he received two additional master's degrees in theology and divinity. Pilarz completed his doctorate in English from the City University of New York (CUNY). His doctoral dissertation, entitled Sacerdotal Self-Fashioning: Priesthood in the Poetry of Robert Southwell, S.J., and John Donne, earned Pilarz the CUNY Alumni Achievement Prize for Dissertation Excellence in 1997. Academic career Pilarz was considered to be an expert on medieval and Renaissance literature. He taught philosophy at the Ss. Peter & Paul Seminary at the University of Ibadan in Ibadan, Nigeria while studying for