As of July 2021, Flynn serves as the 19th President of St. Joseph’s College, at the University of Alberta. He has also served as the Vice-President (Academic) and Dean and is an Associate Professor of Hebrew Bible at St. Joseph's College. Dr Flynn enjoys the outdoors and time in the woods. Shawn was born in British Columbia, and has appreciated living in beautiful places. He lives in Edmonton, Alberta.
ADMINISTRATION
As an administrator, Flynn leads the College situated in the middle of a 40,000 student University of Alberta campus. With the support of three Vice-Presidents, Flynn oversees over 3000 yearly enrolments in St. Joseph’s College courses, across 60—70 University of Alberta SJC Arts courses, supported by 9 tenured/tenure track faculty, 20 sessionals, and the SJC Library integrated with the UofA and NEOS system. He also oversees over 300 student residents, dining services, campus ministry, the worshipping community through its priest chaplains (Basilians) and two chapels, as well as fundraising and advancement.
SCHOLARSHIP
Flynn's academic publishing focuses on the formation of Israelite beliefs during the Iron Age (1200-586 BCE). He employs a comparative analysis between the Hebrew Bible and its larger cultural matrix, primarily Mesopotamia.
His first monograph with Brill explored developments in the Israelite expression of God as king. He has also completed a book on children in the Hebrew Bible and Mesopotamia with Oxford University Press, compiled an edited a collection on the same topic, and has completed another book on the historical circumstances of ancient divinity for Routledge. He also has articles in peer-reviewed journals such as: Catholic Biblical Quarterly, Biblica, and Irish Theological Quarterly. In his field he has also contributed multiple essays to edited collections, and has completed 12 dictionary entries as well as 16 book reviews. Dr. Flynn also gives attention to critical scholarship's incorporation into Catholic biblical interpretation.
Dr. Flynn studied English Literature at UNBC, Biblical Studies at TWU, and began doctoral work at Trinity College Dublin, completing a PhD at the University of Toronto in the department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations. He was also a researcher in residence at the École biblique et archéologique française de Jérusalem.
