TALLAHASSEE, FL – Michael B. Sheedy has assumed the position of executive director for the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops, effective January 1, 2014. He was appointed to the position by the bishops of Florida upon the retirement of D. Michael McCarron.
Sheedy joined the Florida bishops' conference in 2002 and most recently served as director of public policy, advocating on behalf of the Catholic Church and Catholic health ministries in legislative and regulatory matters. As executive director, Sheedy will organize and administer the work of the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops on behalf of the bishops of Florida, who comprise its board of directors. He will continue to serve as a direct liaison with Florida's legislative and executive branches of government, as well as state agencies. He will also lead conference staff in analyzing the moral dimensions of public policies and in advocating for the defense of human life and dignity and the protection of the common good in Florida law.
"Michael Sheedy has proven to be a capable and effective representative of the bishops of Florida in his previous positions at the conference, and his skills and talents will continue to serve the bishops well in his new role," said Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski of Miami, president of the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops. "The bishops of Florida look forward to the contributions Mr. Sheedy will make to our conference and to our great state on our behalf."
Prior to his work at the bishops' conference, Sheedy served as vice president, mission integration for CHRISTUS Coushatta Health Care Center in Coushatta, Louisiana and administrative resident and fellow at St. Vincent's Hospital in Birmingham, Alabama. In 1992, early in his career, he spent the year as a volunteer with Catholic Volunteers in Florida.
Sheedy currently serves as a member of the Catholic Health Association State Executives Committee (2002-present) and the Florida Covering Kids and Families Coalition (2007-present). Previously, he served on the Department of Elder Affairs "Committee for a Lifetime" Grant Selection Committee (2012) and the Governor's Council of Homelessness Barriers and Support Committee (2003-2004). He was also a member of the U.S. Bishops' Ad Hoc Committee on Health Care Advisory Council (2004-2007).
Sheedy earned a Master of Science in Health Administration from Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas and a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from Notre Dame Seminary, New Orleans, Louisiana. He received his Bachelor of Arts from University of Notre Dame, Indiana.
Sheedy moved to Tallahassee in 1974 and is a graduate of Trinity Catholic School (1982) and Maclay School (1986). Sheedy, his wife Dana and their son reside in Tallahassee and are parishioners of Good Shepherd Catholic Church.
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The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops is an agency of the Catholic Bishops of Florida. It speaks for the Church in matters of public policy and serves as liaison to the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government. The archbishop and bishops of the seven (arch)dioceses in Florida constitute its board of directors.