Rate My Professor William Newton

Dr. William Newton serves as Professor of Theology and Chair of the Theology Department at Franciscan University of Steubenville, where he has been on the faculty since 2013. He previously chaired the faculty for the university's Austrian Program from 2013 to 2017, attained tenure in 2016, achieved graduate faculty status in 2018, and has directed the MA in Theology program since 2019. Newton's academic journey began in the sciences with a Bachelor of Arts in Geography with Special Reference to Africa and Asia, earning first-class honours from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London in 1990, followed by a Master of Science in Remote Sensing with distinction from University College London and Imperial College London in 1992. He spent a decade in scientific research and software engineering, including roles at Earth Observation Sciences Ltd., University College London, Data Stream Ltd., and Royal Holloway University of London. Transitioning to theology, he earned a Master of Theological Studies summa cum laude from the International Theological Institute in Gaming, Austria in 2005, a PhD in Theology from the John Paul II Institute for Marriage and Family in Melbourne, Australia in 2010 with a thesis titled 'Gaudium et Spes 22 §1: a commentary from the theology of St. Thomas Aquinas,' and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology magna cum laude from the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium in 2012 with a dissertation on 'An Evaluation of the Contribution of Martin Rhonheimer to the Debate on the Moral Status of Craniotomy.'

From 2005 to 2012, Newton was Assistant Professor of Theology at the International Theological Institute in Trumau, Austria, where he also directed the Masters in Marriage and Family program from 2006 to 2009 and continues as Visiting Professor. He is an associate faculty member at Maryvale Institute in Birmingham, UK, contributing to masters programs in apologetics and marriage and family studies, and a founding member of the Aquinas Institute of Ireland. Newton's scholarly contributions include two books: A Civilization of Love: The Catholic Vision for Human Society (Gracewing, 2011) and What God Has Joined: The Biblical Foundations for Traditional Christian Sexual Morality (CreateSpace, 2015). He has authored numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals such as Anthropotes, Josephinum Journal of Theology, Linacre Quarterly, Homiletic and Pastoral Review, National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly, and New Blackfriars, addressing Catholic social teaching, moral theology, theology of marriage and family, bioethics, contraception, abortion, same-sex unions, papal encyclicals, Thomism, and the interplay of faith, science, and society. Additional works feature book chapters in volumes edited by scholars like Janet Smith and contributions to encyclopedias.