Earlier this year, Dr. Patricia Sharbaugh ‘99 was honored at PTS Alumnae/i Days as the 2022 recipient of the PTS Distinguished Alumna in Academia Award.
Area of Concentration: Biblical Theology
Patty is an associate professor of biblical theology at Saint Vincent College, where she has taught since 2006. She holds a bachelor of arts in business economics from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, a masters of divinity from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from Duquesne University. The title of her dissertation was Uncovering the Roots of the Crucified God: How Walter Brueggemann’s Old Testament Theology Challenges and Contributes to Jürgen Moltmann’s and Jon Sobrino’s Interpretations of the Cross.
Patty specializes in the field of biblical theology, where her engagement in theological questions begins with a critical study of Scripture. She then seeks to bring that into conversation with systematic theology and contemporary theological themes. Her research interests include: Christology in the Gospel of Matthew, Jewish-Christian dialogue, the theology of the cross, and the study of women in Scripture.
In addition to teaching at St. Vincent, Patricia has also been an instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University (2009), Seton Hill University (2008), and Duquesne University (2005). At both Duquesne University and Pittsburgh Seminary she served as a teaching assistant. She is frequently an instructor or presenter at academic conferences and local faith communities.
Honors and Awards
Patty is the recipient of numerous academic honors and awards in both business economics and biblical studies, including three awards as a student at PTS: the Henry A. Riddle Award for Graduate Study, the John Watson Prize in New Testament Greek, and the Fred McFeely Rogers Prize in Biblical Studies. She is a member of the College Theology Society, the Catholic Theological Society of America, and the Catholic Biblical Association.
Author and Blogger
Patty has written and published many articles and book reviews, and is the author of Irrepressible Light: The Women of the New Testament (Paulist Press, 2019). She maintains a blog of her writings called Everyday Spirituality.
In addition to teaching at St. Vincent, Patty has also been an instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University (2009), Seton Hill University (2008), and Duquesne University (2005). At both Duquesne University and Pittsburgh Seminary she served as a teaching assistant. She is frequently an instructor or presenter at academic conferences and local faith communities.
Personal Life
As an undergraduate at Pitt-Johnstown, Patty competed as a gymnast. In 1982 she became the school’s first ever National Champion Gymnast. She was inducted into the school’s Athletics Hall of Fame in 2010.
Patty lives with her husband in Ligonier, Pa., and enjoys spending time with their three grown children.