Sophia Institute Press names new president

Nov 14, 2012 / 02:01 am

The New Hampshire-based Sophia Institute Press has named its current CEO, Charlie McKinney, as its new president.

McKinney, the publisher's chief operating officer since April 2011, helped restore the press' financial viability. He said he is "honored" to be entrusted with the task of "building and expanding one of America's great Catholic publishing houses."

"Through our various apostolates and programs ... we are seeking to build and inform a Catholic laity that is actively redeeming the culture amidst the aggressive modernity that confronts it," he said Nov. 12.

The press became the publishing division of New Hampshire's Thomas More College of Liberal Arts and of Atlanta's Holy Spirit College in 2011. It is independent of the colleges and of the Catholic Church, with an office and warehouse in Bedford, N.H.

Sophia Institute acquired Crisis Magazine and www.CatholicExchange.com in two separate agreements this year.

McKinney said that Sophia Institute must incorporate "new ways to help Catholics integrate Church teachings into their daily lives."

"We will continue to grow our book division as we also serve as an online source for Catholic commentary, devotions, and other spiritual and practical resources," he said.

McKinney succeeds John Barger, who founded Sophia Institute Press in 1988 to publish and distribute Catholic classics and new works. It has published more than 200 titles and 2.5 million books.

He said Barger is "a remarkable man" who "sacrificed a lifetime in order to bring the truths of our Catholic Faith to the world."

McKinney will become full-time president of the press.