John P. Sheehy ’82 was born in Petaluma, California, and attended high school there before travelling on his own around Europe for four years. While at Reed, he was active in starting the Writing Center / Student Art Gallery and running the Poetry Forum; he was an editor of Exile, the student literary magazine and involved in other literary and theatrical activities.

He was awarded the prestigious Class of ’21 Award. Sheehy’s career has been in the publishing arena as a publisher, writer, editor, and consultant.

Heavily involved in Reed alumni affairs, he has served on the Alumni Board from 1997 to 2004, and as president in 2002-03. He received the Babson Award in 2007.

He is currently on the Board of Trustees since 2009. He served on the Presidential Search Committee in 2012, and co-chaired the strategic planning committee on admissions in 2013-14.

Sheehy was the driving force behind the Reed Oral History Project to interview Reed alumni and faculty, and both edited and wrote for The Comrades of the Quest, the book of voices interwoven into Reed’s history undertaken for the college ’s Centennial. The Project won the Babson Society Award in 2010 and both the Project and the book were awarded the Elizabeth B. Mason Project Award for 2013 from the Oral History Association.

He was featured as a narrator in the Oregon Public Broadcasting documentary “Reed College” in 2012.

Sheehy writes widely on the history and concerns of Reed College. He lives in Penngrove, California, near Petaluma, with his wife, the printer, teacher, and graphic designer, Laurie Szujewska.