The Rt. Rev. José Antonio McLoughlin was consecrated as the seventh bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Western North Carolina on October 1, 2016.  Prior to his election as bishop of the diocese of Western North Carolina, McLoughlin served as the Canon to the Ordinary and Chief-of-Staff for the Episcopal Diocese of Oklahoma since 2008. Previously, Bishop José served congregations in the dioceses of Southeast Florida and Virginia. Ordained in 2005, McLoughlin earned his Masters in Divinity from Virginia Theological Seminary and Bachelor of Arts from the University of Central Florida. Prior to his call to the priesthood, McLoughlin worked in the criminal justice field serving in the State of Florida as a police officer and in the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. in various capacities, most recently as the special assistant/senior advisor to the assistant attorney general.  Bishop José and his wife Laurel have two children, Alexander and Alyson. Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, McLoughlin is bilingual, enjoys music, playing the drums, and studying 18th century American history.