Bishop Foys of Covington, Ky., retires; Illinois priest named successor

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Bishop Roger J. Foys of Covington, Kentucky, and named as his successor Father John C. Iffert, currently vicar general and moderator of the curia for the Diocese of Belleville, Illinois.
Bishop Foys, who has headed the Diocese of Covington since 2002, is 75, the age at which canon law requires bishops to turn in their resignation to the pope. The bishop turns 76 July 27.
The changes were announced July 13 in Washington by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio.
Bishop-designate Iffert, 53, was ordained a priest for the Belleville Diocese June 7, 1997, by then-Bishop Wilton D. Gregory.
After high school and before he entered the seminary, the bishop-designate studied political science and economics at Illinois State University and upon graduation in 1988, he accepted a fellowship with the state of Illinois and worked as an analyst in Illinois' Bureau of the Budget.