List of presidents of Georgetown University

The Office of the President is housed in Healy Hall.

Georgetown University is a private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States that was founded as Georgetown College by Bishop John Carroll of Baltimore in 1789. ^[2] The president of Georgetown University is its chief executive officer, ^[3] and from its establishment until the 1960s was also the rector of the university's Jesuit community. ^[4] The president is elected by and may be removed by the university's board of directors, and is ex officio a member of the board. The president is also one of five members of the university's legal corporation, ^[3] known as the President and Directors of Georgetown College, which was first chartered by the United States Congress in 1815. ^[5]

The president is charged with control over the "business affairs and properties" of the university, and appoints the vice presidents and administrators and, with the concurrence of the board, appoints the provost, secretary, and treasurer of the university. The president may remove any officer, vice president, or administrator by his accord, except the provost, secretary, and treasurer, which require the concurrence of the board. If the office is vacant, then the powers of the presidency are exercised by the provost. ^[3] The president is among the 100 highest-paid university presidents in the United States. ^[6]

Of the 41 individuals to have held the office, nearly all have been Jesuits. ^[4] Only one has been a member of another religious order while president: Louis William Valentine DuBourg, who was a Sulpician. ^[7] Three presidents have gone on to become bishops: DuBourg, ^[7] Leonard Neale, ^[8] and Benedict Joseph Fenwick. ^[9] Every president has been a Catholic priest except one, John J. DeGioia. ^[4] Having assumed office on July 1, 2001, ^[10] DeGioia is the university's longest-serving president. ^[4] He stepped down on November 21, 2024. ^[11]

Presidents

Key

SJ	Society of Jesus
PSS	Society of the Priests of Saint Sulpice

Presidents

No.	Image	Name	Years	Notes	Ref.
1		Robert Plunkett SJ	1791 (1791)–1793		[12]
2		Robert Molyneux SJ	1793–1796	Superior of the Jesuit Maryland Mission (1805–1808) [13]	[12]
3		Louis William Valentine DuBourg PSS	1796–1798	Founder and President of St. Mary's College (1799–1810); Bishop of Louisiana and the Two Floridas (1815–1826); Bishop of Montauban (1826–1833); Archbishop of Besançon (1833). [7]	[12]
4		Leonard Neale SJ	1798–1806	Coadjutor Bishop of Baltimore (1795–1815); Archbishop of Baltimore (1815–1817) [8]	[12]
5		Robert Molyneux SJ	1806–1808		[12]
6		Francis Neale SJ	1808–1809	Acting president	[12]
7		William Matthews	1809	President of the Washington Seminary (1824–1848). [14] Georgetown alumnus. [15] Was a Jesuit novice only for the duration of his presidency. [14]	[12]
8		Francis Neale SJ	1809–1812		[12]
9		Giovanni Antonio Grassi SJ	1812–1817	Superior of the Jesuit Maryland Mission (1812–1817); Provincial Superior of the Jesuit Province of Turin (1831–1835); Rector of the Pontificio Collegio Urbano de Propaganda Fide (1840–1842). [16] Sometimes referred to as Georgetown's "second founder." [17]	[12]
10		Benedict Joseph Fenwick SJ	1817	Bishop of Boston (1825–1846). [9] Georgetown alumnus. [18]	[12]
11		Anthony Kohlmann SJ	1817–1820	Apostolic Administrator of New York (1810–1815); Superior of the Jesuit Maryland Mission (1817–1819); [19] President of the Washington Seminary (1820–1824). [20]	[12]
12		Enoch Fenwick SJ	1820–1825	Georgetown alumnus [21]	[12]
13		Benedict Joseph Fenwick SJ	1825	Acting president	[12]
14		Stephen Larigaudelle Dubuisson SJ	1825–1826	Georgetown alumnus [22]	[12]
15		William Feiner SJ	1826–1829		[12]
16		John W. Beschter SJ	1829		[12]
17		Thomas F. Mulledy SJ	1829–1838	Provincial Superior of the Jesuit Maryland Province (1837–1840); [13] President of the College of the Holy Cross (1843–1845). [23] Georgetown alumnus. [24]	[12]
18		William McSherry SJ	1838–1839	Provincial Superior of the Jesuit Maryland Province (1833–1837, 1839). [13] Georgetown alumnus. [25]	[12]
19		Joseph A. Lopez SJ	1839–1840	Acting president. First Latin American college president in the United States. [26]	[12]
20		James A. Ryder SJ	1840–1845	Provincial Superior of the Jesuit Maryland Province (1843–1845); [13] President of the College of the Holy Cross (1845–1848); President of Saint Joseph's College (1856–1857). [27] Georgetown alumnus. [28]	[12]
21		Samuel Mulledy SJ	1845	Georgetown alumnus [29]	[12]
22		Thomas F. Mulledy SJ	1845–1848		[12]
23		James A. Ryder SJ	1848–1851		[12]
24		Charles H. Stonestreet SJ	1851–1852	Provincial Superior of the Jesuit Maryland Province (1852–1858); [13] President of Gonzaga College (1858–1860). [30] Georgetown alumnus. [31]	[12]
25		Bernard A. Maguire SJ	1852–1858	Georgetown alumnus [32]	[12]
26		John Early SJ	1858–1865	President of the College of the Holy Cross (1848–1851); President of Loyola College in Maryland (1852–1858, 1866–1870). [33] Georgetown alumnus. [34]	[12]
27		Bernard A. Maguire SJ	1866–1870		[12]
28		John Early SJ	1870–1873		[12]
29		Patrick Francis Healy SJ	1873–1882	Self-identified as white but posthumously recognized as the first black American to become a Jesuit, earn a Ph.D. and become the president of a predominantly white American university. [35] Sometimes referred to as Georgetown's "second founder." [36]	[12]
30		James A. Doonan SJ	1882–1888	Georgetown alumnus [37]	[12]
31		J. Havens Richards SJ	1888–1898		[12]
32		John D. Whitney SJ	1898–1901		[38]
33		Jerome Daugherty SJ	1901–1905		[38]
34		David Hillhouse Buel SJ	1905–1908		[38]
35		Joseph J. Himmel SJ	1908–1912	Rector of St. Andrew-on-Hudson (1915–1921) [39]	[38]
36		Alphonsus J. Donlon SJ	1912–1918	Georgetown alumnus [40]	[38]
37		John B. Creeden SJ	1918–1924		[38]
38		Charles W. Lyons SJ	1924–1928	Rector of Gonzaga College (1908–1909); President of Saint Joseph's College (1909–1914); President of Boston College (1914–1919) [41]	[38]
39		W. Coleman Nevils SJ	1928–1935	President of the University of Scranton (1942–1947) [42]	[38]
40		Arthur A. O'Leary SJ	1935–1942		[38]
41		Lawrence C. Gorman SJ	1942–1949		[38]
42		J. Hunter Guthrie SJ	1949–1952		[38]
43		Edward B. Bunn SJ	1952–1964	President of Loyola College in Maryland (1938–1947) [43]	[44]
44		Gerard J. Campbell SJ	1964–1968		[44]
45		Robert J. Henle SJ	1969–1976		[44]
46		Timothy S. Healy SJ	1976–1989	President of the New York Public Library (1989–1992) [45]	[44]
47		Leo J. O'Donovan SJ	1989–2001	Georgetown alumnus [46]	[44]
48		John J. DeGioia	2001–2024	First lay president of a Jesuit university in the United States. [47] Georgetown alumnus. [4]	[48]

See also

• History of Georgetown University
• Jesuits in the United States
• List of Georgetown University faculty

References

Citations

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3. "Bylaws of the President and Georgetown College". Georgetown University. Archived from the original on December 1, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
4. Hinchliffe, Emma (August 26, 2014). "13 Years In, DeGioia Outlasts Predecessors in President's Office". The Hoya . Archived from the original on July 11, 2018. Retrieved November 29, 2018.
5. "Charter of the University". Georgetown University. Archived from the original on July 8, 2018. Retrieved November 29, 2018.
6. O'Loughlin, Michael J. (December 15, 2017). "The Highest-Paid Catholic College Presidents". America. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
7. Chambon 1909
8. McNeal 1911
9. Meehan 1907
10. "Biography". Georgetown University. Archived from the original on July 10, 2018. Retrieved November 29, 2018.
11. "President DeGioia To Become President Emeritus of Georgetown". Georgetown University, University News. Retrieved September 15, 2025.
12. Curran 1993 , p. 404
13. Ramspacher 1962 , p. 300
14. Buckley 2013 , p. 101
15. Hinkel 1957 , p. 36
16. Pizzorusso, Giovanni (2002). "Grassi, Giovanni Antonio". Enciclopedia Italiana di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti (in Italian). Vol. 58. Treccani. Archived from the original on November 19, 2018. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
17. Horgan 1964 , p. 12
18. O'Connor 1998 , p. 42
19. Meehan 1910
20. Hill 1922 , p. 17
21. Curran 1993 , p. 40
22. Cline 2004 , p. 679
23. "Rev. Thomas F. Mulledy, S.J." College of the Holy Cross. Archived from the original on August 23, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2018.
24. Shea 1891 , p. 162
25. Shea 1891 , p. 118
26. Ávila Rueda, Alfredo (March 12, 2019). "Josep Lopez, ¿Quién fue Este Sacerdote que Estuvo a Punto de Capturar a Miguel Hidalgo?" [Joseph Lopez, Who Was This Priest Who was About to Capture Miguel Hidalgo?]. Relatos e Historias en Mexico (in Spanish). Archived from the original on April 29, 2020. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
27. Croce 2017 , p. 14
28. Easby-Smith 1907 , p. 48
29. Shea 1891 , p. 79
30. Hill 1922 , p. 58
31. Shea 1891 , p. 177
32. J. A. M. 1887 , p. 4
33. "Rev. John Early, S.J." College of the Holy Cross. Archived from the original on March 20, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
34. Mendizàbal 1972 , p. 75
35. Greene, Bryan (September 8, 2020). "Born Enslaved, Patrick Francis Healy 'Passed' His Way to Lead Georgetown University". Smithsonian . Archived from the original on April 20, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
36. Curran 1993 , p. 319
37. Shea 1891 , p. 285
38. Curran 2010a , p. 387
39. Burke 1976 , pp. 41–42
40. Obituary: Father Alphonsus J. Donlon 1926 , p. 343
41. "Father Charles W. Lyons, Former President of B.C. Dead After Long Illness". The Heights . Vol. XIX, no. 16. February 3, 1939. Archived from the original on December 12, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2018.
42. Homer, Frank X.J. (2015). "Short Biographies of the Former Presidents of St. Thomas College and the University of Scranton". University of Scranton Archives & Helen Gallagher McHugh Special Collections. Archived from the original on October 21, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
43. "Edward Bunn, 76, Led Georgetown". The New York Times. June 20, 1972. p. 42. Archived from the original on July 9, 2020. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
44. Curran 2010b , p. 290
45. Prial, Frank J. (January 1, 1993). "Timothy S. Healy, 69, Dies: President of Public Library". The New York Times. pp. A1, A21. Archived from the original on November 23, 2018. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
46. "Leo J. O'Donovan". American Academy in Berlin. Archived from the original on July 21, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
47. Fahrenthold, David A. (February 18, 2001). "Layman to Head Georgetown". The Washington Post.
48. "President DeGioia To Become President Emeritus of Georgetown". Georgetown University. November 21, 2024. Archived from the original on November 21, 2024. Retrieved November 21, 2024.

Sources

• Buckley, Cornelius Michael (2013). Stephen Larigaudelle Dubuisson, S.J. (1786–1864) and the Reform of the American Jesuits. Lanham, Maryland: University Press of America. ISBN   978-0-7618-6232-1. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018 – via Google Books.
• Burke, James Leo (1976). "Chapter Six: Weston: Its Earliest Personnel". Jesuit Province of New England: The Formative Years. Boston: New England Province of the Society of Jesus. OCLC   3727206. Archived from the original on February 2, 2019. Retrieved February 2, 2019– via CrossWorks.
• Chambon, Célestin M. (1909). "Louis-Guillaume-Valentin Dubourg". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia . Vol. 5. New York: Robert Appleton Company. OCLC   1017058.
• Cline, Ruth Harwood (October 2004). "Bridging Two Worlds: Stephen Larigaudelle Dubuisson, Émigré Missionary". The Catholic Historical Review . 90 (4): 675–696. doi:10.1353/cat.2005.0017. JSTOR   25026696. S2CID   159857758.
• Croce, Carmen R. (August 2017). "Welcome to Saint Joseph's University and to Barbelin Hall" (PDF). Saint Joseph's University Library. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 19, 2018. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
• Curran, Robert Emmett (1993). The Bicentennial History of Georgetown University: From academy to university, 1789–1889. Vol. 1. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press. ISBN   978-0-87840-485-8. Archived from the original on January 15, 2019 – via Google Books.
• Curran, Robert Emmett (2010a). A History of Georgetown University: The Quest for Excellence, 1889–1964. Vol. 2. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press. ISBN   978-1-58901-689-7.
• Curran, Robert Emmett (2010b). A History of Georgetown University: The Rise to Prominence, 1964–1989. Vol. 3. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press. ISBN   978-1-58901-691-0.
• Easby-Smith, James Stanislaus (1907). Georgetown University in the District of Columbia, 1789–1907: Its Founders, Benefactors, Officers, Instructors and Alumni. Vol. 1. New York: Lewis Publishing Company. OCLC   633425041. Archived from the original on December 18, 2018 – via Google Books.
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• J. A. M. (March 1, 1887). "Father Bernard A. Maguire: A Sketch" (PDF). Woodstock Letters . XVI (1): 3–10. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 13, 2020. Retrieved September 13, 2020– via Jesuit Archives.
• Ramspacher, Joseph H. (July 1962). "Major Superiors in the Northern United States" (PDF). Woodstock Letters . 91 (3). Archived (PDF) from the original on February 11, 2020. Retrieved February 11, 2020– via Jesuit Archives.
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• Meehan, Thomas Francis (1910). "Anthony Kohlmann". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia . Vol. 8. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
• Mendizàbal, Rufo (1972). Catalogus defunctorum in renata Societate Iesu ab a. 1814 ad a. 1970 [Catalogue of the dead in a revival of the Society of Jesus from 1814 to 1970] (in Latin). Rome: Jesuit Archives: Central United States. pp. 60–90. OCLC   884102. Archived from the original on March 19, 2020. Retrieved March 19, 2020– via Jesuit Archives.
• "Obituary: Father Alphonsus J. Donlon". Woodstock Letters . 55 (3): 341–358. October 1926. Archived from the original on December 8, 2018. Retrieved December 8, 2018– via Jesuit Online Library.
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External links

• Official website