The recent appointment of John J. DeGioia to the position of University President is encouraging. If Georgetown is serious about its mission to truly become one of the world’s foremost universities, it cannot simply be content with being the best Catholic school in America. DeGioia’s appointment offers a tentative sign that the Board of Directors understands that secularizing the University need not ruin its Jesuit identity.
The distinction between a Catholic identity and a Jesuit philosophy of education must be made apparent if Georgetown hopes to ever rise into the rarefied air of the upper eschelons of higher education. We hope that, in choosing DeGioia, the Board of Directors has also chosen to value academic freedom above religious orthodoxy.
While the appointment of a layperson as president will surely incite some controversy, DeGioia’s installation also provides the university with an opportunity to reflect upon its history and consider its goals for the future. Georgetown University is in an unique position amongst institutions of higher learning. It is located in a cosmopolitan city, with a forward-thinking faculty and a global vision. At the same time, it is deeply anchored in its history as the first Jesuit school in the United States.
Georgetown should maintain its roots in the Jesuit tradition, but it should also recognize that is not entirely a “Catholic school,” since one out of every two students at the university is not Catholic. The prominence to which the University has risen reflects its commitment to academic excellence.
There are many other Catholic universities in this country whose mission it is to educate Catholic students in the context of their religious tradition. Georgetown should not be one of these institutions. It should strive to be one of the best schools in the world, and accomplishing that goal may mean that it needs to embrace the Jesuit philosophy while departing from the Catholic theology. The move is a chance for the University to free itself from the expectations of the local archbishop and move into the world-class ranks that its faculty and its students can propel it into.
