Georgetown University President John DeGioia attends a ceremony at which an honorary degree was bestowed on AFL-CIO President John Sweeney on Sept. 3, 2009, in Washington, D.C. / Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images

CNA Staff, Nov 21, 2024 / 18:15 pm (CNA).

The longest-serving president in Georgetown University history, John DeGioia, is stepping down after 23 years to recover after suffering a stroke. 

DeGioia, who served as the 48th president of the Jesuit university in Washington, D.C., noted in a letter that stepping down was “the most difficult decision I have ever made.” 

He explained in his letter that he is retiring “to devote my energies to my ongoing recovery” from his recent stroke in June. DeGioia will remain on staff as a member of the faculty, according to a Thursday announcement by the university.

“Serving as the president of Georgetown has been the privilege of my lifetime,” DeGioia stated. “I look forward to continuing to advance and support Georgetown’s mission and the university community that means so much to all of us. I remain deeply proud of the work we have done together to strengthen the Georgetown community, our nation, and our world.”

DeGioia graduated from Georgetown with a bachelor’s degree in English in 1979 and a doctorate in philosophy in 1995. When he became president in 2001, DeGioia became the first layperson to lead a Jesuit college or university in the U.S.

“With DeGioia’s vision, Georgetown has grown new and existing academic programs, deepened opportunities for student learning and engagement, and advanced Georgetown’s mission of education and service globally,” the university press release stated.

DeGioia oversaw the establishment of a new campus in Qatar in 2005 as well as the formation of the McCourt School of Public Policy in 2013. He oversaw an increase in the financial aid budget to $284 million and endowment growth from $700 million in 2001 to $3.6 billion in 2024. 

Chair of the Georgetown board of directors Thomas Reynolds III said that under DeGioia’s leadership, the university “has grown and flourished as a global leader in higher education.”

“It is hard to put in words the depth of Jack’s impact at Georgetown,” Reynolds said. “Since first arriving on campus as an undergraduate student in 1975, Jack has spent his entire career at Georgetown and has helped shape every facet of the university.”

DeGioia “guided many new efforts to engage Georgetown’s Catholic and Jesuit identity,” according to the university press release. 

In his letter, DeGioia noted the importance of the university’s role in the world in light of “our mission as a Catholic and Jesuit institution.” 

Early in his presidency, DeGioia established the role of vice president for Mission and Ministry, designed to deepen Ignatian spirituality at the university. DeGioia collaborated with the Vatican and visited Rome annually to engage with Catholic leaders. He helped establish the university’s Initiative of Catholic Social Thought and Public Life in 2013 to build dialogue and encourage young Catholic leaders in their faith. 

“I am grateful to many who have guided us in this work and who have enlivened our tradition in new ways so that Ignatian spirituality and our Catholic and Jesuit identity are ever more present to our university community,” he wrote.

Under DeGioia, Georgetown became the first Catholic university to open an LGBTQ resource center in 2008. 

Father James Martin, a Jesuit priest who served as a board member under DeGioia, noted in a post on X on Thursday that DeGioia was “one of the very earliest supporters of my LGBTQ ministry and OutreachCatholic,” a controversial pro-LGBT group.

Under DeGioia’s leadership, Georgetown renovated sacred spaces for Orthodox Christian and Catholic communities while expanding the Jewish gathering space on campus and opening a mosque on campus as well as “Dharmālaya,” a Dharmic mediation center. 

In 2023, Georgetown became the first Catholic and Jesuit university to establish a Disability Cultural Center. 

DeGioia also oversaw Georgetown’s “ongoing work on racial justice,” the press release noted. DeGioa in 2015 publicly apologized for Georgetown staff, the Maryland Province of Jesuits, who owned and sold more than 250 slaves in the 1830s. 

“Georgetown is a place where we — continuously, rigorously, and collectively — pursue truth,” DeGioia continued in his letter. “We commit to the formation of our students, to the inquiry of our faculty, and to the common good of our communities."

Robert Groves, Georgetown’s current provost and executive vice president, will serve as interim president while the board of directors searches for a new president. The vice president and chief of staff to DeGioia, Joseph Ferrara, will serve as senior vice president and chief of staff.