59°
Fitzgerald was recently named the 28th president of the University of San Francisco, officials said after a Board of Trustees meeting last month. The Rev. Stephen A. Privett, S.J., current USF president and a trustee of Fairfield University, announced his departure in September 2013. He has served as president of the Jesuit institution in California since 2000, according to a press release.
Fitzgerald came to Fairfield University in 2009 from Santa Clara University, where he served as Senior Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. When appointed to the Fairfield leadership post, he was the only Jesuit chief academic officer in the 28 colleges and universities within the AJCU. In May 2013, he announced his intention to return to the California Province of the Society of Jesus.
"These past five years have prepared me well for my next assignment," Fitzgerald said. "My faculty and staff colleagues have shown me again and again what it is to offer a 21st-century Jesuit education, employing a renewed Ignatian pedagogy and effecting a profound intellectual, ethical, and personal transformation of our graduate and undergraduate students over the course of their studies.
"Through our culture of shared governance, the faculty and staff on the many committees on which I have had the pleasure to serve have demonstrated steady wisdom, ample kindness, and careful responsibility. ... As I look forward to the move back to California, and as I anticipate all of the new friendships and partnerships that await me at the University of San Francisco, I am confident that many fruitful and life-giving years stand before me because of my experience here at Fairfield these past years."
Fitzgerald will assume the presidency at the University of San Francisco on Aug. 1.
"During his tenure, Father Fitzgerald has contributed immensely to the advancement of Fairfield University and to the betterment of those it serves," said Fairfield President Jeffrey P. von Arx, S.J. "His passionate dedication to our mission, his boundless energy and constant pursuit of excellence has served as a model for us all. He will be greatly missed by the University community and, by me, personally. I have greatly valued our association and friendship. That said, we are delighted at the wonderful opportunity that he has been presented, especially since it is at our sister Jesuit university in San Francisco."
Click here to follow Daily Voice Fairfield and receive free news updates.
