Dates

• Existence: established 1863

Administrative history

The President serves as the chief executive and administrative officer of Boston College. Operating under the direction of the Board of Trustees, the President is responsible for the general management and strategic direction of the University's academic, business, and operational functions. The President presents an annual report on the state of the University and recommends the annual budget to the Board of Trustees. The President also holds authority to sign official University documents, such as contracts and financial instruments, and may delegate this authority to other officers when appropriate. These responsibilities are formally codified in the Boston College Statutes, Article IV, Section 2.

During the University's formative years, John Bapst, SJ, served as the first president (1863-1869), a role initially designated "vice-rector." The same title was held by his successor, Robert W. Brady, SJ, (1869-1870), because the College was still technically "in the process of formation" in the official Jesuit catalogue. It was not until 1871-72, under Robert Fulton, SJ, that the catalogue dropped this qualifier and listed the head of the College simply as "rector." Early presidents combined administrative, religious, and instructional duties.

Throughout the era in which the president also served as rector of the Jesuit Community, terms were governed by canon law, which set a normal term of three years for religious superiors, renewable once - making six years the effective ceiling for most incumbents. This rule accounts for the large number of presidents in Boston College's history. Two president-rectors were exceptions: Robert Fulton, SJ, in the nineteenth century, and Michael P. Walsh, SJ, in the twentieth, each of whom served terms of ten years. Fulton is the only individual to have served two non-consecutive terms (1870-1880; 1887-1891).

A significant governance shift occurred on January 1, 1971, when the office of president and the office of rector of the Jesuit Community were formally separated. W. Seavey Joyce, SJ, was the last president to serve concurrently as rector. J. Donald Monan, SJ, who succeeded him in September 1972, was the first president appointed without the concurrent burden of the rectorship and consequently the first whose term was not constrained by the six-year ceiling under church law. The process by which Monan was selected also reflected broader governance changes underway at the University. An eleven-member search committee drawn from trustees, directors, faculty, alumni, and students submitted candidates to the Board of Trustees, which made the final appointment. Under current statutes, the Board of Trustees elects the President by majority vote. In October 1995, the trustees elected William P. Leahy, SJ, as the 25th president; he assumed office on July 31, 1996, and was formally inaugurated on October 20, 1997. In February 2025, the Board of Trustees elected John T. "Jack" Butler, SJ, then serving as Haub Vice President for University Mission and Ministry, as the 26th president. He is expected to assume office in 2026, succeeding Leahy after nearly three decades of service.

Reporting directly to the President are several key university officials, including the Executive Vice President and the Academic Vice President and Dean of Faculties, who support the President in managing the institution's administrative and academic affairs, respectively.

Social Networks and Archival Context (SNAC) Identifier

• https://snaccooperative.org/view/87789099

Found in 26 Collections and/or Records: