John I. Jenkins
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The Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C. (born in Omaha, Nebraska) is a Roman Catholic priest of the Congregation of Holy Cross, and the 17th and current president of the University of Notre Dame.
Father Jenkins was selected to replace outgoing president Fr. Edward "Monk" Malloy, C.S.C. by the University's Board of Trustees on April 30, 2004 and assumed the office of president on July 1, 2005. His formal inauguration took place on September 23, 2005.
Father Jenkins earned his Bachelor and Master of Arts degrees in philosophy from Notre Dame in 1976 and 1978, respectively. He also earned the degrees Master of Divinity and Licentiate of Sacred Theology from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley in 1988. He is also a member of the University of Oxford, having received a B.Phil in 1987 and a D.Phil in 1989, both in philosophy.
Jenkins has been a member of the Notre Dame faculty since 1990, teaching in the areas of ancient philosophy, medieval philosophy, and philosophy of religion, currently serving as Professor of Philosophy and Fellow of the Medieval Institute. From 1991 to 1993, Jenkins was the Director of the Old College Undergraduate Formation Program of the Congregation of Holy Cross. He also served as religious superior of the Holy Cross priests and brothers at Notre Dame from 1997 to 2000, serving ex officio as a corporate member of the university and a member of the university's board of trustees.
Prior to his election as university president, Jenkins held the office of vice president and associate provost for four years.
The third oldest of twelve siblings, Father Jenkins is a brother-in-law to travel writer/journalist/broadcaster Rick Steves. Father Jenkins enjoys running marathons, reading, writing, and traveling in his free time. He also cheers on his Notre Dame teams, and his controversial move of firing football coach Tyrone Willingham and replacing him with former New England Patriots assistant Charlie Weis (a 1978 graduate of Notre Dame) proved to be a wise decision, helping Notre Dame finish with a top ten finish at the end of the 2005 season and a BCS placing, and another BCS placement in 2006.
On January 23, 2006, Fr. Jenkins addressed the faculty concerning ([1]) "Academic Freedom and Catholic Character" in which he expressed concern about "issues arising from the Queer Film Festival and the Vagina Monologues", and "the deeper issues they raise regarding academic freedom and Notre Dame's "character as a Catholic university".
Then, after much heated debate on campus, on April 5, 2006, Jenkins issued a closing statement, declaring the he was "very determined that we not suppress speech on this campus", and was also "determined that we never suppress or neglect the Gospel that inspired this University", saying that "[a]s long as the Gospel message and the Catholic intellectual tradition are appropriately represented, we can welcome any serious debate on any thoughtful position here at Notre Dame."
This was well received overall, but some, most notably Bishop John M. D'Arcy, who was "deeply saddened", expressed dissatisfaction with the resolution of the issue.
Father Jenkins was ordained a priest of the Congregation of Holy Cross in the Sacred Heart Basilica located on-campus in 1983.
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| Preceded by Edward Malloy |
President of the University of Notre Dame 2005–Present |
Succeeded by n/a |
