UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT DeGioia Discusses First Semester By Amanda cGrath Hoya Staff Writer

University President John J. DeGioia discussed the challenges Georgetown has faced during his first semester in office at a meeting with student news media organizations yesterday, and looked to the future as a time of continued positive growth. Topics of the meeting ranged from recent protests by university students and faculty to the international and community implications in the wake of Sept. 11.

DeGioia said the greatest indication of the strength of the university and its Catholic identity could be seen in the responses after the Sept. 11 attacks. “What we saw in those days were people surrounding people in need. It was the unforced expression that was so meaningful – people spontaneously did the right thing,” DeGioia said, citing examples of the SafeWalks program, blood drives and fundraising drives. He also spoke of the important role the university’s religious community played in the aftermath of the attacks.

Though Catholic in its heritage, Georgetown was founded with the intent to welcome people of all backgrounds, DeGioia said. He said that while his “unique” position as the first non-Jesuit president of Georgetown has drawn scrutiny from both in and outside the university, the strength of the Catholic community was indicative of his success in maintaining the Jesuit nature of the institution. According to DeGioia, the wide array of religious and interfaith services he attended on campus following Sept. 11 showed that the active practice of and tolerance for a variety of religions is an integral part of the university culture.

DeGioia said he was pleased with the public appearance made by Interim Afghan Chairman Hamid Karzai in McDonough Gymnasium on Sunday. He said he felt it was an important opportunity for students to become involved in an issue of international importance on the ground level. He expressed sympathy for the challenges Afghanistan now faces as well as respect for Karzai for fulfilling a leadership role facing the daunting task of rebuilding a country.

He reasserted the university’s commitment to helping Afghanistan’s cause through scholarship and the reconstruction of its education system. DeGioia discussed the Pedro Arupe Scholarship Program, which provides financial assistance to students from war torn countries. He also discussed the Fellows Program in the School of Foreign Service designed to foster diplomacy skills in future leaders, allowing those without full training “to get special training to enhance their capacity of doing the work of diplomacy.” He also noted the importance of Georgetown business and law programs in developing leaders to assist in the rebuilding of economic infrastructure and government law.

On a local and university level, DeGioia expressed satisfaction with last semester’s work. Despite concerns of a declining endowment and the effects of an economic downturn after Sept. 11, DeGioia said the past fiscal year was Georgetown’s “best ever” in terms of financial progress. He described fundraising for the Third Century Campaign as “on track” and was positive about the future of the endowment, saying the status was “a little better than before Sept. 11.”

He noted that endowments generally cannot be effectively judged on a short term level as they generally follow national market trends and should be judged on a long term basis in terms of their success.

Recent increases in the cost of an undergraduate education at Georgetown, DeGioia said, was less a cause of a smaller endowment than other universities and more a result of sustaining Georgetown’s current costs of operation and faculty salaries. He said the university was still deeply committed to financial aid and aimed to make a Georgetown education affordable to all students by meeting all financial need, as the university has done nearly every year since 1978, with the exception of 1992.

DeGioia also addressed the recent protest by students during a ass led by Washington Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. A group of attendees stood for the duration of the Mass last Sunday to protest the unequal treatment of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people in the Catholic Church. “The protesters handled it with reverence and respect, and I thought that [Cardinal McCarrick] also managed to handle it very effectively,” DeGioia said. cCarrick, DeGioia said, attempted to make sure that the protestors did not feel marginalized or excluded. “The protest was very apparent, and both the protestors and the Cardinal handled it appropriately,” DeGioia said.

He also said he is in regular contact with Vice President for Student Affairs Juan Gonzalez on the proposed creation of a gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender resource center, and that he would deal with the issue when Gonzalez felt it was appropriate.

DeGioia also said he felt positive about the future of university-neighborhood relations, saying he felt interaction with the community had improved in recent years. He emphasized the need for cooperation and communication among local residents and the university.

“We try to do everything that is possible but we’ve got to be reasonable about this. We are a university, there are 18-to-22 year-olds. We expect the most we possibly can out of the university in trying to respond to the concerns of the neighborhood,” he said. “I do believe things are getting better . I’m very hopeful.”

Others issues of university concern included the recent petition by members of the Medical Center faculty concerning the creation of a Senior Vice President position at the medical center to be filled by Dr. SamWeisel. DeGioia said he had released a statement in response to the petition submitted by opponents of the plan that detailed his reasons for the creation of the position.

DeGioia also addressed the Southwest Quadrangle project. Despite early setbacks in the project, DeGioia said the construction was now on schedule and set to be completed in the fall of 2003. He said the construction of the Southwest Quadrangle, as well as the future construction of a performing arts center, a new science building and a new building to house the McDonough School of Business, were integral to the future development of the university.