‘All in and ready to go’: Loyola University Maryland’s first lay president ready to take the helm

Becoming the first lay president in Loyola University Maryland’s nearly 170-year history weighs on Terrence Sawyer – in a good way.

“It’s not a burden, but really more a responsibility that I feel deeply to ensure that we do not step away from our commitment to our Jesuit values, our Ignatian ideals and our responsibilities as a Catholic university,” said Sawyer, the Jesuit university’s former longtime senior vice president who succeeds Jesuit Father Brian Linnane as president Jan. 1.

Knowing there are fewer than 10 Jesuits currently working at Loyola, Sawyer recognizes how important it is for lay leaders to understand and carry on the Ignatian tradition. The parishioner of Church of the Nativity in Timonium said he has the advantage of having worked closely over the last 23 years with his two predecessors as president: Father Linnane and Jesuit Father Harold “Hap” Ridley. 

The New Jersey native, who walked in the footsteps of St. Ignatius during a 2016 pilgrimage through parts of Spain and Italy, highlighted Loyola’s Mission Driven Leadership program as an initiative that immerses administrators in a several-months-long process of deepening their understanding of what it means to be Ignatian. 

“We’ve had hundreds of people go through that program,” said Sawyer, a graduate of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities’ Ignatian Colleagues Program, which helps educate and form administrators and faculty in the Jesuit Catholic tradition. 

“We really want to make sure Loyola is a place where people feel connected in a way that’s deeper than just working a job,” he said. “I believe our mission as a Jesuit Catholic university is part of that formula to keep people here and engaged and fulfilled and happy in their work.”

Sawyer met with Archbishop William E. Lori in November to discuss ways Loyola can partner with Catholic institutions within the Archdiocese of Baltimore. In the past, Loyola has been involved with archdiocesan initiatives such as an educational program with the former St. Mary’s School in Govans. Especially in areas of social justice and supporting the city, Sawyer hopes to build on those kinds of partnerships.

“We want to be part of the solution for the City of Baltimore,” said Sawyer, who will reside at Armiger House on Loyola’s Evergreen campus as the university’s 25th president. “When we can partner with other organizations, particularly Catholic organizations, there’s a natural synergy there that I think is really powerful.”

The new president acknowledged that Catholic universities face a “healthy tension” between holding true to Catholic teachings while also being open to academic freedom.

“I intend to honor both as best I can – being faithful to the church while still ensuring that we meet our obligations as a university to ask critical questions about our society and the human condition,” he said.

Throughout his long tenure at Loyola, Sawyer has been a key force in various fundraising efforts. He helped raise more than $100 million through the Bright Minds, Bold Hearts campaign – the largest campaign in Loyola’s history. He was also involved in strategic capital projects, including the recently completed Miguel B. Fernandez Family Center for Innovation and Collaborative Learning. 

Sawyer said he intends to devote several months at the beginning of his presidency to having “deep” conversations with various stakeholders to develop a “shared vision” for the university that “may or may not require physical enhancements to the campus.”

“What that will be will not be overly prescribed by me,” he said, “but rather something we form together in a planning process that I hope to start relatively soon.”

Sawyer intends to build on the efforts of his predecessors in increasing diversity at Loyola. The university has significantly increased minority representation in recent years, with about a third of its 3,800 undergraduate population currently made up of minorities. Loyola also has 1,350 graduate students.

The incoming president said he will work closely with the university’s chief equity and inclusion officer and faculty to “ensure that this is a community where all students feel welcome and that we continue to strive to be a place where all voices are heard.”

At a time when universities in the northeast are faced with a shrinking pool of traditional college-age students, Sawyer also hopes to work with college leaders on expanding reach.

“That could mean casting a wider net,” he said, noting that Loyola’s enrollment has held relatively stable during the pandemic. “It could also mean providing education for nontraditional populations. There’s approximately 30 million people in the United States who have started college and haven’t finished. In addition to serving the traditional 18-to-22-year-old college student, there may be opportunities to provide a high quality, Jesuit education to populations that we haven’t traditionally served in large numbers.”

Sawyer, who holds a bachelor’s degree in government and politics from the University of Maryland, College Park, and a law degree from the Widener University School of Law, completed the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s Institute for Educational Management program. He is a former attorney for the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development and practiced civil and criminal law in Baltimore City prior to coming to Loyola.

Sawyer said he is excited to begin his new role, adding that his wife, Courtney, will be a special support to him and the entire Loyola community. She is a speech pathologist who earned her master’s degree from Loyola.

“People will soon come to realize that the best part about me being president of Loyola is that Courtney will be more involved in the life of the university,” said Sawyer, whose family includes three sons. “We approach this work together as a team and as a couple, and just feel so honored and fortunate to be able to serve the university in this capacity. We are all in and ready to go.”

Email George Matysek at gmatysek@CatholicReview.org

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