page_title: Robert J. Henle
section_title: Faculty and student affairs
hierarchical_section_title: Robert J. Henle / Georgetown University / Faculty and student affairs
caption_attribution_description: English: Alban Towers Apartment Building located at 3700 Massachusetts Avenue, NW in the Cathedral Heights neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Designed by architect Robert O. Scholz in 1928, the Tudor Revival building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
context_page_description: Robert John Henle was an American Catholic priest, Jesuit, and philosopher who served as president of Georgetown University from 1969 to 1976. Born in Iowa, Henle entered the Society of Jesus in 1927, and was educated in philosophy and theology at Saint Louis University. After teaching high school classics and publishing a series of widely used instructional books on Latin grammar, he earned his doctorate at the University of Toronto. Henle began his academic philosophy career at Saint Louis University, where became one of the leaders in the revival of Thomistic philosophy and theology. He also served in various administrative positions at the university, including as dean of the graduate school and academic vice president. In this latter capacity, he oversaw Saint Louis University's growing independence from, but continuing affiliation with, the Jesuit order.
  In 1969, Henle was named the president of Georgetown University. He presided over an era of rapid growth and diversifying demographics of the student body. Henle stabilized the university's finances by significantly increasing the student population.
context_section_description: Henle also sought to reform the structure of the faculty. With only one endowed chair (in pharmacology) existing at the time he took office, Henle sought increase the number of endowed chairs to raise the quality of the faculty. He also capped the percentage of faculty who could receive tenure. The Woodstock Theological Center became affiliated with Georgetown and relocated to the university's campus in 1974. Plans to establish a Center for Contemporary Arab Studies were developed, and Henle solicited funds from a wide array of Arab countries, including those with whom the United States did not have diplomatic relations; the center opened in 1975, after Henle's presidency. Following the recommendation of a search committee, Henle decided to hire John Thompson as the coach of the Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball team. One of the first black coaches of a major collegiate basketball team, Thompson went on to lead the team to become the 1984 NCAA Champions.
  Henle's presidency encompassed an era of student protests of the Vietnam War. He attempted to defuse tensions by declaring a university policy of neutrality on any controversial issue. Conflict came to a head in 1970, following President Richard Nixon's announcement of the invasion of Cambodia and the subsequent killing of four students at Kent State. With student anger increasing, a widespread strike of classes, and the threat of violence on campus becoming apparent, Henle announced on May 7 that classes would be suspended for the rest of the semester. The faculty denounced working in an environment of intimidation by students and condemned what they viewed as a threat to the very purpose of a university—detached, objective learning. The faculty senate considered a resolution that would require any future suspension of the academic calendar to be approved by two third of the faculty, but Henle vetoed this resolution before it could be brought to a vote.
  Georgetown's campus was host to another conflict in May 1971, when several thousand protesters (who were not affiliated with Georgetown) sought refuge on the university's campus after being pushed back by police for trying to shut down the Key Bridge and other major arteries of Washington, D.C. At the time, Henle was in Rome, and the campus was under the direction of the vice president, James Kelly. Kelly allowed the protesters to remain on campus, and provided them with food. Without the university's permission, the Metropolitan Police then fired tear gas from helicopters onto the protesters, as well as Georgetown students who were walking to their final exams, causing the exams to be postponed. The campus atmosphere began to change in the 1972–1973 academic year, as protests died down, and student attention became less motivated by national politics. Rather than focus on politics, the student government increasingly became a service provider to students, and created The Students of Georgetown, Incorporated in March 1972.
  That year, Henle became involved in an administrative dispute with a vice president and the board of directors. He hired Edmund Ryan as vice president for educational affairs, effectively the chief academic officer, outside of the formal procedure and without the consent of the board. Soon thereafter, Henle and Ryan had a falling out, in which in the former accused the latter of trying to force him into retirement. Ryan became convinced that Henle was forming a coalition to undermine him, and that Henle was bugging his office; Ryan refused to meet in the president's office, and insisted that they meet in his room in the Jesuit community. Eventually, Henle fired Ryan, who would be committed to the psychiatric ward of Saint Vincent's Hospital in New York City two months later, but later became the president of Seattle University. Unaware of its basis, the faculty senate and student body protested the firing. As a result, the board became increasingly scrutinizing of Henle, who by this time had also become an alcoholic. While commending his leadership, the board ultimately decided that 1976 would be his f
caption: Henle purchased Alban Towers to alleviate a shortage of student housing.
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