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Culture March 7, 2017
Dear Editor:
Casey Cromwell’s recent story about women college presidents (“Why 27 Percent of University Presidents Being Women Isn’t Enough,” January 30) resonated with me as president of Mount Saint Mary’s University in Los Angeles and one of the women leading higher education institutions in our country.
The small proportion of female presidents in higher education is truly a concern — as is the lack of women sitting on university boards and serving in key leadership roles. As Cromwell concludes, until the gender ratio among university presidents aligns with the students and faculty that these presidents lead, we have much work to do. We can and must do better as a nation to ensure gender equality at all levels of education.
What Cromwell’s article overlooks is a spotlight on our nation’s Catholic colleges and universities, which have long benefitted from female leadership that exceeds national averages. As she notes, among all institutional types (public and private, two-year and four-year), 27 percent of colleges and universities are led by women, whereas among the 200 U.S. Catholic colleges and universities that belong to the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities (ACCU), women lead 34 percent of these institutions.
Part of this richness stems from the reality that 100 U.S. colleges were founded by religious sisters whose pioneering work has led to the larger number of women leading Catholic institutions. Their leadership has provided a nurturing and supportive environment for women leaders to emerge and succeed. Today, even as the numbers of women religious have declined, many of these Catholic colleges welcomed dedicated laywomen leaders, like myself. Currently, 46 of the 69 women presidents of ACCU institutions are laywomen.
Through dedicated efforts, ACCU is one of several organizations working to ensure there will be even more women presidents in the future. This should give us all hope for higher education and the young women and men we serve.
Sincerely, Ann McElaney-Johnson President, Mount Saint Mary’s University, Los Angeles Board Member, ACCU
