William L. Keleher
President of Boston College | |
|---|---|
| In office 1945–1951 | |
| Preceded by | William J. Murphy |
| Succeeded by | Joseph R. N. Maxwell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | William Lane Keleher January 27, 1906 Woburn, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | October 27, 1975 (aged 69) Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Alma mater | College of the Holy Cross |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | June 1937 |
William Lane Keleher
To accommodate this growth, Keleher oversaw construction of three permanent buildings, including Fulton Hall, for the School of Management, and Lyons Hall. He also relocated several military structures onto the campus for use as student housing. While meant to be temporary, the structures remained for 20 years. In 1946, Boston College's School of Nursing was established, and in 1948, the college's ROTC program was created.
Early life
Keleher was born on January 27, 1906, in
He was ordained a priest in June 1937. He then became the assistant to the Jesuit provincinal superior.[1] On November 1, 1942, he was made the province's master of novices.[2]
Boston College
On August 19, 1945, Keleher succeeded William J. Murphy as the 20th president of Boston College.[3] The start of his presidency coincided with the end of World War II, and Boston College saw a large increase in student enrollment under the G.I. Bill. While only 236 students were enrolled in April 1944, in September 1945, 453 students enrolled. In the fall of 1946, enrollment had increased further to 2,811 in the just the College of Arts & Sciences and the School of Business Administration, setting a new record for Boston College. By 1947, those two schools enrolled 4,572 students.[4] Similarly, the Law School, which graduated only 6 students in 1945, enrolled 250 students in the fall of that year.[5] The total number of students reached 7,526 in 1949.[4]
In order to transition
In light of this rapidly growing student body, the physical facilities of the school became overcrowded.
In January 1946, Keleher began a fundraising campaign to build three new permanent buildings.[11] June 1947, construction began on Fulton Hall, which would house the School of Management, and was completed the following year.[12] A service building was also constructed from 1947 to 1948. From May 1950 to July 1951, Lyons Hall was constructed, which housed a cafeteria and classrooms.[13]
In 1946, the School of Nursing was established,[14] which enrolled Boston College's first female undergraduate students.[15] In 1947, the drama program was enlarged into the new School of Dramatic and Expressional Arts. The college's football, basketball, and ice hockey teams also resumed intercollegiate competition.[16] Keleher was also involved in early discussions to create the School of Education.[17] In 1948, Keleher oversaw the creation of the college's Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program.[18]
On June 29, 1951, Keleher was succeeded by Joseph R. N. Maxwell as president of the college.[19]
The Feeneyism controversy
In 1943, Leonard Feeney, a Jesuit, became the spiritual director of the St. Benedict Center, which drew many students from Harvard University and Radcliffe College and spurred many conversions to Catholicism.[20] There, Feeney preached a strict interpretation of the Catholic doctrine Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus: that there is no salvation outside the Catholic Church.[21] In 1948, the Jesuit provincial superior transferred Feeney to the College of the Holy Cross, but Feeney refused to go.[20] Three teachers of philosophy and physics at Boston College and one teacher at Boston College High School were adherents of Feeney's view and advocated it in their classes and outside of class.[22]
In 1948, the teachers were interrogated about their beliefs by the Boston College administration, as a former provincial superior hid behind a
Later years
After his presidency of Boston College, Keleher was a professor, administrator, and trustee at the College of the Holy Cross. He also worked at Campion Hall, the Jesuit retreat center in North Andover, Massachusetts. Keleher died on October 27, 1975, at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Boston. Three brothers and one sister were alive at the time of his death.[25]
References
Citations
- ^ a b Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 202.
- ^ Burke 1986, p. 155.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 200.
- ^ a b Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 203.
- ^ a b c Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 204.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 209.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 211.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 205.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 206.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 207.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 221.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 222.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 223.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 225.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 226.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 213.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 231.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 239.
- ^ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 228.
- ^ a b c d Keane, James T. (March 29, 2022). "Leonard Feeney said there was no salvation outside the Catholic church. Then he was excommunicated". America. Archived from the original on August 11, 2023. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
- ^ "Outside BC, There Was Leonard Feeney: Father Keleher, the Fired Four, and the Boston Heresy Case". John J. Burns Library's Blog. November 30, 2015. Archived from the original on August 28, 2023. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
- ^ a b Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990, p. 214.
- ^ Lapomarda 1977, p. 93.
- ^ a b c "Religion: Heresy in Boston". Time. April 25, 1949. Archived from the original on August 24, 2023. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ "Rev. W. L. Keleher, Led Boston College". The New York Times. October 29, 1975. p. 40.
Sources
- Burke, James Leo (1986). Jesuit Province of New England: The Expanding Years. Boston: The Society of Jesus of New England. from the original on August 24, 2023. Retrieved August 24, 2023 – via CrossWorks.
- Donovan, Charles F.; Dunigan, David R.; FitzGerald, Paul A. (1990). History of Boston College: From the Beginnings to 1990. Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts: University Press of Boston College. .
- Lapomarda, Vincent A. (1977). The Jesuit Heritage in New England. Worcester, Massachusetts: The Jesuits of Holy Cross College, Inc. ISBN 978-0960629404. Archivedfrom the original on March 22, 2021. Retrieved August 24, 2023 – via CrossWorks.
