Title: Board of Directors Approves Record Investment in Financial Aid

Georgetown will increase financial aid by an expected 7%, allocating an estimated $263 million dollars to new and returning students across campuses — the university’s largest investment in financial aid in its history. The increase reflects Georgetown’s need-blind admissions policy and commitment to meeting the full demonstrated financial need of admitted undergraduate students.

“This historic increase in financial aid builds on our Catholic, Jesuit mission and our commitment to ensure that every admitted student has the ability to attend Georgetown and continue their studies,” says David Green, interim senior vice president and chief operating officer.

Georgetown’s 2023 budget also includes tuition and fees approved earlier this year, funding to invest in faculty and staff; an expansion of research funding; hiring faculty for new programs and vacant positions paused during the COVID-19 pandemic; additional leave benefits for staff and academic and administrative professionals (AAP); and investments in academic priorities. 

Construction Across Campuses

During the summer meeting, the board of directors approved funding for new projects and received updates on current and upcoming construction projects that refresh student spaces and provide academic and faculty support.

Among the new projects, the board approved $30 million in spending in FY2023 for investment in deferred maintenance projects on campus. These projects will continue efforts to improve building access and ADA accessibility; environmental and sustainability initiatives; fire and life and safety systems; and mechanical, electrical and plumbing repairs.

During the meeting, the board of directors received updates on the progress of 55 H St. NW, Georgetown’s new residence for students in downtown DC. After two years of construction, the 237,000-square-foot apartment-style complex will open to residents in August 2022. Students can apply to be inaugural residents of the building.

The board also was updated on progress on Henle Village, a project to replace the current residence with a larger apartment-style facility for undergraduates, with construction expected to begin in May 2023 pending final approvals. The facility, which currently houses 468 students, will house 741 students and will offer 15,000 square feet of student lounges, wellness spaces and study rooms. Construction is expected to be completed by August 2025.

Outgoing Board Members 

The board took time during its summer meetings to honor outgoing members for their many years of devoted service.

The members include: Sr. Carol Keehan, D.C., vice chair and retired president and chief executive officer of the Catholic Health Association of the United States; Dr. Abdulla bin Ali Al-Thani, an advisor for the Amiri Diwan; Joseph Baratta (B’93), the global head of private equity for the Blackstone Group; Frank Ciatto (B’88, L’94), president of the Georgetown University Alumni Association; Anthony Coscia (F’81), a partner at Windels Marx Lane & Mittendorf, LLP; and Ann Sarnoff (B’83), the chair and CEO of Warner Bros.

Georgetown’s Global Partnerships

Tom Banchoff, vice president for global engagement at Georgetown, and Board Member Rev. Antonio Spadaro, S.J., editor-in-chief of the Jesuit journal La Civiltà Cattolica, shared a board update on a recent conference the two organizations hosted in Rome.

Called “The Culture of Encounter: An Imperative for a Divided World,” the conference connected international scholars, practitioners and religious leaders to explore how to develop a culture of encounter to address division and polarization in the world. In 2021, Pope Francis sent Georgetown and La Civiltà Cattolica a letter expressing his public support for their collaboration on the theme of encounter. 

“The conference was a significant step in our journey of working to build and reflect a culture of encounter and interreligious dialogue,” says Banchoff. “We were pleased to have the opportunity, in partnership with Fr. Antonio Spadaro, S.J., to share more about our global partnerships and intercultural impact with our board members.”

Prior to the conference, Georgetown President John J. DeGioia met with Pope Francis. The pope emphasized the conference’s timeliness given the war and division in the world today. 

“We have many recent successes in dialogue, especially interreligious dialogue, but the consequences of our failure to encounter one another are global — and as we’ve seen in these last few years, quite catastrophic,” DeGioia said in an interview with L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican’s newspaper of record. “Encounter is about recognizing the responsibilities we have to one other and seeing things from the other’s perspective.”

New School of Health Constitution Approved

As part of the process to launch the new School of Health, the board approved the School of Health’s new constitution, which was developed through a faculty-led process. The constitution will go into effect when the new school opens on July 1. 

In 2020, President DeGioia announced the creation of the School of Health and the School of Nursing (NHS) to be built from the foundation of the existing School of Nursing & Health Studies. The School of Health will be led by Dr. Christopher King, an associate professor and chair of the Department of Health Systems Administration at NHS.

“You can take just about any discipline and apply a health lens to it,” King said. “Having that mindset as we launch this school, and recognizing there are so many intersections that shape our health and well-being, we will foster a culture that enables students and faculty to think creatively around how to tackle issues that seem to be intractable. I’m just looking forward to what we’re going to do together to leave the world better off than when we found it.”