Fordham University announced on Feb. 10, via a Zoom conference, that Tania Tetlow will become the 33rd president of the University. Tetlow will become both the first woman and the first lay-person to lead the university in its 181-year history, when she assumes the role in summer, ahead of the new academic year.

 

“I am thrilled beyond measure that the search committee, with all of its engagement from faculty and students, and the board itself has chosen me to do this,” Tetlow said. “I will give absolutely everything I have to doing it well,” she added.

 

Robert D. Daleo, chair of Fordham’s board of trustees, said the board unanimously voted Tetlow into the position, citing her prior leadership skills and successes at Loyola University as some of the reasons why she was chosen for the role.

 

“This is a historic and exciting moment for Fordham,” said Daleo. “As a university that seeks to transform its students’ lives, we are preparing to be transformed by bold, new leadership.”

 

Tetlow will replace current University president, Fr. Joseph M. McShane S.J., on July 1. McShane announced he would be leaving his position in the fall of 2021, after 19 years as president.

 

“So, we wanted to make sure that the university was in the best of all possible hands,” said McShane during the call. “Those hands are Tania’s. Tania is an extraordinary leader,” he added. “She is visionary and practical at the same time; that’s a rare combination. She’s also deeply committed to Jesuit education.”

 

Tetlow’s family history is deeply entwined in Fordham, and in The Society of Jesus. Her father was a Jesuit priest for 17 years before meeting her mother at Fordham, and leaving the order.

 

“Fordham is where my parents met,” said Tetlow. “It’s the reason that I exist. It [has] always loomed large in my family as a beacon of excellence, a place of such relevance in the most exciting city in the world.” She said the role was now a chance for her to follow in what she said were “the very big shoes of Fr. McShane,” and to be part of “helping Fordham grow ever more relevant and ever more excellent.”

 

Tetlow was born in New York City but moved down south as a child. She attended Tulane University on a dean’s honor scholarship and later earned a Truman scholarship at Harvard Law School.

 

She went on to have a prosperous law career and eventually became a law professor. Tetlow was also the first woman and first lay-person to assume the role of president of Loyola University New Orleans in 2018. She will leave that post this summer to lead Fordham.

 

Tetlow said she felt the call of Jesuit education before taking her job at Loyola, especially while the college was going through a difficult time. She said it was a privilege to help transform the school and see it flourish, even throughout the pandemic.

 

“Today is a homecoming for Tanya,” said McShane. “And you know, we on the campus are delighted to welcome her home. We want to make sure that she feels welcome, and I cannot think of a better choice for the 33rd presidency,” he added.

 

Ahead of officially joining Fordham in July, Tetlow said she looks forward to getting to know the college and listening to the people there. She will then work on a strategic plan for the college, saying it was important to take into account the opportunities New York City holds for Fordham, and the potential for outreach to people and organizations within the City.

 

In 2012, a group of Fordham University students known as the Collective of Concerned Students of Color and Anti-Racist Allies lead a rally to raise awareness following a spate of hate crimes on the Jesuit school’s campuses. At the time, they called for tolerance and implementation of new anti-racism policies, and a petition, posted on change.org, quickly garnered 1,500 signatures.

 

The college took further steps to address the issue of racism when it was highlighted again in 2020 in the wake of the killing of George Floyd. McShane addressed the issue at the time, saying in part, “Although we don’t all like to admit it, People of Color and let’s be frank, especially Black people, live lives of relentlessly hostile scrutiny, and they have been telling us so since the ink on the Thirteenth Amendment was barely dry.”

 

He added, “I want to speak directly to the Black people and other People of Color in the Fordham community. I know this has been a difficult year for you in many ways. The killing of Black people by police, the disproportionate harm that communities of color have suffered during the pandemic, and the upswelling of racism across the country have burdened you uniquely.”

 

A representative for the college added that Fordham had been working to address students’ concerns, categorizing racism and anti-Blackness, specifically, as a second pandemic under which the world was living and saying the college was engaged in anti-racism work at every level.

 

Meanwhile, last year, the University launched an initiative whereby it provided financial assistance to “neighbors” of the college’s Rose Hill campus, located in Fordham Manor. The Fordham School of Professional and Continuing Students (PCS) launched what it described as a unique “Good Neighbor Initiative” for the Fall 2021 term. It was dedicated to adult learners and provided an automatic 30 percent discount on tuition fees for undergraduate-seeking PCS students at the Bronx campus who lived in certain neighboring zip codes.

 

Dr. Anthony Davidson, dean at Fordham PCS, said that the turbulence of the previous year had placed universities under tremendous financial pressure to keep tuition the same, or even increase it to help the bottom line. “However, Fordham PCS is committed to supporting the communities we serve, and that serve us in return,” he said at the time. He added that the college was thrilled to be able to give back to the community and provide the opportunity for a “best-in-class education” right in their own backyard.

 

On March 3, Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson released a statement in the context of the announcement of the new appointment, saying, “Congratulations to Tania Tetlow on being a HerStory maker as the first woman and first layperson named President of Fordham University.” Gibson added, “It is 2022 and women are still shattering glass ceilings, and taking on positions historically held by men in our city. It is never easy being a first, but as a former law professor and current president of Loyola University New Orleans, Ms. Tetlow has the experience necessary to tackle the issues impacting our students. I wish Ms. Tetlow well as she prepares to start her new assignment this summer, and I look forward to working with our new President and her team leading the great Fordham University!”

 

Meanwhile, summing up her objectives as the new Fordham University president, Tetlow said, “At a moment when the problems of the world seem evermore complex and pressing, [it’s] urgent that we step up to the plate…. [solve] those problems, and [educate] the kind of students who will go out and solve them for generations to come.”