President: 1820-1822
Fr. Enoch Fenwick, S.J., served as Georgetown's 12th president from 1820-1822. Fr. Fenwick introduced significant academic reforms, improving Georgetown's academic rigor.
Early Jesuit career
Like his brother Benedict, Enoch Fenwick studied at St. Mary’s seminary, before entering the revived Society of Jesus. Following his ordination on March 12, 1808, Fr. Fenwick was appointed rector of St. Peter’s Church in Baltimore. On September 16, 1820, a reluctant Fr. Fenwick became Georgetown’s twelfth president succeeding Fr. Anthony Kohlmann.
Academic reforms
Fr. Fenwick introduced a series of changes to life at Georgetown College. He split the academic year into two terms, the first from September to December and the second from January to July. He organized the curriculum around rudiments, grammar, humanities and rhetoric. Each professor would teach Greek, Latin, French, and English in their own classes. Students took examinations at the end of the year and were graded according to their writing compositions.1
With the stricter regulations imposed by Fr. Fenwick, several students dropped out. By the end of the 1820-1821 term, enrollment had fallen to fewer than eighty students. Looking to increase enrollment, Fr. Fenwick had a prospectus printed and circulated, and he took out advertisements in various newspapers.2
The Minerva
During Fr. Fenwick’s tenure, Georgetown started its first college journal, The Minerva. Without access to type and presses, the students hand wrote each copy of the journal which was composed of contributions by the college’s rhetoricians. However, handwriting each copy took its toll, and The Minerva only lasted for a few issues.3
On September 14, 1822, Fr. Fenwick’s presidency ended, and he was succeeded by his brother, Fr. Benedict Fenwick.
