Arthur A. O'Leary

Arthur A. O'Leary
Portrait of Arthur A. O'Leary
O'Leary in 1936
40th President of Georgetown University
In office
1935–1942
Preceded byW. Coleman Nevils
Succeeded byLawrence C. Gorman
Personal details
Born(1887-09-27)September 27, 1887
Washington, D.C., U.S.
DiedFebruary 8, 1962(1962-02-08) (aged 74)
Washington, D.C.
Alma mater
Orders
Ordination1919

Arthur Aloysius O'Leary SJ (September 27, 1887 – February 8, 1962) was an American Catholic priest and Jesuit, who served as president of Georgetown University in from 1935 to 1942. Born in Washington, D.C., he studied at Gonzaga College before entering the Society of Jesus and continuing his education at St. Andrew-on-Hudson and Woodstock College. He then taught at St. Andrew-on-Hudson and Georgetown University, where he eventually became the university's librarian, and undertook a major improvement of the Georgetown University Library. O'Leary then assumed the presidency of the university in the midst of the Great Depression and, later, World War II.

In office, he began a revitalization of the nationwide alumni network from the disparate, regional chapters, re-established the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences as a standalone school within the university, and significantly expanded Georgetown's athletic programs. After, he became the pastor of Holy Trinity Church in Georgetown, and then pastor of St. Andrew-on-Hudson. Towards the end of his life, he returned to Georgetown, where he died.