John Early (educator)

John Early
Portrait of John Early
26th & 28th President of Georgetown University
In office
1870–1873
Preceded byBernard A. Maguire
Succeeded byPatrick Francis Healy
In office
1858–1865
Preceded byBernard A. Maguire
Succeeded byBernard A. Maguire
1st & 5th President of Loyola College in Maryland
In office
1866–1870
Preceded byAnthony F. Ciampi
Succeeded byEdward Henchy
In office
1852–1858
Succeeded byWilliam Francis Clarke
3rd President of the College of the Holy Cross
In office
1848–1851
Preceded byJames A. Ryder
Succeeded byAnthony F. Ciampi
Personal details
Born(1814-07-01)July 1, 1814
Maguiresbridge, County Fermanagh, Ireland
DiedMay 23, 1873(1873-05-23) (aged 58)
Washington, D.C., United States
Resting placeJesuit Community Cemetery
Alma mater
Orders
OrdinationJuly 1, 1845

John Early SJ (July 1, 1814 – May 23, 1873) was an Irish-American Catholic priest and Jesuit educator who was the president of the College of the Holy Cross and Georgetown University, as well as the founder and first president of Loyola College in Maryland. Born in Ireland, he emigrated to the United States at the age of nineteen. Upon his arrival, he enrolled at Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Maryland and entered the Society of Jesus, completing his education at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

Early became president of the College of the Holy Cross in 1848, where he unsuccessfully petitioned the Massachusetts legislature to charter the school. Four years later, he was charged with establishing Loyola College in Maryland, which was intended to educate the lay students who attended St. Mary's Seminary and College, which the Sulpicians sought to keep as a seminary only. While also serving as the first pastor of St. Ignatius Church, he oversaw the early years of Loyola College. He also established its high school division, which later became Loyola Blakefield. In 1858, Early left to become president of Georgetown University. During the Civil War, instruction continued uninterrupted, despite intermittent occupation by the Union Army and dwindling enrollment.

Early then returned to Loyola College in 1866 as president for four years, where he resumed the annual conferral of degrees. In 1870, he once again became president of Georgetown University. He died suddenly in his third year of office.