WORCESTER – President of the College of the Holy Cross, Rev. Philip Boroughs, S.J., announced by live video address to the campus on Tuesday, September 22, that he is ending his tenure as the 32nd president of the Jesuit liberal arts college after nine years.
Boroughs, 71, will leave the college on June 30, 2021, after the current academic year. A national search for the 33rd president of Holy Cross will begin soon.
During the announcement, Boroughs said that he will take a one-year sabbatical before receiving a new assignment from the Jesuit order.
Since becoming president of Holy Cross in January 2012, Holy Cross raised $420 million from its alumni, which put the College in the top 10 in the nation in alumni giving participation.
The College also placed in the top 10 in the nation in graduation success rate consistently, achieving at least 97%.
During Boroughs’ tenure, Holy Cross implemented several academic initiatives, including the J.D. Power Center for Liberal Arts in the World, Arts Transcending Borders, and the Scholarship in Action program, which funds faculty research in Worcester.
The College has also implemented several programs aimed at diversity under Boroughs. The Office of International Students, a new office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and a new office of Title IX initiatives and equal opportunity were created.
The College also joined the American Talent Initiative, which seeks to expand access for low-income and first-generation students.
Prior to coming to Holy Cross, Boroughs served as Georgetown University’s first vice president for mission and ministry from 2003 to 2011.
Boroughs is a member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities; the Board of Trustees of St. Joseph’s University; the Board of the Higher Education Consortium of Central Massachusetts; and the Council of Presidents of the Patriot League, for which he served as chair from 2015 to 2017.
