Ninth Ignatian and First Lay President
On July 1, 2017, Mark R. Nemec, PhD, became the first lay and ninth Ignatian President of Fairfield University.
Working with his senior leadership team, constituents across campus, and the University’s alumni and civic communities, President Nemec has positioned Fairfield to be a modern, Jesuit Catholic University of national prominence — committed to lifelong learning, holistic formation, and expansive partnership while instantiating academic excellence, fostering comprehensive achievement, and advancing educational access.
Under President Nemec’s leadership, Fairfield has renewed its commitment to the nearly 500-year-old traditions of Jesuit pedagogy, with an emphasis on excellence in all things, care for the whole student, and a broad-based liberal arts and sciences foundation. This values-based, student-centric, outcomes-focused approach is dedicated to forming men and women for and with others, in pursuit of societal stewardship and productive citizenship.
At the same time, he has led the University through a course of expansion and innovation designed to meet the challenges of the 21st century, and has expanded the University’s reach to learners of all ages, emphasizing: innovation in teaching methods, embracement of the potential of big data and emerging technologies, the launch of new graduate and professional programs designed to meet the needs of today’s students, and the fostering of industry and community partnerships to strengthen the University’s reputation as a leader in contemporary higher education. Since 2017, Fairfield has seen traditional undergraduate enrollment grow from 4,003 to 5,217 while increasing selectivity to 33 percent, ranking it sixth amongst all Catholic universities and colleges, up from 50. In this same period, Fairfield’s total enrollment has grown from 5,197 to 6,895.
During Dr. Nemec’s tenure, Fairfield has also embarked on a series of efforts to serve broader student populations in ever more innovative ways. Inspired by its longstanding relationship with Brooklyn Jesuit Prep and Camp Montmarte, the University has expanded its commitment to educational access through the significant expansion of Academic Immersion, the creation of the Company Scholars program for high-achieving first-generation students from Cristo Rey and Jesuit high schools, and the initiation of Bellarmine campus, a two year associate’s degree program fully supporting students as they bridge to college or career, launched in Bridgeport in conjunction with the Diocese in 2023.
President Nemec also led completion of the largest capital campaign in University history, Fairfield Rising, exceeding an original goal of $160 million to raise a total of $218 million to benefit the institution. Currently, the University is in the quiet phase of its next campaign Called to Do More and to date has raised $236 million against a $340 million goal.
