The Vatican announced the choice of a new pope to lead the Catholic Church, the first pope from the United States and the first to hold a bachelor’s degree from an American university.
Robert Prevost Pope Leo XIV graduated from Villanova University in 1977.
Pope Leo XIV was born in Robert Prevost and a Chicago native who graduated from Villanova University in Philadelphia in 1977 with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics science. In September of that year, he joined the Order of St. Augustine. He swore in August 1981 and received his Master of Theology from the Catholic Theological Society in Chicago in 1982.
Villanova President Peter M. Donohue said in a statement that the university celebrates Pope Leo XIV’s election.
“I can’t help but reflect on what his Pope Augustine means to our university community and to our world,” Donohue said. “Known for its humility, tender spirit, prudence and warmth, the leaders of the Pope’s Lion King offer an opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to our mission to education.”
For most of his career, Prevost served in Peru, holding roles as a parish pastor, diocesan official, seminar teacher and administrator before becoming bishop of Chiclayo in 2015. In 2023, Pope Francis appointed Prevost precision of the Dicastery for Bishops, which increased his visibility and influence in the church, putting him on the path to the papacy.
In addition to becoming the first pope in the United States, Leo is also the first double pope, with citizenship in Peru. He was also the first Augustine friar to be elected pope, reflecting the roots of the Augustinian Catholics in Villanova.
The last pope of Leo’s name is also associated with American higher education. Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903) established his formal recognition on April 10, 1887 to the American Catholic University in Washington, DC, which recognized that the date was Founder’s Day.
