A Tale of Three Presidents

“I think we’re all excited for each other, for sure,” Fr. Daniel says. “I’m inspired by their enthusiasm to embrace their new leadership positions. I’m also thrilled for their campus communities. They’re getting great leaders.”

Father Scott arrived in Denver from Loyola University Chicago, where he was a tenured professor of Spanish language, literature and culture, and an associate provost.

“It’s a big change,” Fr. Scott says. “I’ve gone from the shores of Lake Michigan to looking at the Rocky Mountains. I had an inkling early on that I wanted to continue in higher education, and I wasn’t sure in what way or form, but I think we all at an early age fell in love with the intellectual life and the pursuit of knowledge. We became passionate about ‘How do you do that in the Catholic tradition?’”

Ryan took over at the University of St. Francis after 26 years at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Ill. He served 16 as a faculty member and 10 as an administrator. “There’s a love of learning,” says Ryan, who holds a PhD in political science. “Perhaps that was instrumental in all of us pursuing advanced university degrees and then working in universities.”

Ryan is now working to raise the profile of his university and bring in innovative programs that increase enrollment.

The Hendricksons grew up near Omaha in the city of Fremont, Neb. Ryan was a toddler when his parents brought home his twin brothers.

“They really looked so much alike, I had little ID bracelets made for them,” Mary says.

All three brothers attended a public grade school and a Catholic junior high. For high school, they attended Mount Michael Benedictine School, a boys boarding school run by monks.

“I wanted to do something different than our other Catholic high school in our hometown,” Ryan says. “I learned about Mount Michael, and they had an excellent academic reputation. They were also good in sports. That’s important when you’re 14 years old.”

His brothers followed two years later. It was at Mount Michael that the twins began to discern a vocation. From there, all three Hendricksons moved on to Jesuit universities. Ryan and Fr. Daniel went Marquette University in Milwaukee, and Fr. Scott went to Saint Louis University. The twins’ vocations came more into focus after graduating and spending a year volunteering as teachers at their old high school.

“I just fell in love with both the Jesuits at Marquette University and with the mission of Jesuit higher education,” Fr. Daniel says.

But an act of unspeakable violence influenced his decision to join the Jesuits. In 1989, on the campus of Central American University in San Salvador, six Jesuits were murdered by Salvadoran Army soldiers.

“This tragic incident put Jesuit higher education in global purview, and in a way that was speaking up for those who were poor and oppressed, and in the end, that was very inspiring,” Fr. Daniel says. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1994. His brother followed in 1997 after earning a master’s in romance languages/Spanish.

Though they’ve pursued their own paths, the brothers say they’ve always been supportive of each other. They remain close even though they are in three different states.

“I always say all of my in-laws on my side of the family are Jesuits,” says Ryan, who’s been married for 30 years and has three children. “When we have family reunions, there’s my brothers. Then they bring their Jesuit friends.”

Get togethers require coordination. At one point, the three brothers were living on three different continents.

“Since we’re all in higher education, sometimes we have to form a committee just to figure out how to do Christmas vacation,” Fr. Scott says.

Even though they’re now university presidents, they’re still their parents’ sons.

“My mother’s been very clear that at Christmas dinner—no discussion about enrollments or endowments, or other metrics and strategic plans,” Fr. Daniel says.

The brothers aren’t the only ones to lead an institution of higher learning. Their father, Jerry, was the president of a private vocational college when his sons were growing up. They aren’t the only priests in the family, either. Several cousins on their mother’s side have had religious vocations.

Mary and Jerry are proud of their sons’ accomplishments, but also of who they’ve become. “They’re good people,” Mary says. “They are making a difference, they’re influencing other people in a positive way, and they’re happy. They’re so happy with what they’re doing. They’re invigorated, and invested totally in what they’re doing.”

It’s too early to tell if the family business of university president will continue. But the family tradition of hanging pennants is alive and well. Mary has started a new wall at home with pennants reflecting the schools and accomplishments of her grandchildren.