Edward P. Tivnan

Father
Edward P. Tivnan
S.J.
Born (1882-03-10)March 10, 1882
Salem, MA
Died March 31, 1937(1937-03-31) (aged 55)
Manhattan, New York, NY
Occupation President of Fordham University
Religion Christian (Society of Jesus)
Academic background
Alma mater Georgetown University
Academic work
Discipline Chemistry

Edward P. Tivnan, S.J. (1882–1937) was president of Fordham University from 1919 until 1924.[1] Born in 1882 in Massachusetts,[2] he was thirty-seven when he was appointed, making him the youngest Jesuit priest to serve in that role in over three decades.[3]

Tivnan was appointed president of the university after the retirement of Joseph Mulry earlier that year.[4] He held a doctorate in chemistry from Georgetown University, and had been regent of the Fordham University Medical School for two years previous to becoming president. One of Tivnan's major decisions as president was regarding the university's medical school, an institution that had struggled to stay afloat since its opening some years earlier; lack of funds and low enrollment meant that unless sufficient funding could be found immediately, the school would have to be closed.[5] After exploring several other avenues, including appealing to Archbishop Patrick Hayes, the Archbishop of New York at the time, for financial help, Tivnan was forced to announce the closing of the university's medical school in 1921.[6]

In 1920, Tivnan oversaw the opening of the university's school of accounting, originally housed in the Woolworth Building. This would go on to become the Gabelli School of Business.[7] Another noteworthy achievement was the enrollment of the first Black woman in the Fordham School of Law, Ruth Whitehead Whaley, in 1921.[8] Whaley would later be appointed secretary of the New York City Board of Estimate.

Fordham University's Rose Hill Gymnasium was constructed during Tivnan's time as university president, being completed in January 1924.[5] The gymnasium was officially opened in 1925.

In 1910, previous to Tivnan's appointment as president, he was serving as a chemistry instructor at the university when he installed a seismograph in the basement of an administrative building on the Bronx campus.[9] Today the facility is the oldest seismography station in New York City,[10] and is part of the National Seismic Network, reporting to the United States Geological Survey in Boulder, Colorado.[11] The seismography station was officially dedicated and opened in 1924, shortly after Tivnan left Fordham University.

Tivnan died in 1937, twenty-seven years after leaving the position of president at Fordham University. He was 55 years old.[12]

References

  1. ↑ "Fordham Presidents - Fordham University Libraries". www.library.fordham.edu. Retrieved 2016-09-20.
  2. ↑ "Massachusetts Births, 1841-1915", database with images, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FXD3-KJ2 : 1 March 2016), Edward Tivnan, 1882.
  3. ↑ Shelley, Thomas (2016). Fordham: A History of the Jesuit University of new York: 1841-2003. New York, NY: Fordham University Press. ISBN 9780823271511.
  4. ↑ "Los Angeles Herald 15 January 1919 — California Digital Newspaper Collection". cdnc.ucr.edu. Retrieved 2016-09-21.
  5. 1 2 Gannon, Robert (1967). Up to the Present: The Story of Fordham. Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Company, Inc.
  6. ↑ Kane, Patrice. "Research Guides @ Fordham: Fordham University History: Schools that Once Were". fordham.libguides.com. Retrieved 2016-09-20.
  7. ↑ "About the Gabelli School of Business". Fordham Business Student Research Journal. 1 (1). 2012.
  8. ↑ "Four Distinguished Alumni Inducted into Hall of Honor". Retrieved 2016-09-21.
  9. ↑ Fernandez, Manny (2006-11-20). "As the Earth Shakes, a Machine Below the Bronx Takes Note". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-09-21.
  10. ↑ "Fordham University Historical Timeline". Fordham University.
  11. ↑ "Fordham University Facilities". Fordham University.
  12. ↑ "New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949," database, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2WKY-BK6 : 20 March 2015), Edward P Tivnan, 31 Mar 1937; citing Death, Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, New York Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 2,079,885.

Further reading

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