Fred P. Pestello (born June 10, 1952) is an American sociologist and educator who has served as the 33rd president of

Saint Louis University Saint Louis University (SLU) is a private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1818 by Louis William Valentine DuBourg, it is the oldest university west of the Missi ...

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

since 2014. He previously served as president of

Le Moyne College Le Moyne College is a private Jesuit college mostly in DeWitt, New York. It was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1946, and named after Jesuit missionary Simon Le Moyne. Le Moyne was the first co-educational Jesuit college in the United Sta ...

from 2008 to 2014.

Biography

Pestello was born and raised in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

, and received his bachelor's degree in sociology from John Carroll University in 1974, his master's degree in sociology from the

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public university, public research university in Akron, Ohio, United States. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM fields, STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advance ...

in 1981, and his doctoral degree from the

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a Public university, public research university in Kent, Ohio, United States. The university includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio located in Kent State University at Ashtabula, Ashtabula, Kent State ...

joint Ph.D. program in sociology in 1985.

University of Dayton

Pestello served at the

University of Dayton The University of Dayton (UD) is a Private university, private, Catholic research university in Dayton, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1850 by the Society of Mary (Marianists), Society of Mary, it is one of three Marianist universities in the U ...

for 24 years. He began his academic career as professor of sociology at the university, and later became chair of the department of sociology, anthropology, and social work. From there, Pestello took administrative positions as the associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. Later, he served as the University of Dayton's

Provost Provost may refer to: Officials Ecclesiastic * Provost (religion), a high-ranking church official * Prince-provost, a high-ranking church official Government * Provost (civil), an officer of local government, including the equivalent ...

and Senior Vice president for Educational Affairs from 2001 to 2008. Pestello also served the Ohio Partnership for Continued Learning, the Dayton Regional Network, United Way of Greater Dayton, and St. Joseph Children's Treatment Center. From 2003 to 2005, he served on the National Advisory Council Fostering Student Development through Faculty Development, a project funded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc. and the

John Templeton Foundation The John Templeton Foundation (Templeton Foundation) is a Philanthropy, philanthropic organization founded by John Templeton in 1987. Templeton became wealthy as a Contrarian investing, contrarian investor, and wanted to support progress in relig ...

Le Moyne College

Pestello was the first permanent lay leader of

, a Jesuit institution of higher education and the only comprehensive Catholic college in Central New York. As president, Dr. Pestello oversaw stewardship of a record donation to the college: a $50 million bequest from the McDevitt family. He also directed physical improvements on the campus, including renovation of an abandoned building in order to house a bookstore open to the community, and construction of the Coyne Science Center. Pestello implemented changes that increased enrollment, and led two fund-raising campaigns. In September 2008, Pestello initiated a strategic visioning process entitled "OneLeMoyne," culminating in a new strategic plan. In June 2009, Pestello met with the Superior General of the Society of Jesus in

Rome, Italy Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Saint Louis University

Pestello was appointed to serve as president of

by the university's board of trustees on 20 March 2014. On 21 March 2014, Pestello was officially named the 33rd president of

. He replaced

Lawrence Biondi Lawrence H. Biondi, SJ is a Catholic Priest who served as the President of Saint Louis University from 1987 to 2013, a period that saw significant changes to campus and the university as a whole. Early life and education Born in Chicago, Illi ...

. Since Pestello took office in 2014, SLU has invested in further construction around campus and negotiated an agreement with SSM Health which includes a $550 million investment on the medical campus. After peacefully resolving a weeklong campus encampment known as "OccupySLU" that took place in the wake of the

shooting of Michael Brown On August 9, 2014, 18-year-old Michael Brown was shot and killed by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. Brown was accompanied by his 22-year-old male friend Dorian Johnson. Wilson, a white male Fergu ...

, Pestello's administration oversaw the implementation of the Clocktower Accords, an agreement made between Pestello and OccupySLU protesters to promote racial equity at SLU. Pestello also led the Accelerating Excellence fundraising campaign, which launched in November 2018. By its conclusion in 2022, the effort raised $604 million to support the university. On March 21, 2024, Pestello announced that he would be stepping down from the SLU presidency in June 2025.

Published works

Books

* ''Sentiments and Acts.'' (Aldine de Gruyter, 1993). Co-authored with Irwin Deutscher and H. Frances G. Pestello. Book received a Special Recognition Award from the Charles Horton Cooley Committee of the Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction, 1994.

Articles

Pestello has published articles on topics ranging from hospices and public policy to faculty hiring practices in Catholic colleges, including: *"Faculty Attitudes and Hiring Practices at Selected Catholic Colleges and Universities." ''Current Issues in Catholic Higher Education'' (2001) with James L. Heft and Ronald M. Katsuyama *"Discounting." ''Journal of Contemporary Ethnography'' (1991) * "The Social Construction of Grades." ''Teaching Sociology'' (1987) *"White Opposition: To Busing or to Desegregation?" ''Social Science Quarterly'' (1982)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pestello, Fred P. 1952 births Living people American sociologists Presidents of Saint Louis University Presidents of Le Moyne College University of Dayton faculty John Carroll University alumni Kent State University alumni University of Akron alumni