Paul Leo Locatelli, S.J. (September 16, 1938 – July 12, 2010) was an American

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

and

certified public accountant Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is the title of qualified accountants in numerous countries in the English-speaking world. It is generally equivalent to the title of chartered accountant in other English-speaking countries. In the United Stat ...

. Locatelli served as the president of

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private university, private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California, United States. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university' ...

from 1988 until 2008 before becoming

chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

of Santa Clara in 2008. He also held the post of Secretary of Higher Education for the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

Rome 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, ...

Biography

Early life

Locatelli grew up on a

ranch A ranch (from /Mexican Spanish) is an area of landscape, land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of farm. These terms are most often ap ...

in the town of

Boulder Creek, California Boulder Creek () is a small rural mountain community in the coastal Santa Cruz Mountains. It is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Cruz County, California, Santa Cruz County, California, with a population of 5,429 as of the 2020 United Sta ...

, in the

Santa Cruz Mountains The Santa Cruz Mountains ( Mutsun Ohlone: Mak-sah-re-jah, "Sharp Ridged Mountain of the Eagle" or "People of the Eagle Mountain") are a mountain range in central and Northern California, United States, constituting a part of the Pacific Coast R ...

, the second of three sons. The family grew their own walnuts and grapes for

winemaking Winemaking, wine-making, or vinification is the production of wine, starting with the selection of the fruit, its Ethanol fermentation, fermentation into alcohol, and the bottling of the finished liquid. The history of wine-making stretches over ...

. His family had come to Boulder Creek from

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

in the 1890s. His father ran Locatelli Brothers Lumber, where Locatelli worked. His mother's family had emigrated from

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

, California, where they opened and operated the Colombo Bakery. Locatelli was the first member of his family to attend college. He received a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

in business at the University of Santa Clara, now

, in 1960. His classmates at Santa Clara included CIA director

Leon Panetta Leon Edward Panetta (born June 28, 1938) is an American retired politician and government official who has served under several Democratic administrations as secretary of defense (2011–2013), director of the CIA (2009–2011), White House chi ...

, who remained friends with Locatelli, and former

Oakland A's Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

owner

Stephen Schott Stephen C. Schott (born 1939) is an American real estate developer and businessman, best known for his ten-year co-ownership of the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball (MLB). Early life and education Schott was born to a Roman Catholic f ...

. Locatelli obtained a

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

from the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

Marshall School of Business The USC Marshall School of Business is the business school of the University of Southern California. It is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. In 1997 the school was renamed following a $35 million donation fr ...

. He enlisted in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

and decided to enter the Jesuits after leaving the armed services. Locatelli entered the former Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley. He was ordained a Jesuit priest in 1974.

Santa Clara University

Locatelli began teaching at Santa Clara University as a professor of

accounting Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the process of recording and processing information about economic entity, economic entities, such as businesses and corporations. Accounting measures the results of an organization's economic activit ...

in 1974, the same year in which he was ordained a Jesuit priest. Within a few years, he was voted outstanding teacher of the year. He rose from Dean of the School of Business, to Academic Vice-President. Locatelli was named the 27th President of

in 1988 after 14 years at the university. During Locatelli's tenure as president, academics, admissions standards and endowment funding increased substantially. Under Locatelli's presidency, Santa Clara University fully renovated or constructed nineteen new campus buildings, as well as a sports center. This is the equivalent of two-thirds of all campus facilities. A prolific fundraiser, Locatelli raised millions for the construction spree which included new academic buildings, a

business school A business school is a higher education institution or professional school that teaches courses leading to degrees in business administration or management. A business school may also be referred to as school of management, management school, s ...

building,

residence halls A dormitory (originated from the Latin word ''dormitorium'', often abbreviated to dorm), also known as a hall of residence, a residence hall (often abbreviated to halls), or a hostel, is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential qu ...

, a swim center, a tennis center, and the School of Arts and Science. He also raised funds for

scholarships A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need, research ...

at Santa Clara. Locatelli phased out Santa Clara's

fraternity A fraternity (; whence, "wikt:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular ...

and

sorority In North America, fraternities and sororities ( and ) are social clubs at colleges and universities. They are sometimes collectively referred to as Greek life or Greek-letter organizations, as well as collegiate fraternities or collegiate sorori ...

houses, which lessened the influence of the Greek system on student life. Controversially, Locatelli eliminated the school's Division II football program in 1993. Locatelli spearheaded the effort to reroute The Alameda (California State Route 82), which had previously run through the center of Santa Clara University's campus. Locatelli also had a new entrance road, lined with

palm trees The Arecaceae () is a family of perennial, flowering plants in the monocot order Arecales. Their growth form can be climbers, shrubs, tree-like and stemless plants, all commonly known as palms. Those having a tree-like form are colloquially ...

, built which leads to the

Mission Santa Clara de Asís Mission Santa Clara de Asís () is a Spanish mission in the city of Santa Clara, California. The mission, which was the eighth in California, was founded on January 12, 1777, by the Franciscans. Named for Saint Clare of Assisi, who founded th ...

, a 1777 Spanish mission which is now the centerpiece of Santa Clara's campus. Locatelli and Santa Clara University became involved with the

Salvadoran Civil War The Salvadoran Civil War () was a twelve-year civil war in El Salvador that was fought between the government of El Salvador, backed by the United States, and the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN), a coalition of left-wing guer ...

during the late 1980s and early 1990s. He offered Santa Clara as a refuge to the lone surviving Jesuit of the 1989 massacre at the

Universidad Centroamericana Central American University may refer to: * Central American University, Managua * Central American University, San Salvador * Autonomous University of Central America, located in Costa Rica {{Disambiguation ...

, in which six Jesuits, their housekeeper and her daughter were killed by the

Salvadoran Army The Salvadoran Army (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Ejército Salvadoreño'') is the land branch and largest of the Armed Forces of El Salvador. History The Football War The Football War (also called The Soccer War or 100-hours War) was a ter ...

. (The surviving Jesuit priest had been out of El Salvador at the time of the killings). Father Locatelli also implemented a program where Santa Clara students volunteered and worked at a women's center and urban schools in

El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...

. Under President Locatelli's guidance, Santa Clara's endowment at Santa Clara grew from $77 million in 1988 to approximately $700 million in 2008. Through the Ignatian Center for Jesuit Education, the University has expanded its ability to connect students to communities in

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that is a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical area of the Santa Clara Valley ...

and throughout the world. Locatelli was known affectionately by the students at SCU through a variety of nicknames; such as; "Papa Lōc", "Big Poppa P", "P. Loc", and the "Big P". On March 1, 2008, Locatelli announced his intention to resign during the 2008–09 academic year, after 20 years as university president, due to his additional responsibilities as Secretary of Higher Education of the

, a post he had held since January 2007, coordinating the Jesuits' 150 universities worldwide, to promote cooperation among Jesuit higher education institutions. He was subsequently promoted to chancellor of the university in November 2008 by new

President Michael Engh, S.J.

Recognitions

On January 16, 2002, he was awarded the

Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice ''Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice'' ("For Church and Pope" in Latin) is a decoration of the Holy See. It is currently conferred for distinguished service to the Catholic Church by lay people and clergy. History The medal was established by Leo XII ...

from San Jose Bishop Patrick Joseph McGrath. Father Locatelli was awarded the Spirit of Silicon Valley Lifetime Achievement Award from the Silicon Valley Leadership Group. He was also a recipient of the David Packard Award in 2009.

Death

Locatelli was diagnosed with

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of ...

in May 2010. At the time Father Locatelli took ill, he was preparing for the fiftieth anniversary celebration and reunion of his classmates in the class of 1960 at

, and had already sent out invitations, including one to

. He was moved to the hospice at Regis Jesuit Infirmary in

Los Gatos Los Gatos (; ; ) is an incorporated town in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population is 33,529 according to the 2020 census. It is located in the San Francisco Bay Area just southwest of San Jose in the foothills of t ...

on July 8, 2010. He died from

on July 12, 2010, at the age of 71. Locatelli was survived by his brothers, Albert and Harry.

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...

Director, former Congressman and

White House Chief of Staff The White House chief of staff is the head of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, a position in the federal government of the United States. The chief of staff is a Political appointments in the United States, politi ...

, a 1960 Santa Clara classmate of Locatelli's, stated after Father Locatelli's death that "What Paul told you was always the truth. He didn't play games. You knew that what he said was what he believed. I don't think there is any question that he will go down as one of the greatest presidents in Santa Clara history."

References

External links

Office of the President, Santa Clara UniversityOfficial speeches and lettersFr. Locatelli re-appointed for fourth termSanta Clara University Press Release on Father Locatelli's death
{{DEFAULTSORT:Locatelli, Paul 1938 births 2010 deaths Presidents of Santa Clara University American accountants American people of Italian descent 20th-century American Jesuits 21st-century American Jesuits Santa Clara University alumni Marshall School of Business alumni Loyola Marymount University faculty People from Santa Clara, California People from Boulder Creek, California Deaths from pancreatic cancer in California Catholics from California