Servants of Humility

“If you ask me what the essential thing in the religion and discipline of Jesus Christ is, I shall reply: first, humility; second, humility, and third, humility.” – St. Augustine

Just as St. Augustine placed humility at the core of his faith and devotion, so too did the first Deans of what’s now the Villanova School of Business. Joseph John C. Bartley, O.S.A., and Philip F. Barrett, O.S.A. lived as many Augustinians have—by acknowledging any accomplishments as God’s above all others.

During the time when Frs. Bartley and Barrett lived, it was common practice to eschew the publicity of individual successes, and consequently we have very little by way of an historical record of these men’s lives. It is through the recollections of those who knew them that we can acknowledge these men as servants of humility who made an enormous difference.

Father Bartley

Born on March 23, 1893, Joseph Bartley was raised in Lawrence, Massachusetts, which was once the largest Augustinian community in the United States. After spending one year at Lawrence High School, he entered St. Rita’s Hall, the House of Postulants, at Villanova College and completed his theological studies in 1919 when he was ordained into the priesthood. He went on to complete his PhD in economics at Catholic University before returning to Villanova.

Fr. Bartley became the first Dean of the Division of Commerce & Finance (C&F) in 1922 (later the College of Commerce & Finance) and served in that role for the next 40 years. He was also the Dean of the summer school and the extension and evening schools, in addition to serving on the Board of Trustees as the Secretary.

Those who remember him describe Fr. Bartley as a quiet, pleasant man, who made easy conversation and enjoyed playing cards. He rarely spoke of his work at C&F, except to humbly remark, “To think this all started with three students.”

Fr. Bartley led the College of Commerce & Finance through the post-war period when enrollment surged from 130 students pre-war to over 1,000 as men returning from war saw the benefits of a business education. Enrollment remained high through the early 1960s. Upon his sudden and unexpected death at age 69, the College of Commerce & Finance totaled more than 1,400 students.

Father Barrett

Father Philip F. Barrett became the next Dean of C&F following Fr. Bartley’s passing in 1962, but he followed a much different path than his predecessor. Philip Barrett entered the Augustinian Academy in Staten Island in 1935 at age 17. With the outbreak of World War II, he joined the Navy in 1942 where he served until 1945.  Like many his age, he took advantage of the G.I. Bill and enrolled at Villanova College, where he received a B.A. in economics. Upon completing his degree, he became ordained in 1953 in Washington, D.C. at age 35, much older than most of his fellow priests. He went on to teach high school in Washington, D.C., and then taught theology and served as a dean at Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts.

Among his many accomplishments as the Dean of C&F, Fr. Barrett led efforts to incorporate a liberal arts component into the curriculum to ensure that business students also became adaptable, critical thinkers. Most notably though, under Fr. Barrett’s leadership, the College received its first accreditation in 1975 from the American Academy of Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). Villanova was the second Catholic college to receive this designation, after Duquesne University, and one of only 179 schools in the nation at that point.

Fr. Barrett was also remembered for his great service. in 1972, Hurricane Agnes ravaged his hometown of Wilkes-Barre, PA when the Susquehanna River rose over 40 feet and flooded the city. While Dean of  C&F, he returned to Wilkes-Barre where he rolled up his sleeves and donned boots in the muddy water and led the efforts to help clean and resurrect his city.

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While there may be no formal record, we need only to look around Bartley Hall to see the evidence of the impact of Fathers Bartley and Barrett on the Villanova School of Business. Today, VSB receives more than 7,100 applications for about 400 spots, with an admission rate of 16.8% - a far cry from our first class of three.