Inducted in 2009
Pioneer in 20th-Century Jesuit Education
Educator & Administrator, Various Jesuit Institutions
Member, Prep Board of Trustees (2000-2006)

Induction Video

Raised on East 183rd Street in the Belmont section of the Bronx, Vincent J. Duminuco, the son of Joseph and Mary Duminuco, a plasterer and a homemaker, graduated from Fordham Prep in 1951. In addition to being co-editor-in-chief of Rampart, Duminuco was involved in many aspects of Prep life: he debated, acted, managed baseball, went on air with the Radio Club (a microphone of which is still kept in the Prep Archives), sat on the Athletic Council and was an altar server with the Sanctuary Society — all the while maintaining the highest of academic averages. Classmate Adolph Ehbrecht once remarked how during their Prep days, he been “in awe of Vin, 'The Class Brain’ who without fail won first honors at every assembly, and yet was a regular guy.”  

After his graduation from the Prep, Duminuco entered the Society of Jesus. In a lighthearted predictions piece in the 1951 Ramkin, Vin's classmates would foresee "Fr. Duminuco in the capacity of head ichthyologist of the goldfish pond on the Fordham Campus." They were right in one respect: Vincent Duminuco's work in the Society would make ripples, ripples that would be felt throughout Jesuit education.

Rev. Vincent Duminuco, SJ was ordained in 1964 and studied for a time afterwards in Wales. He continued his education at Fordham in the Graduate School of Education and then at Stanford University, where he earned his doctorate summa cum laude in 1969. He served on the faculty at McQuaid High School in Rochester and as headmaster at Xavier in Manhattan. Duminuco also held a faculty appointment in the University's Graduate School of Education, and for six years served as secretary of Fordham University's board of trustees, later being named a trustee emeritus. As rector of Fordham’s Jesuit community, a position he held from 2001 through 2007, he oversaw the emotional, spiritual and physical well-being of the eighty or so members of Society who called Rose Hill their home.
 
But Vin was first and foremost an expert Jesuit educator who contributed significantly to the renewed and revitalized mission of Jesuit secondary education. He was a strong proponent of the continued importance of Catholic education as a significant ministry of the Church. Fr. Duminuco served as the second president of the Jesuit Secondary Education Association from 1977 to 1986, and during that time, he helped the Association grow into a vibrant national organization of Jesuit high schools.  

Beyond the United States, Father's contributions to the field of education continue to influence Jesuit schools on five continents. He was an active, effective secretary of education for the Society in Rome from 1986 to 1996, and helped organize overseas training in the International Jesuit Education Leadership Program, of which he was director, for Central and Eastern Europe. Among his other positions, he served as executive director of the Internal Center for Jesuit Education in Rome, adjunct professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, and national director of the Jesuit Research Group in Education. He was particularly concerned about getting educational help to Africa and other impoverished areas of the world.
 
Vin Duminuco did not forget the Prep's Class of 1951. From classmate John Blessington: “He was a dear friend to many over the years, and had a solid recall of our time at the Prep. As we came near our fiftieth reunion, he would gather us for Mass. He became a beacon for our class.” Adolph Ehbrecht added that mass “was followed by drinks and a grand meal at an Italian restaurant. Vin enjoyed his food!”

In the words of Frank McLaughlin, Class of 1965, longtime director of athletics at Fordham University, "Father Vin was dedicated and loyal to the Prep, gracious, always willing to help others.”
 
Rev. Vincent J. Duminuco, SJ passed away in September of 2008.