Catholic University Dean of Business to Step Down Next Year

By Griffin Cappiello

The founding dean of The Catholic University of America’s Busch School of Business, Dr. Andrew Abela, will step down at the end of the 2026-2027 academic year. 

“I’m truly grateful to have been offered the opportunity to serve as dean for another four years,” Dean Abela said in a statement. “But after much prayer and deliberation, I’ve decided to step back from administration and return to teaching and research. These past 14 years have been the most significant of my professional life.”

Dean Abela, who has served as dean since 2013, was offered another term by University President Peter Kilpatrick, but declined the offer, Kilpatrick said in an email to the school. 

Throughout his tenure as dean, enrollment in the Busch School increased from 300 to 800 students. Dean Abela’s leadership also guided the Busch School to obtain AACSB accreditation, the most prestigious global standard of quality for business schools held by less than six percent of institutions worldwide.

Abela joined Catholic University’s faculty in 2002 and was named chair of the then-Department of Business and Economics in 2009. He was the inaugural dean of the School of Business and Economics when it separated from the School of Arts and Sciences. He also served as the University’s Provost and Senior Vice President from 2015 to 2019 before returning to his post as business dean.

A search for the Busch School’s next dean will begin soon.