SAN ANTONIO – After three decades of leading what has become San Antonio’s largest Catholic university, Dr. Lou Agnese is opening up on his time at the University of the Incarnate Word.
From a growing enrollment and programs to a controversial shooting of a student by a campus police officer and his very public exit from the school earlier this year the former university president touched on several topics.
Standing in the doorway of the University of The Incarnate Word’s “Sky Room,” Agnese looked every bit of the man, who in many ways, put UIW on the map.
“Being at the door and greeting people as I normally am, and greeting everybody as they came in, was really special," he said.
A very public thank you, and goodbye to a man who's been the face and voice of Incarnate Word. Thirty-one years after he started, donors and VIP's lined up to pay tribute. One day later the man who is bringing a Medical School and Student Engagement Center to UIW, talked about the issues that kept him off campus for a few months.
"It's good to be back, and feeling good and on top of things, so it's a good, good place." Agnese said.
Now given the title of Incarnate Word President and Board of Trustee Emeritus, Agnese blames stress and exhaustion, which affected him physically, for the remarks that got him in trouble.
"It was a learning experience, you never know what your limits are, until you push them to the limit and I reached my limit," he said.
He calls the medical leave he was given by the Board of Trustees, much needed, he’s also thankful the Board realized there was a problem.
"I just needed to chill, and so given the opportunity to do so, and given the opportunity to get myself back where I needed to be, was a lot of self-reflection," Agnese said.
One subject where he seemed to not need to reflect too much on, the shooting of Cameron Redus by an campus police officer. Redus was driving when a UIW officer noticed him driving erratically. After stopping off-campus, the two men got into a struggle and Redus was shot multiple times.
"It was a very unfortunate situation, a very nice young man got himself into a situation that was brought on by himself," Agnese said. “I've grieved personally. When I was with the parents, but you know, we make choices in life."
The Redus family has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the university. Attorneys for UIW have argued that the school is exempt from liability because their police department is not a public enforcement agency.
That suit is currently before the Texas Supreme Court.
Not one to look back, he admits he's learning to reflect on what he has accomplished at the corner of Broadway and Hildebrand, but he also knows he and his wife are “turning the page.”
"We're going to stay in San Antonio, this is my home, even though I was born in Brooklyn I’m a Texan, I may not have a Texas accent, but I’m a Texan," Agnese said.
He believes his legacy goes beyond the buildings and the awards, it lies with those in the community who know him.
"If they came in contact with me, and had contact with me in any way, they knew that I cared about them and their well-being, and if they say that, I'm a happy man," he said.
When he started in 1985, UIW had 1,100 students. Today enrollment stands at 11,000. It is the third largest private university in Texas, and ranks No. 1 for the graduation of Hispanic students in the country.
Agnese plans to continue being an advocate for the university. It's also been an emotional time for those he worked with, when asked about the emotions of Agnese leaving, one of the Sister of Charity that work with him started to cry, and called him a “true friend.”
“You know this is a really good place, and I’m glad that I was here, and now it’s time to see what else I can do to not only support Incarnate Word and our city, and our state, but to also spend more time with my family and my grandkids and all those things that happen when we develop in life,” Agnese said.