A Catholic educator and former Swiss guard, Mario Enzler, has found himself in hot water after it was discovered that he falsified his teaching credentials. Now he has resigned in disgrace from his position as Dean of the University of St. Thomas’ Cameron School of Business, and his former colleagues are calling him a “con artist.”
Mario Enzler
Mario Enzler is well known for his time as a Swiss Guard, a topic he covered in a book, I Served a Saint, which reflects on his time serving under Pope St. John Paul II. Enzler has also spoken about a friendship he formed with St. Teresa of Calcutta, in the same era. After retiring from the Swiss Guard he spent 16 years as a Swiss banker.
Years later, after moving to America, Enzler and his wife founded an academy in New Hampshire that focused on a classical curriculum. This helped him forge a reputation as an educator and would open the door for him to take postings at institutions like the Catholic University of America and the University of St. Thomas.
In his posts, Enzler maintained that he had a bachelor’s degree and a PhD in Music. While a music doctorate is pretty far away from a business doctorate, his previous positions as an educator and banker made him an attractive find for the University of St. Thomas, which secured him as dean of their business school in 2020.
Investigation
According to Daily Mail, the investigation into Enzler’s credentials began when several of his colleagues at St. Thomas noticed that his teaching style was not indicative of a trained educator. This led them to look through Enzler’s background, where they found evidence that he could not have the degrees he claimed.
In their investigation of Enzler, the professors discovered that the school he claimed to get his PhD from does not offer any doctorates at all. Furthermore, the college from which Enzler claimed to receive his bachelor’s degree was actually a high school. With his secret exposed, the group reported Enzler to a St. Thomas board in April.
Daily Mail has comments from assistant accounting professor Ramon Fernandez, one of the investigators, who said he was concerned that someone without proper credentials could become dean of St. Thomas:
The University of St. Thomas has announced that they have accepted Enzler’s resignation and that “he is moving on to the next chapter of his life.” University administrators have made no indication as to whether or not they intend to take any legal action against Enzler.
