Charles Zech, professor who launched papal-approved church management program, dies at 79

The professor founded and led the Center for Church Management at Villanova University, where he taught economics for years.

Charles Zech, a long-serving economics professor at Villanova University who founded and led the schoolʼs pioneering Church management institute, died on May 17. He was 79 years old.

His death was announced in an obituary that described him as a “doting father and husband” who “prioritized spending time with his family” even as he spearheaded a major ecclesial management initiative that has quickly become a significant component of the U.S. Church.

Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Zech attended the University of St. Thomas and received a doctorate in economics from the University of Notre Dame. He began teaching at Villanova Universityʼs School of Business in 1974 and would remain there until his retirement in 2018.

Villanova launched the Center for Church Management in 2004 with Zech at the helm. On its website the center says it offers “education programs and scholarly insight contextualized for congregational leaders, addressing the areas of administration, professional financial management, human resource management, and more.”

Among its programs includes a master of science in Church management as well as a webinar series and administrative education programs.

The program received the endorsement of Pope Leo XIV in 2025; the pope, born Robert Prevost, is a Villanova graduate himself.

Wen Mao, the dean of the Villanova School of Business, said in a statement that Zechʼs scholarly contributions were “world-renowned.”

“During [his time at the university], he had a tremendous impact on his students, with many crediting him for their reason to study economics,” Mao said, describing the school as “deeply indebted” to him for his contributions.

Zechʼs obituary said he authored or co-authored a dozen books and often appeared in the media as a “voice of authority on Church management.”

In a widely-circulated white paper on Church parish management, Zech affirmed that the Church “is not a business,” but it “does have a stewardship responsibility to use the scarce resources that are available to it as effectively as possible to carry out God’s work on Earth.”

Citing shifting demographic trends and low Church attendance numbers, Zech argued that “the old model of operating a Catholic parish won’t work in the 21st century.”

A shift in parish management “does not necessitate a watering
down of Church teachings,” he wrote, but it does require “a recognition that some business management practices can be applied to a faith-based organization while allowing it to remain committed to its core values.”

He is survived by his wife, Ann — to whom he was married for 53 years — along with six children and eight grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his eldest son, Tom.

Friends and family shared reflections of Zechʼs life in his obituary. One family friend said he led a “beautiful and fruitful life filled with all of the important things,” while another praised his “great work for the Church.”

His brother Ed said a few years ago the two were sharing a beer together when Zech remarked: “We had a good run, didnʼt we?”

“We did have a good run; maybe a great one,” Ed said, describing him as a “great big brother” and writing: “I loved him dearly and I will miss him forever.”

One of Zechʼs fellow economics professors at Villanova, Alan Donziger, described him as both academically accomplished and “a wonderful professional colleague.” Donziger said the two shared family celebrations including weddings and the birth of children and grandchildren.

“Although I wasn’t able to discuss it with him, I hope he was able to get some joy from seeing his beloved Villanova produce a pope,” he said.

His daughter Patty — who said her father always referred to her as “Trish” — told EWTN News that Zech had a “remarkable career” and that his founding of the Church management initiative was “truly a labor of love.”

Yet she said his most cherished role in life was “that of a loving husband, father, and grandfather.”

“His joy was being with his family,” she said. “And we loved being with him. He made us all feel so loved and cared for. He was fun to be around.”

Patty said that as an undergrad at Villanova she would often stop by his office between classes “just to hang out with him” and would invite him “to nights out to get wings” with her friends.

The mother of triplets, Patty said that Zech would regularly come over to help her and her husband with the children when they were infants, including “feeding them, diapering them, getting them down to sleep.”

“He loved watching all his grandkids grow up and participate in activities,” she said. “No matter how busy he got at Villanova or with the center, he was always there for moments big and small in my life and my brothers’ lives.”

“He just enjoyed spending time being a dad and grandpa,” she added. “To me, that is his real legacy.”

A funeral Mass for Zech is planned for May 28 at 11 a.m. at St. John Chrysostom Parish in Wallingford, Pennsylvania.