R. Ames Montgomery

The Reverend R. Ames Montgomery
Montgomery c. 1924
12th President of Centre College
In office June 1922 – June 1926
Preceded by	William Arthur Ganfield
Succeeded by	Charles J. Turck
9th President of Parsons College
In office August 1917 – June 7, 1922
Preceded by	Lowell M. McAfee
Succeeded by	Howard McDonald
Personal details
Born	(1870-07-16)July 16, 1870 Hendricks County, Indiana, U.S.
Died	July 16, 1950(1950-07-16) (aged 80) Jonesville, Michigan, U.S.
Resting place	Spring Grove Cemetery
Spouse	Mary Allhands ​ ​ (m. 1897; died 1940)​
Education	Miami University McCormick Theological Seminary
Signature

Richmond Ames Montgomery (July 16, 1870 – July 16, 1950) was an American pastor and academic administrator. Ordained a Presbyterian minister in 1896 following his graduation from McCormick Theological Seminary, he held pastorates in Minnesota, Ohio, Iowa, and Missouri, before being elected president of Parsons College, a private liberal arts college in Fairfield, Iowa, in 1917. He spent five years at Parsons before resigning to accept the presidency of Centre College, similarly a private liberal arts school, in Danville, Kentucky. He came to Centre in the midst of major popularity surrounding the school's football team, who had defeated Harvard in a major upset some months prior; this attention caused concern from some that the school was placing undue priority on football at the expense of academics. Montgomery aimed to change this and introduced measures that would restore Centre's emphasis on academics, though these changes were unpopular with students, who signed a petition to remove him from office. He resigned in June 1926 and afterward was president of Lane Theological Seminary and held a faculty position at McCormick in his later career.