 Appointed Vicar General of the Diocese on June 29, 1979 he was elected Administrator of the Diocese on January 26, 1984, upon the death of Bishop George A. Fulcher.He was appointed Bishop of Lafayette-in-Indiana by Pope John Paul II, and consecrated and installed on June 6, 1984.During Bishop Higi's tenure, he not only expanded the diocese by dedicating new churches, but also added the second high school to the diocese, St. Theodore Guerin High School in Noblesville.