Launching the Search for Drexel's Next President

• Heard Around Campus - July 2024
• Q&A: What Happens Now After Drexel and Salus Have Merged?
• Neville Vakharia, PhD, Appointed Dean of the Pennoni Honors College
• A Message From Denis O'Brien, Drexel's Interim President

The following message was sent from Board of Trustees Chair Richard Greenawalt to the Drexel community:

Dear members of the Drexel Community,

As we begin the search for the 16th president of our esteemed institution, I am pleased to announce the members of the Presidential Search Committee that will guide the process. This group will work with the Drexel community to nominate a presidential candidate to the Board of Trustees who embodies our values and is committed to dynamically leading our institution well into the future.

Members of the committee include:

• Domenic M. DiPiero III, Trustee
• Nicholas DeBenedictis, '68, '69, HD '87, Trustee
• Angela Dowd-Burton, '74, '79, Trustee
• Richard A. Greenawalt, '66, Chair of the Board of Trustees
• Bernard F. Greene, '99, '14, Trustee, Chair of the Alumni Board of Governors
• Dave Griffith, Trustee, Chair of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University
• Nina Henderson, Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees and Chair of the Academic Affairs Committee
• Joelyne Jacob, USGA Student Body President
• Michele Kutzler, Ph.D., Associate Dean for Faculty, Professor of Medicine and Microbiology & Immunology
• J. Michael Lawrie, '77, Trustee, Search Committee Chair
• Vibhas Madan, Ph.D., Dean of LeBow College of Business, R. John Chapel Jr. Dean's Chair, Professor of Economics
• Denis P. O'Brien, '87, Drexel's Interim President
• Kevin Owens, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Chemistry, Chair of the Faculty Senate
• Richelle Parham, '91, Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees
• Virginia S. Rose, Trustee
• Subir Sahu, Ph.D., Senior Vice President for Student Success
• Stan Silverman, '69, '74, Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees

Mike Lawrie, who is chairing the search committee, is a LeBow College of Business alumnus and longtime Drexel trustee who is dedicated to seeing the institution's progress and success. A globally recognized business and technology leader, he is founder and CEO of The Lawrie Group, which is a private company providing CEO consulting, business services, and the management of a private equity fund, and he is also the founder, chairman, and CEO of TLG Acquisition One Corp., a publicly traded SPAC on the New York Stock Exchange.

The committee recently had its first meeting to lay out a timeline for the search process and plan regular communication and engagement with the Drexel community. The group will work with Heidrick & Struggles, an international executive search and leadership consulting firm, to identify presidential candidates throughout the next few months and engage in a thoughtful and comprehensive process.

Regular updates on the search process will be posted on the Office of the President website, which also includes a link to a survey for members of the Drexel community to provide input.

I am immensely thankful to John Fry, Drexel's visionary president for the past 14 years, and to Denis O'Brien, who has graciously agreed to serve as Drexel's interim president during this important transition. As we embark on bold, strategic plans to strengthen the University's future, the outcome of this search is all the more meaningful. Thank you to everyone in the Drexel community for your continued partnership and support.

Sincerely,

Richard Greenawalt
Chair, Drexel University

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