A cultural historian and the president of Stony Brook University has been named the 24th president of Yale University.
Maurie McInnis, who earned her Ph.D. in art history, will succeed Peter Salovey as of July 1. She was the unanimous choice of the Yale Corporation, the university’s board of trustees, according to Josh Bekenstein, senior trustee and chairman of the search committee.
“A compelling leader, distinguished scholar, and devoted educator, she brings to the role a deep understanding of higher education and an unwavering commitment to our mission and academic priorities,” Bekenstein wrote on behalf of the full board. “Her experience and accomplishments over the past three decades have prepared her to lead Yale in the years ahead.”
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Peter Salovey, who is returning to the faculty fulltime after 11 years as president. She starts July 1.
The search for Yale’s 24th leader was “robust” and designed “to cast a wide net and to gain different perspectives on the ideal qualities and qualifications of the next president,” Bekenstein said. The search committee received input from thousands of Yale students, faculty, staff, alumni, and members of the New Haven community through listening sessions, individual meetings, webform entries, and a student survey. It also consulted with leaders in and beyond higher education.
“The committee’s subsequent deliberations drew from all your comments and suggestions,” Bekenstein wrote in the message.
In McInnis, who first joined Yale in 1989 as a graduate student in the Department of the History of Art, the committee “was excited by a leader who brought new perspectives from around the country and cared deeply about the best of Yale’s traditions.”
Over a three-decade career in higher education, McInnis has held teaching, research, and leadership roles, Bekenstein wrote, and for nearly two decades, has served in a series of senior positions at three “iconic universities.” At the University of Virginia, she shaped undergraduate academic programs as an associate dean and led academic affairs as a vice provost; at the University of Texas at Austin she was the provost. And as Stony Brook’s current president, she is responsible for the academics, research, and operations of a flagship university for the State of New York, as well as for Long Island’s “premier medical center,” which provides care for the entire region, Bekenstein said.
At Stony Brook, McInnis also shares responsibility for overseeing Brookhaven National Laboratory, a U.S. Department of Energy facility for particle physics and nuclear energy, data, and quantum information sciences. And as the inaugural chair of the board of the New York Climate Exchange, she led the establishment of an international climate change solutions center in New York City.
Salovey, who has served as president for 11 years, will return to Yale’s faculty.
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Ed Stannard can be reached at [email protected].
Source Agencies
