Stephen C. Ainlay, a College of the Holy Cross administrator and professor of sociology and anthropology, has been chosen as the 18th president of Union College.
In making the announcement, college officials said they sought a leader to raise the academic reputation of the 210-year-old institution.
“We went out and we tried to find, deliberately tried to find, someone who had a stellar academic background, with one of our objectives being to enhance the academic reputation of the school,” said Frank Messa, a Union alumnus and chairman of the presidential search committee.
Messa said the committee also sought a candidate with strong credentials as an administrator, an ability to “connect with all of the different constituents on campus,” and the leadership to take the school through the second half of its $200 million “You Are Union” capital campaign.
The 12-member committee was created in January, after then president Roger Hull announced his retirement. The committee and a professional search firm considered a field of 60 applicants.
The choice of Ainlay was unanimous, Messa said.
“When I say it was unanimous, every faculty member, students, senior administrators, every single person who interviewed him selected him as a top choice,” Messa said. “This was done by acclamation.”
In a telephone interview, Ainlay said his academic credentials and connections – he is vice chair of the American Conference of Academic Deans – put him in a position to influence Union's reputation within the academic world.
“I've been active in a number of other conversations about higher education and what it's trying to do in the modern era. I think that's the kind of person they need to advance the reputation of their school,” Ainlay said. “I am connected and I plan to keep connected. Union is doing so many things, it's going to be fun to tell that story.”
Ainlay will finish his term as vice president for academic affairs at Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass., and is expected to take office by summer.
According to a statement from Union, Ainlay, 54, joined Holy Cross in 1982 as assistant professor of sociology . He was promoted to full professor in 1993. He holds an undergraduate degree in sociology from Goshen College and a master's and Ph.D. from Rutgers University.
Ainlay is married to Judith Gardner. The couple have two boys, Jesse, a 2005 graduate of Holy Cross, and Jonathon, a student at the University of Arizona.
According to the statement, Ainlay's scholarly projects have ranged from investigations of blindness, aging, spirituality and various aspects of Mennonite life, all aimed at better understanding the ways in which people find meaning in their lives. His first book, “Day Brought Back My Night,” explores how people who experience blindness later in life make sense of the disruptions in their physical and social worlds.
Ainlay presents a contrast to Hull, who came to Union from the presidency of Beloit College and brought experience not only as a college administrator, but also a professional background as an attorney and a genius for fund raising. During his tenure, the endowment per student at Union nearly tripled.
Messa said he expects a different focus to emerge under Ainlay.
“I admire Roger Hull, I consider him to be the best president we've had in the last generation at Union. Stephen Ainlay brings a different background than Roger did,” Messa said.
“The general feeling of the school is that we are frustrated that we're not recognized as highly as we think we should be in the area of academic reputation,” Messa said. “Our ranking in the area of academic reputation we do not think reflects the quality of the institution and we are very much focused on that.”
Messa said many of the applicants, like Ainlay, were chief academic officers of their institutions. Ainlay presented the right credentials and the right fit for Union, Messa said.
“This is a little bit of science and a little bit of art,” Messa said about the search. “Each college has its own unique culture, social structure that sets it apart, and what you're looking for is someone who just feels right.”
Ainlay, a former director of the Holy Cross center for interdisciplinary studies, said he was impressed with Union's commitment to interdisciplinary learning.
“The thing that immediately struck me is it's an institution that has a desire to offer an unsurpassed liberal arts education and it does it in a distinct way,” Ainlay said. “That very much appealed to me.”
Ainlay cited the college's “five pillars” of education – undergraduate research, study abroad, community service, converging technology, and the Minerva House system – as the expression of that commitment.
“Whether you're talking about any one or another of those pillars, they're all things that I believe in, they're all things that I find important,” Ainlay said. “The name Union captures what they're trying to do, they're trying to provide integration . . . I think that's something that I can help them with.”