Stephen Charles Ainlay, vice president for academic affairs and professor of sociology and anthropology at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass., has been named the 18th president of Union College, it was announced Tuesday by Stephen J. Ciesinski '70, chair of the Board of Trustees.
Ainlay is a sociologist with a distinguished record as a teacher, scholar and administrator. He has been a professor at Holy Cross since 1982 and a dean since 1996.
Selected after an extensive national search, Ainlay is to assume the presidency in June 2006. He succeeds Roger Hull, who served 15 years before stepping down last June. James Underwood, professor emeritus of political science, is serving as interim president.
“Stephen Ainlay is a highly respected academic leader who has the credentials and experience to bring Union College to a new level of excellence,” said Ciesinski. “Throughout his remarkable career, he has demonstrated that he shares both our strong commitment to the traditional liberal arts and our passion for innovation.”
He noted that Ainlay “is uniquely qualified to lead this College as it becomes a progressive pioneer through initiatives such as the Minerva houses, converging technologies and undergraduate research.”
Ciesinski commended Trustee Frank Messa '73 and the other members of the Presidential Search Committee “for a job well done.”
Stephen was the unanimous first choice among a stellar list of candidates who were attracted to Union College,” said Messa. “Through his vast experience as an academic and administrator and his respect for Union's commitment to excellence in higher education, he impressed the members of the committee as the ideal person to become Union's 18th president.”
For more, visit http://www.union.edu/newpresident/.