E. Gordon Gee named Chancellor of Vanderbilt University

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — E. Gordon Gee, the president of Brown University, has been named as the seventh Chancellor of Vanderbilt University, effective Aug. 1.

His unanimous election at a special Feb. 7 meeting of the Vanderbilt Board of Trust came after a nine-month national search that began last April, when Chancellor Joe B. Wyatt announced his intention to retire in July after 18 years as Vanderbilt’s chief executive.

"Gordon Gee is the ideal leader for Vanderbilt University," said Board of Trust Chairman Martha R. Ingram. "He embodies the values that are so important for a great university and for this University in particular: excellence in scholarship, a passionate concern for every individual, a commitment to partnership with the community and the courage to make difficult decisions. Equally important, Gordon has a great passion for our educational mission, and a keen sense of Vanderbilt’s traditions.

"Thanks in large part to Joe Wyatt’s extraordinary leadership over nearly two decades, Vanderbilt is now poised to make a great leap into the very top ranks of American universities in every area. Gordon Gee’s experiences and temperament clearly show he can do that. He is a national leader who is uniquely prepared to see Vanderbilt through the beginning of a new century. We look forward to welcoming Gordon and Constance to the Vanderbilt family," Ingram added.

"Over the past few months, I have heard time and again that Vanderbilt is a ‘special place,’ and I have come to believe it," said Gee. "There is no other university in the country that already does so many things so well, yet has almost limitless possibilities and a solid foundation on which to build for the future. Vanderbilt is blessed with rich traditions and even richer opportunities for learning, for discovery and for service.

Gee continued: "At the same time, the decision to leave Brown was one of the most difficult Constance and I ever made. Brown is a magnificent institution, the only one of its kind in the world. I come to Vanderbilt, however, confident in the knowledge that my work at Brown will help make it a better university. Constance and I treasure our time in Providence, and we especially look forward to making our home in Nashville."

A committee of trustees led by Board of Trust Vice Chairman Dennis C. Bottorff considered more than 150 candidates before nominating Gee to be Chancellor-elect. Along with an advisory committee of faculty, students and staff, the Board solicited comments from members of the Vanderbilt community,

"Our goal was to identify a Chancellor who met the very high expectations articulated by the faculty, students, staff and alumni, and who could make a positive difference at Vanderbilt," said Bottorff. "Gordon Gee is that person. He has made a difference – not just once, but at several of the best universities in the country. He is an academic visionary who has successfully taken on – and balanced -- the challenges of education, research, health care and management in a very competitive world. We’re fortunate to have him."

Harold L. Moses, M.D., director of the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center and chairman of the faculty-student-staff advisory committee, added, "We looked very carefully at what it takes to run a research university with an academic health center, that also excels at undergraduate education. By every measure, and then some, Gordon Gee fits the bill. Everyone who knows him likes him as a friend and respects him as a chief executive."

E. Gordon Gee, 56, is one of the most experienced leaders in higher education. In 1997, he was named president of Brown, where he also holds a faculty appointment as professor of education and public policy. Under his leadership, the Providence, R.I., university has launched new interdisciplinary programs in human values and life sciences, and doubled its annual fund-raising in the space of two years.

Gee is also an active member of the community, serving as director of Health & Education Leadership for Providence; president of the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council; director of the Providence Plan; trustee of the Providence Foundation; member of the Economic Policy Council; director of Grow Smart Rhode Island; and chairman of the search committee seeking a new school superintendent for the City of Providence. Gee currently serves as president of the Ivy League Council of Presidents.

A prominent national advocate for higher education, Gee has served as chairman of the Association of American Universities, chairman of the Kellogg Commission on the Future of State and Land Grant Universities, and a member of the NCAA President’s Commission.

A native of Vernal, Utah, Gee graduated from the University of Utah in 1968 with a bachelor’s degree in history. He earned a law degree and doctorate in education from Columbia University in 1971 and 1972, respectively, after which he served as a judicial clerk for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10^th Circuit.

Gee’s first academic position was as assistant dean of the law school at the University of Utah. From 1974 to 1975, he was a judicial fellow and senior staff assistant in the chambers of the Chief Justice of the United States. Gee returned to Utah in 1975 to serve as associate dean and professor of law at the J. Reuben Clark Law School of Brigham Young University. In 1979, he was named dean and professor of law at West Virginia University.

Gee first served as a chief executive officer at the age of 37, when he was elected president at West Virginia. He became president of the University of Colorado in 1985, and, in 1990, moved to The Ohio State University.

With more than 50,000 students, 30,000 faculty and staff, and an operating budget of $2 billion, Ohio State is the largest single university campus in the United States. It includes the country’s largest academic medical center and one of the most comprehensive intercollegiate athletics programs, with 34 varsity sports. As president, Gee led a major academic and administrative restructuring, and initiated a billion-dollar capital campaign.

Gee has written or co-written seven books, including Information Literacy: Revolution in the Library, which won the American Library Association’s G.K. Hall Award in 1990 for outstanding contribution to library literature. The second edition of Education Law and the Public Schools: A Compendium was published in 1997.

Gordon Gee is married to Constance Bumgarner Gee, assistant professor of public policy and education at Brown, and the former director of the Arts Policy and Administration Program at Ohio State. His daughter Rebekah is a medical student at Cornell University.

For more information, visit the Chancellor Search page.

Contact: Michael Schoenfeld, (615) 343-1790 (office)
(615) 463-8578 (home)
(615) 429-7913 (mobile)
michael.schoenfeld@vanderbilt.edu

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